August 28, 2014
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România Internațional, 28.08.2014, 13:00
The President of Romania Traian Băsescu has today met with the EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton. The talks have focused on the situation in the region, particularly the Ukraine crisis and the EU accession efforts of the Republic of Moldova. Ms Ashton is a guest in the annual meeting of Romanian diplomats, which is taking place in Bucharest.
The Romanian government has today passed a controversial emergency ordinance that enables local elected officials to choose their political affiliation without losing their seats. Under the bill, mayors, chairs of county councils, local and county councillors will have 45 days to choose the political party they want to join. The Opposition, civil society and President Traian Băsescu have criticised the document as encouraging political migration and undermining democracy. The President urged the Government not to issue this emergency ordinance, on grounds that it comes against the Constitution. In turn, the US Embassy in Bucharest has expressed concerns about the timing of this piece of legislation, and said it ought to be discussed in an open and transparent legislative process.
The Romanian PM Victor Ponta is taking part in Ankara today in the inauguration of the new President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who replaces Abdullah Gül. Victor Ponta pointed out that Turkey is Romania’s leading trade partner outside the EU and a strategic partner in the NATO trilateral, alongside Poland. Elected president of Turkey with 52% of the votes in the first round, Erdogan has more than once announced plans to strengthen the powers of the head of state, largely decorative at present. Last week, he nominated one of his close collaborators, the incumbent Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, both as his successor as head of the Islamic Conservative Justice and Development Party, and as prime minister.
The Romanian Defence Minister Mircea Duşa is on an official two-day visit to France, starting today, at the invitation of his French counterpart, Jean-Yves Le Drian. The two will discuss the preparations for the NATO Summit taking place this September in Wales, the security on NATO’s eastern border, as well as the development of bilateral military cooperation. On Friday, Mircea Duşa will visit the EU Command Centre in Mont Valerien, near Paris.
The new Romanian minister delegate for budget, the Social Democrat Darius Vâlcov, has been sworn in today, in the presence of President Traian Basescu and PM Victor Ponta. The ceremony was originally scheduled for Wednesday, but was postponed because the PM could not attend. Senator Darius Vâlcov replaces Liviu Voinea, who is to take over a National Bank vice-governor position this autumn.
The European Union welcomed the ceasefire agreement between Israel and the Palestinians in Gaza, and called on the two parties to negotiate a comprehensive and sustainable agreement, AFP reports. Such an agreement should address the root cause of the conflict in Gaza, the EU said, and called for an end to the Israeli blockade of 2006. After 50 days of war, the two parties have accepted the Egyptian mediators’ truce plan. During this period, the clashes in Gaza killed over 2,100 Palestinians, mostly civilians, and scores of Israeli troops.
The Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has today cancelled his visit to Turkey and called an emergency meeting of the Security and National Defence Council, as the security situation in the east of the country is quickly worsening. Kiev said the Russian troops have today taken control on Novoazovsk, a strategic town on the border, some 100 km south of the pro-Russian rebel stronghold of Donetsk, where heavy fighting has been reported. The Ukrainian PM Arseniy Yatseniuk called on Western countries to hold an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council, and said Russia has significantly strengthened its military presence in Ukraine. Lithuania has accused Moscow of having moved on to an evident military invasion in Ukraine, and supported calls for a UN Security Council meeting on this topic.
