March 23, 2019 UPDATE

A roundup of domestic and international news

Newsroom, 23.03.2019, 18:52

SURVEY – The institutions that the Romanians trust the most are, domestically, the army and the church, and, at international level, NATO and the EU, according to an ISNCOP survey, conducted over March 5th to 13th, commissioned by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation. According to the survey, the highest rate is enjoyed by the army, with 68% of the population trusting them, followed by the church – 55%, the gendarmerie – 48%, the police – 43%, the National Anticorruption Directorate -40% and the Presidency – 38%. At the opposite pole there stand the political parties and parliament. As regards international institutions, NATO ranks first with 52%, followed by the EU with 49%.

VISIT – As of Saturday, until Tuesday, the Romanian PM Viorica Dancila is on a visit to the US, to attend the annual conference of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). She was invited by the AIPAC president Morton Fridman. According to a communiqué issued by the Romanian Foreign Ministry, the visit reflects the intensification of bilateral dialogue and is part of the Romanian Governments efforts to strengthen and develop Romanias partnerships with the US and Israel.

NATO – Romania is much better prepared military-wise as compared to how it was 15 years ago, when it joined NATO, the Romanian Defense Minister Gabriel Les has stated. The minister has participated in the event launching the public campaign Romania – 15 Years in NATO. 70 Years since the setting-up of the North-Atlantic Alliance and re-launching in Romania the public information campaign #WeAreNATO. According to the Romanian official, some 1000 soldiers are currently engaged in missions abroad. 29 Romanian soldiers have died and 180 have been wounded din theatres of operations abroad, minister Les has recalled.

TALKS – The Minister for Romanians Abroad, Natalia – Elena Intotero, has held meetings in Brussels with the European Commissioner for EU Security Julian King and with the Commissioner for Employment and Social Affairs, Marianne Thyssen. During the talks with the Commissioner for EU Security, the Romanian official tackled the fake news phenomenon and presented the initiatives by means of which the Romanian ministry wants to bring to the forefront this priority issue. Other topics on the agenda of talks were combating human trafficking and the situation of the Romanian community in the UK against the background created by Brexit. With Marianne Thyssen, Ms. Intotero discussed the brain drain phenomenon as well as the need for the European citizens residing in other countries to benefit from the rights and obligations deriving from their status as residents of those countries.

BREXIT – In London, thousands of people marched on Saturday calling for a second referendum on Brexit. We recall that at the summit held on Thursday and Friday in Brussels, the EU leaders accepted a postponement of Brexit, initially scheduled for March 29th, and gave the UK two options. According to the first one, if the withdrawal agreement negotiated with the EU, which has been rejected by the British parliament twice, is approved next week, the European Council agrees to postpone the exit until May 22nd. According to the second scenario, if the deal is not accepted by the British MPs, the European Council will allow a delay until April 12, during which time London is expected to make it clear which direction is going to take.

PROTEST – The yellow vests protested again in Paris, for the 19th consecutive Saturday, under strict supervision by security forces, in an attempt to prevent a repeat of last weekends violence on the streets of the French capital. In Nice, where the official visit of the Chinese president Xi Jiping starts on Sunday, dozens of people, wearing yellow vests, broke the interdiction to protest in a city square. The executive has banned demonstrations in several emblematic places in Paris, Nice and Bordeaux and has announced that the security forces will be backed by soldiers from the Sentinelle anti-terror operation, set up after the 2015 attacks. The movement started in November in protest against the increase in fuel taxes, and it then expanded, apparently without any representative leaders, despite the great national debate launched by president Macron with the aim of meeting the French citizens expectations.

MOLDOVA – Romanias ambassador to Chisinau, Daniel Ionita, has stated that the Republic of Moldovas international partners are in a state of strategic expectation following the parliamentary elections held on February 24th. As regards Romania, its stand remains the same, which means it keeps supporting Moldovas European path. According to the Radio Romania correspondents in Chisinau, the ambassador has hailed the fact that trade exchanges between the two neighboring countries reached a historic high last year, standing at over one billion dollars. After last months election, out of 101 MP seats, president Dodons pro-Russia socialists won 35, the ruling left-of-centre Democratic Party got 30, the pro-European rightist ACUM Bloc won 26 and the populist Sor Party got 7. Also, three independent MPs were elected.

MARCH – More than 600 towns and cities in Romania and the Republic of Moldova hosted on Saturday the 9th March for Life, aimed at promoting the right to life of unborn children. Among other things, the participants called for the setting up of support centers for the future mothers, where they can benefit from free pshcyhological counseling. The march was the central event of a string of events held this month, dubbed the month for life.