July 3, 2017 UPDATE

President Klaus Iohannis to attend the Three Seas Summit in Warsaw

Newsroom, 03.07.2017, 19:44

SUMMIT — Romanian President Klaus Iohannis on Thursday will attend the Three Seas Summit in Warsaw, bringing together countries around the Baltic Sea, Adriatic Sea, and the Black Sea. According to the presidency, the meeting will be attended by representatives from Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Hungary. Attending the summit will also be US President Donald Trump. The initiative is aimed at providing political support for cooperation between the economies of countries around the three seas in areas such as energy, transportation, telecommunication and environment protection.

JUSTICE — The Romanian Justice Ministry on Monday organised a second public debate on the revision of the criminal laws on the abuse of office. Attending the debate were representatives of the institutions with the legal system, magistrates’ associations and the academic field. Romania’s Constitutional Court found recently that the legal provisions in force, related to the abuse of office, are formulated vaguely and recommended the introduction of a ceiling.

VERIFICATION — The Legal Inspection in Romania initiated on Monday the verification of the managerial efficiency at the National Anti-Corruption Directorate (DNA) and the Prosecutor’s Office with the High Court of Cassation and Justice. Justice Minister Tudorel Toader has asked for these verifications, the first in ten years. Minister Toader said that the fight against corruption also involves prevention, not just sentences and convictions, and pointed out that there were cases when some of the people convicted were later found not guilty. On the other hand, the opposition party Save Romania Union, protested at the Justice Minister’s decision to initiate verifications at the anti-corruption institutions, saying that he is in fact supporting an attack against justice orchestrated by the ruling coalition.

CENTRAL BANK — The National Bank of Romania decided on Monday to maintain the monetary policy interest rate at 1.75% per year. This rate has not been modified since May 2015. According to the Central Bank, the country ‘s economic growth in the first three months of the year was significant, with the annual dynamics of the GDP going up to 5.7% from 4.8% in the previous year. The annual inflation rate went up in May 2017 to 0.64%, slightly over the forecast level.

THEATER — The ninth edition of the International Street Theatre Festival B-Fit in the Street started in Romania on Saturday. Hundreds of artists from France, Italy, Germany, Austria, Spain, Colombia, and Romania have scheduled over 40 street shows for the month of July. Events are held over weekends. Radio Romania Culture, Radio Romania International and Bucharest FM are media partners to the festival.

DEFENSE – Romania’s President Klaus Iohannis convened the country’s Supreme Defense Council on Tuesday in Bucharest to discuss the Romanian Army’s equipping plan for 2017-2026 and the activity of the Romanian Intelligence Service in 2016. Also tackled will be the army’s contribution with troops to missions and operations outside Romania’s border in 2018.

WEATHER – The heavy rainfall and storms have created big problems in a number of Romanian counties and in the capital Bucharest. Dozens of houses, public institutions and roads have been flooded. Skies are overcast over most of the country and further rain is expected. A code orange alert has been issued for extreme instability and rains, valid for 19 counties in the south, center, southeast and southwest, valid until Tuesday morning. These conditions come after a heat wave hit Romania late last week, with temperatures up to 44 degrees Celsius.

(Translated by Elena Enache)