June 19, 2019 UPDATE

A roundup of domestic and international news

Newsroom, 19.06.2019, 20:13

VISIT The Presidents of
Romania and Egypt, Klaus Iohannis and Abdel Fattah el-Sisi respectively, had
official talks on Wednesday, as part of the visit the head of the Egyptian
state is making to Bucharest. The 2 leaders announced with satisfaction an
increase in the volume of bilateral trade, and President Iohannis said closer
cooperation was being discussed, both in bilateral terms and between the
European Union and Egypt, in the field of social and economic development,
research, the fight against terrorism, energy and migration. Informal
negotiations are under way for an economic agreement between the EU and Egypt.

JUSTICE -
The EU-US Justice and Home Affairs Ministerial Meeting was held in
Bucharest on Wednesday, under the Romanian Presidency of the Council of the EU.
The participants included the Commissioner for Justice, Consumers and Gender
Equality Vera Jourova, the Commissioner for the Security Union Julian King, as
well as the Commissioner for Migration, Home affairs and Citizenship Dimitris
Avramopoulos. Also attending, for the first time, was the US Attorney General
William Barr. The agenda of the meeting included topics of interest for both
sides, such as counterterrorism, migration, borders and visas, cyber security
and judicial cooperation. Before the meeting, Dimitris Avramopoulos said that
Romania would soon become a member of Schengen, as it had fulfilled almost all
its commitments.

BUSINESS PM Viorica Dăncilă
said on Wednesday that the French investments in Romania are proof that this is
a favourable country for the business environment. Dăncilă took part in the
French-Romanian Economic Forum, an event organised by the French Chamber of
Commerce and Industry in Romania as part of the Romania-France Season. We have
all witnessed of late a true economic upswing in the bilateral relation, with
many successful projects that have helped push the French-Romanian trade to
over 9 million euro last year, the Romanian PM said. France is the 5th largest
foreign investor in Romania. Over 3,000 French businesses operate in Romania,
employing a combined 120,000 people, and France is the 3rd most important
market for Romanian exports.

EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT Dacian Cioloş, who was elected into
the European Parliament on the lists of the 2020 USR-PLUS Alliance, was chosen
to lead Renew Europe, a pro-European group formed around President Emmanuel
Macron following the May 26th European elections. The presidency of Renew
Europe group is just a step in the political construction we have been working
to design for 2 years, Ciolos said. A former PM of Romania and former European
commissioner for agriculture, Dacian Ciolos is the leader of PLUS party in
Romania. The alliance formed by PLUS and Save Romania Union won 8 seats in the
European Parliament, coming in 3rd in Romania after the National Liberal Party
and the Social Democratic Party.

VOTING – On Wednesday, president Klaus
Iohannis sent a letter to the Romanian Government, presenting a set of measures
meant to improve the election process, proposed by the Presidential
Administration Working Group, following May 26th elections. The
measures are aimed at reducing bureaucracy, increasing the number of polling
stations abroad and equipping them properly, changing the legislation with
regard to the closing hours of the voting stations and early elections abroad,
starting with the presidential elections due this autumn. According to the head
of state, these measures should target all types of elections and referenda,
creating the grounds for a new electoral code, in the near future, to unify all
the legal provisions on elections.

MOLDOVA – Financial assistance to the Republic of
Moldova might be resumed in autumn, said on Wednesday the European Commissioner
for Neighborhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations Johannes Hahn, on a visit
to Chisinau. In a joint press conference with the Moldovan Prime Minister Maia
Sandu, the European official stated that Brussels last year presented the
former government with the conditions set by the EU for resuming its financial
aid. Johannes Hahn hailed the peaceful transfer of power in Chisinau and
stressed the importance of the fight against corruption. In turn, Maia Sandu
stated that the political dialogue between Chisinau and Brussels was resumed on
Wednesday.

MEDICINES – Bucharest is hosting, between June 19th and 21st, the
second meeting of the Heads of Medicines Agencies – HMA II. The agenda includes
topics of strategic importance in the field of human and animal health
products. Attending the meeting are the heads of medicines regulation and
control agencies in the European Economic Area, representatives of the European
Medicines Agency, of the European Directorate for the Quality of Medicines and
of the European Commission. The first HMA meeting organised under the Romanian
presidency of the Council of the EU was held in Timisoara in February.

WEATHER – Romanian meteorologists on Wednesday issued a code
yellow warning for heavy rainfalls, thunderstorms and hailstorms, valid today
in most parts of the country. Precipitation amounts will exceed 25 l/sq.m. The
bad weather is expected to continue on Thursday. Experts also warn that thermal
discomfort will remain high especially at noon time, with the
temperature-humidity index sometimes exceeding the critical 80-unit ceiling.

FOOTBALL– The winner of the
Romanian Football Cup, FC Viitorul Constanta, will face Royal Antwerp of
Belgium in the second preliminary round of Europa League, according to the draw
held in Nyon, Switzerland on Wednesday. The first leg will be held in Belgium,
on July 25th, and the second in Ovidiu, Romania, on August 1st.
On Tuesday, several teams learned their opponents in the first preliminary
round of the European Cups. In the Europa League, FCSB will play against
Milsami Orhei of Moldova. CSU Craiova will take the Azeri FK Sabail, and in the
Champions League, CFR Cluj, Romania’s champion, will meet FC Astana of Kazakhstan.