July 27, 2015
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România Internațional, 27.07.2015, 12:00
During the
festival in Salzburg Romanian writer Mircea Cartarescu will be awarded the
Austrian state prize for European Literature in 2015 for his entire literary
activity, which has compelled international recognition. After Eugen Ionesco,
who reaped the prize in 1970, Mircea Cartarescu has become the second Romanian
writer to win this prize, which was founded in 1965. Among the winners of the past years there are famous writers such
as Harold Pinter, Vaclav Havel, Italo Calvino, Doris Lessing, Milan Kundera,
Salman Rushdie and Umberto Eco.
Talks between
pro-European parties in the Republic of Moldova – the Liberal Democratic Party
(PLDM), the Democratic Party (PD) and the Liberal Party (PL) on designating the
country’s Prime Minister have reached a deadlock. Leaders of the three parties,
who have recently signed an agreement on setting up an Alliance for European
Integration, do not agree with the designation of PLD’s candidate Maia Sandu
for this position. Sandu asked for changes to be operated in the National
Bank’s management so that the new government can apply measures that will allow
the conclusion of an agreement with the IMF. According to Maia Sandu, the new
executive should come up with an anti-crisis plan also providing for
significant cuts in public spending. We recall the PLDM, PDM and PL are holding
55 seats out of the total 101 in Parliament. Since the resignation of Prime
Minister Chiril Gaburici in June, the Executive in Chisinau, which enjoys the
communists’ support in Parliament, has been led by Natalia Gherman.
The weather
remains extremely hot in the south and southeastern Romania, where maximum
temperatures are soaring to 37 degrees Celsius. Meteorologists have issued a
code yellow alert for extremely high temperatures in the affected regions. In
the following days highs are expected to go up to 38-39 degrees. In the rest of
the territory, temperatures will be ranging between 26 and 34 degrees Celsius
and the sky is overcast. Isolated thunderstorms are expected in some regions.
The noon reading in Bucharest stood at 29 degrees.
Russia’s
president Vladimir Putin has announced that the Russian fleet will extend its
operations in the Black Sea, the Baltic Sea and the Mediterranean. The changes
have become necessary because of the NATO’s expansion to the East and the union
of Crimea and Russia, the Kremlin leader announced on Sunday, which was Navy
Day in Russia. Putin has announced that Russia’s new maritime doctrine has been
passed providing for the development of the Russian fleet infrastructure in the
Black Sea and a tighter cooperation with India and China. A couple of days ago,
Moscow announced it would beef up its naval presence in the Black and the
Baltic seas amid rising tension with the West over the Ukrainian conflict.
The
Romanian government is preparing the first budget adjustment this year, which
Prime Minister Victor Ponta has described as a positive one. The Finance
Minister is today briefing the ruling Social Democratic Party on a budget
adjustment draft, which is to be submitted to the Executive tomorrow. Under the
new law more money will be channeled towards town halls and county councils. The Interior Ministry,
the Education system and the Environment are also to receive more money. Social
assistance expenses and money needed for rising child benefits and the pilots’
pensions are to be increased by 300 million euros.
Romanian tennis player Simona Halep remains on the third position in
WTA standings, according to wtatennis.com. Two other Romanians are in top 50; Irina
Begu is ranking 29th and Monica Niculescu 39th. Serena
Williams ranks first in the standings followed by Maria Sarapova of Russia. In
the ATP double rankings, Romanian tennis player Horia Tecau comes fifth,
according to atpworldtour.com, while Florin Mergea is in the eighth position.
