February 25, 2015 UPDATE

For a roundup of domestic and international events, click here.

Florentin Căpitănescu, 25.02.2015, 12:15

VISIT — President Klaus Iohannis is as of Wednesday on an official visit to Germany, where he will meet with his counterpart Joachim Gauck and Chancellor Angela Merkel. President Iohannis said that talks will focus on Romania’s accession to the Schengen Area and the Ukrainian crisis. According to a presidency press release, the agenda of the visit also includes talks with Bundestag president Norbert Lammert and representatives of the Romanian-German Forum. In addition, the Romanian Embassy in Berlin will host a meeting between president Iohannis and members of the Romanian community. The president’s visit to Germany follows another visit to the Republic of Moldova on Tuesday and Wednesday. Iohannis expressed Romania’s full support for Moldova’s European actions.

ARREST — Former Minister of Development Elena Udrea has been placed under a pre-emptive arrest following a decision of the High Court on Wednesday. The decision, which can be appealed in court, was taken after anti-corruption prosecutors presented new accusations of bribe-taking in a case where Udrea is suspected of allegedly misspending Government money via the Ministry of Development for a boxing gala. In the same case the former president of the Romanian Boxing Federation Rudel Obreja and a local mayor have been detained, while a former Cabinet colleague of Udrea, former Economy Minister Ion Ariton, currently holding an MP seat, is also being investigated. Considered one of the most influential politicians of the last decade, Udrea has been under pre-emptive arrest since February 11, pending her investigation in the Microsoft case. Several former ministers and well-known businessmen are suspected of having received millions of euros to grant illegal IT licences to beneficiaries in the education system.

TRANSPORT — Romania’s master plan in transport was adopted on Wednesday by the Government and will be discussed with European Commission representatives between March 8 and 13 in Brussels. The announcement was made by Transport Minister Ioan Rus, who said this marks a new step for Romania in terms of investment in transport infrastructure. Minister Rus said the overall value of projects included in the master plan is over 45 billion euros, which will cover investments in road, air, maritime and rail transport.

INTELLIGENCE – The permanent bureaus of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate in Bucharest have decided to meet on 2 March to vote on the president’s nomination of MP Eduard Hellvig as the director of the Romanian Intelligence Service. On Tuesday, Hellvig’s nomination was approved by the parliamentary committee supervising the activity of the Service. A former member of the Conservative Party and, since 2008, a member of the National Liberal Party, in opposition today, 40-year-old Eduard Hellvig served in 2012 as a minister for regional development and tourism in Victor Ponta’s cabinet. In the autumn of 2014, he was part of Klaus Iohannis’ election campaign team. The position of intelligence chief has been vacant since January 27th, when George Cristian Maior resigned after 8 years in office. Earlier, he voiced harsh criticism against a ruling by the Constitutional Court that a proposed bill on cyber security was unconstitutional.

PARTY SWITCHING — The Chamber of Deputies on Wednesday adopted the law on nullifying the Government’s emergency ordinance allowing local officials to switch parties. The final document doesn’t include the amendments tabled by the Liberal opposition. The Liberals had suggested that those officials who actually benefited from the Ordinance while it was in effect should lose their mandates. The document will be submitted to Senate. Adopted in September by Government and subsequently by Parliament, the law was rejected in December under a Constitutional Court ruling. The ordinance allowed local officials to switch parties within 45 days of being elected without losing their term in office.

ENERGY — The European Commission on Wednesday presented its energy strategy, aimed at lowering energy costs and reducing the EU’s dependency on Russian gas imports, France Press reports. The Commission adopted three measures deemed essential to that end: a strategy to create a single energy market, a document on interconnecting member states’ energy grids and a document on climate negotiations. Current events highlight the stake, namely that many European fear they won’t have enough energy to heat their homes, Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker has said. The EU official said this will be a common and long-term action. The EU is the world’s largest energy importer, as it imports over half of its energy demand at a cost of some 400 billion euros per year, France Press reports.

UKRAINE — Russia will cut off its gas imports to Ukraine unless this country pays its outstanding debts, which will result in a problem for Europe, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Wednesday. Presdient Putin said Kiev’s refusal to supply gas to separatit regions Donetsk and Luhansk in the East is tantamount to an act of genocide. In another development, in its latest report Amnesty International says both sides in the conflict are to blame for the death of over 5,800 people since the outbreak of clashes between Ukrainian security forces and Moscow-backed separatists. Meanwhile, clashes clashes continue on the ground near the strategic port of Mariupol.