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April 12, 2018 UPDATE

Romanian President Klaus Iohannis receives French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian

Newsroom, 12.04.2018, 18:58

MEETING – Romanian President Klaus Iohannis received on Thursday in Bucharest the French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian. On this occasion, President Iohannis said Romania’s joining the Schengen area continues to be an important goal for the country and voiced hope that France would support a decision in this respect. The French official said in turn that France does not hinder in any way Romania’s prospects for joining Schengen. The two officials also tackled the bilateral Strategic Partnership and the EU Council Presidency that Romania is to take over. Previously, the French Foreign Minister said during a meeting with the Romanian Foreign Minister Teodor Melescanu there is an uncrossable red line for Paris in the case of Syria, and that is the use of chemical weapons. In turn, Teodor Melescanu said Romania supports an enquiry in the case of the latest attack in Syria, carried out by a special body that should also decide the course of action. The United States said all options are on the table in response to the alleged chemical attack perpetrated in Syria. The White House blames Syria and Russia for this incident. Activists, members of rescue teams and doctors said dozens were killed in Saturday’s attack in the rebel-held city of Douma. The Syrian Government, currently receiving military support from Russia, has denied any involvement.

DECREE — The Bucharest Government on Thursday passed an emergency decree under which the National Commission for Prognosis becomes the National Commission for Strategy and Prognosis. According to the Government, the Commission will draw up social and economic development programmes and studies on macroeconomic balances and will assess the economic and social impact of state aid schemes and of public investment projects conducted through public-private partnerships. Moreover, the Commission will coordinate activities related to the country’s switch to the Euro.

INFLATION — The annual rate of inflation went up to 5% in March 2018, from 4.7% the previous month, against the backdrop of a rise in the prices for food and non-food products and services, the National Institute for Statistics announced on Thursday. The inflation rate was higher only in June 2013, when consumer prices went up by 5.37%. This February the National Bank of Romania revised its inflation forecast for the end of the year, from 3.2 to 3.5%. The Bank estimates an annual inflation rate of 3.1% for 2019.

HEALTHCARE — Members of the SANITAS trade union federation in the healthcare sector have announced a new series of protests, unhappy with the level of their net income after the recent salary increase and the introduction of the new bonus scheme. The leader of the federation’s branch in Iasi, Iulian Cozianu, said unionists will be protesting in front of the Iasi County prefecture starting Friday. Unionists demand the increase of the cap on bonuses above 30% for public healthcare units and the payment of the same bonuses in all healthcare units. The 30% cap means hundreds of employees will see their incomes slashes by as much as 280 euros. Last month, SANITAS announced stage an all-out strike.

FORUM — Romania’s Interior Minister Carmen Dan is taking part as of Thursday in the two-day Salzburg Forum Vienna Process inter-ministerial conference. High on the agenda are topics important for member states, particularly for countries that will take over the rotating presidency of the European Council. Talks also focus on EU security, migration, asylum-granting procedures at EU level, police cooperation and combating terrorism. Romania is currently holding the presidency of the Salzburg Forum for a six-month term. The Forum is a security cooperation organization comprising states from Central and Eastern Europe, Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia.

SPOTLIGHT — The fourth edition of the Spotlight Festival kicked off on Thursday in Bucharest. The festival consists in projecting large images on the city’s iconic buildings. For four days, the city center becomes an open-air exhibition. This year’s edition of the festival is entitledUnited We Shine and brings to Bucharest 27 installations, projects and video mapping sessions from France, Australia, Israel, Germany, China, Russia, Italy, Spain and Romania. For the first time, the organizers will project famous works of art on the facades of several buildings, including the Romanian Athenaeum. (Translated by Elena Enache)