June 3, 2014

Click here for a roundup of domestic and international news

Bogdan Matei, 03.06.2014, 12:14

Talks are underway in Bucharest between the Romanian authorities and a joint IMF, European Commission and World Bank delegation which has been in Romania since Monday, for a fresh assessment of the precautionary loan agreement signed in the autumn of 2013. The two-week talks will mainly revolve around ways to finding a solution for a 5 per cent reduction as of July the 1st of the social contributions paid by employers. In the wake of yesterday’s fact-finding discussions with Prime Minister Victor Ponta, the IMF officials held meetings with representatives of Romania’s Finance Ministry, where emphasis was laid on the level of cashed budget sums in the first months of 2014, which account for less than the initial predictions. The delegation also held talks with the Transport Ministry, revolving around the railway sector, where privatizations attempts so far have failed.

The Spanish Government in an extraordinary session today is to pass the organic law required for the implementation of King Juan Carlos’s decision to abdicate. The Spanish King on Monday announced that after four decades he was renouncing the crown in favor of his son Crown Prince Felipe of Asturias. According to Romania’s former King, Mihai I, King Juan Carlos, whom he called his admirable cousin, can quite aptly be included among Europe’s leading personalities in the last 50 years. In another move, thousands of people in Madrid yesterday gathered in an anti-Monarchic rally, claiming the staging of a referendum on the instatement of the republic.

Sustained fire exchanges between pro-Russian militants and Ukraine’s security services this morning have been reported for the city of Slavyansk in eastern Ukraine, the country’s Interior Minister Arsen Avakov has announced. Avakov strongly advised people from Slavyansk as well as those from the neighboring towns of Kramatorsk and Krasny Liman not to leave their homes. On Monday at least five people were killed and 15 other wounded in Lugansk, where hundreds of insurgents stormed a border checkpoint, but Ukrainian border police repelled the attack. Joining separatists in their fight are volunteers from Russia and Chechnya, which for Kiev stands as yet another proof for the fact that Moscow backed rebels. In turn, Russia has denounced what it called crimes perpetrated by the authorities in Kiev against their own people and submitted a resolution to the UN Security Council demanding a ceasefire in Ukraine.

US President Barack Obama has suggested earmarking up to one billion dollars for the deployment of new ground, sea and air forces in eastern Europe. Obama in Warsaw will be taking part in the ceremonies celebrating 25 years since democracy has been instated in post-communist Poland, and on that occasion the US president Obama will assure his Eastern European allies that the United states will be defending their security within NATO. Also taking part in ceremonies is Romania’s President Traian Basescu. Against the backdrop of the tensions with Russia, the most serious since the end of the Cold War, high on President Obama’ s agenda is a meeting with Ukraine’s pro-Western President-elect Petro Poroshenko. However, Obama will not be holding talks with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, although In France this coming Friday the two will both take part in the commemoration of the allies’ landing in Normandy during the Second World War. The long-shot of Moscow and Ukraine’s actions will also be analyzed in Brussels with NATO defense ministers, among whom the Romanian Mircea Dusa. One of the Alliance’ s high-ranking officials announced ‘fundamental decisions” targeting Russia would be taken at the meeting.

Romania’s best tennis player at the moment, WTA 4th-seeded Simona Halep in the Roland Garros tennis tournament’s quarterfinals on Wednesday will be taking on number 27 favorite, Russian Svetlana Kuznetsova. In the eighth finals of the competition, which is the year’s second Grand Slam tournament, Halep defeated the American Sloane Stephens, while Kuznetsova defeated Lucie Safarova from the Czech Republic. Halep –Kuznetsova match stats stand at 2-all. Simona has already secured 360 WTA points and 220 thousand Euros, having for the first time ever qualified for the quarterfinals in Roland Garros. This year Halep also reached as far as the quarterfinals at the Australian Open. In the men’s doubles, the pair made of the Romanian Florin Mergea and Marin Draganja from Croatia will be playing in the semifinals, against the all-Spanish pair made of Marcel Granollers and Marc Lopez.

The USS Vela Gulf Cruiser, between June 3 and 6 will be in the Romanian Black Sea port of Constantsa, to take part in joint exercises with the NATO allies, as part of the security cooperation programs. The presence in the Black Sea of the military vessel stands proof of the commitments the USA made to initiate a close cooperation with its allies in order to enhance maritime security and stability, a Pentagon spokesperson has announced. We recall that since the escalation of the Ukraine crisis, Washington has sent several military vessels to the Black Sea for joint exercises with its NATO allies. On June 5, the ship will be visited by the US Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel and the Romanian Defense Minister Mircea Dusa. The two high-ranking officials on that occasion will be holding talks on the Strategic Partnership between the two states, laying emphasis on the support US will be giving Romania, on the importance of reassurance measures at allied level and the operationalization stage of USA’s projects in Romania.