April 28, 2018 UPDATE
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Newsroom, 28.04.2018, 19:14
NO RESIGNATION In a televised interview on Friday night, Romania’s Prime Minister Viorica Dancila said she would not step down. The Social-Democratic head of the Executive in Bucharest explained that she remained unaffected by president Klaus Iohannis’ decision to withdraw her support as long as she enjoyed support from the parties forming the ruling coalition in Romania. Earlier on Friday, the Romanian president had publicly called for Mrs. Dancila’s resignation, three months after she had come to office, arguing that the Prime Minister was not fit for the job. The president’s call came after the Prime Minister had refused to take part in a round of talks on inflation. Iohannis has also mentioned a recent government memorandum concerning the relocation of the Romanian embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Displeased that he had not been consulted on the matter, the president pointed out that an exploratory discussion on the issue was not a bad thing, but the international legislation in the field must be observed. While Viorica Dancila was paying an official visit to Israel on Wednesday and Thursday, Iohannis underlined that it had never happened before that a Prime Minister should leave without announcing their talks agenda. The president’s decision has split the Romanian political class in two. According to the ruling PSD-ALDE coalition, there is no reason for the Prime Minister to step down and the president’s prerogatives do not include a decision to withdraw their trust in the Prime Minister or the government. The right-wing opposition intends to table a no-confidence motion.
RELOCATION According to a communiqué issued by the Israeli Prime Minister’s office, Benjamin Netanyahu has voiced hope that Bucharest will take a step similar to that taken by Washington and relocate Romania’s embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. The document recalls that the Israeli Prime Minister has this week met his Romanian counterpart Viorica Dancila, Foreign Minister Teodor Melescanu and the head of the Chamber of Deputies in Bucharest Liviu Dragnea. The talks reflect the special relation the two countries have had for many years now being focused on ways of deepening these relations. In another development, the Palestinian ambassador to the EU, Abdul Rahim Farra has said that the head of the European diplomacy, Federica Mogherini, has given assurances that no EU member will take action against the European consensus in this respect and relocate its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
TALKS Romania’s Health Minister Sorina Pintea is expected to have a fresh round of talks with trade union representatives from the country’s medical system. The minister has again voiced her readiness for dialogue, as she has had no less than 28 meetings with trade union leaders over the past months in an attempt to find solutions to the issues currently facing the country’s healthcare system. Thousands of medical employees took to the streets of Bucharest on Thursday to protest the pay cuts they had seen since the introduction of new government regulations. The protesters have called for the elimination of a cap, limiting benefits to 30% of their salaries. Trade unions have threatened to launch a token strike on May 7th that can be followed by an all-out strike four days later.
MINI-BREAK The Romanians are on their May 1st mini-break and have already left for their favourite seaside and mountain resorts, which are almost fully booked. Going to picnics in the middle of nature is another favourite pastime with the Romanians. The country’s railway company CFR has added more trains to the most sought-after destinations to cope with the large number of tourists, while traffic on the country’s main roads is being monitored by 15 hundred police officers fitted with 300 speed cameras.
DEFENCE Romania’s Defence Minister Mihai Fifor is paying a visit to Jordan over April 28th and May 2nd to participate in the ‘Aqaba Meeting’. According to a communiqué, Minister Fifor will be received by king Abdullah the second of Jordan and is to hold talks with Lieutenant General Mahmoud Freihat, the current Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the Jordanian Armed Forces. According to the Romanian Defence Ministry, the ‘Aqaba Meetings’ are a platform of strategic dialogue launched in 2015 with the view to coordinating the actions taken by the international community against terrorism and extremism. Four suchlike trans-regional meetings have been held so far with participants sharing the same concerns about consolidating stability and security irrespective of the geopolitical or geo-strategic context of their regions.
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