November 12, 2019 UPDATE

A roundup of domestic and international news

Newsroom, 12.11.2019, 19:47

EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT – The
European Parliament Committee on Legal Affairs has approved the candidacies of
the commissioners designated by France, Romania and Hungary. In a special
session on Tuesday, the Committee analyzed any potential or real conflicts of
interest in each of the case. After getting the endorsement of the Legal
Affairs Committee, the three candidates, Thierry Breton, Adina Valean and
Oliver Varhelyi, will be heard by the specialized committees on Thursday. Once
the hearings completed, the EC President Elect Ursula von der Leyen will
present the list of designated commissioners and the program of the Commission
during a plenary session on November 27. Also on Tuesday, Adina Valean has been
heard by the joint European Affairs Committees of the Romanian Parliament,
whose role is advisory. She has announced that, as a European Commissioner, she
will keep supporting the mechanisms for interconnection, by means of which 1.24
billion Euro have been invested in the Romanian transport infrastructure, and
another 500 million in the energy infrastructure. The mechanism is aimed at
interconnecting the EU’s transport, energy and telecommunication grids.

PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION – The
leaders of the National Liberal Party and the Social Democratic Party, whose
candidates will run in the second round of the presidential elections in
Romania, on November 24, met on Tuesday to discuss their campaign strategies.
In the first round, the current president Klaus Iohannis, supported by the
Liberals, got 37.5% of the votes, and the head of the Social Democratic Party,
Viorica Dancila, got approximately 23%. Viorica Dancila said she wants a public
debate head-to-head with Klaus Iohannis. The latter has dismissed the idea of a
debate with Viorica Dancila, whom he considers the candidate of an unreformed
party that tranmpled the rule of law and sidetracked Romania’s pro-European
projects. At the end of Tuesday’s meeting of the Socialist Party Executive Committee, Viorica Dancila said former Justice Minister Ana Birchall and Cozmin Gusa, as well as all MPs who voted the investiture of the Orban Cabinet, have been excluded from the party ranks.

MOLDOVA – Romania’s President
Klaus Iohannis believes the collapse of Maia Sandu’s Cabinet in the Republic of
Moldova at a very important time for the reform of the judiciary goes against
the country’s medium- and long-term interests. According to a Presidency
release, the Romanian President warned that in the current context, Romania’s
support, including its financial assistance, will be strictly dependent on the
continuation of key reforms for the democratic development of the Republic of
Moldova and its European track. In turn, Prime Minister Ludovic Orban believes
the decision to dismiss Maia Sandu’s Cabinet by means of a no-confidence motion
raises many questions as to the subsequent evolution of this country. Prime
Minister Orban warned that the chances of the Romanian Government cooperating
with a Moldovan Government that offers no real guarantees in defense of a
genuine democracy are very slim. Invested 5 months ago, Maia Sandu’s pro-western
Government did not survive Tuesday’s no-confidence motion in Parliament, filed
by the pro-Russian Socialist Party and the Democratic Party. The motion was
filed last week by the Socialist Party, a junior coalition party, after the
Government pledged to modify the procedure for appointing the prosecutor
general. The EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Federica Mogherini,
reiterated that the EU’s relations with Moldova will continue to rely on the
observance of the rule of law and democratic standards.

RADET – Bucharest’s heating
supplier RADET has officially gone bankrupt, following a final ruling by the
Bucharest Court of Appeal, but the municipality and representatives of ELCEN,
the company that produces heat and hot water for the centralized system, has
assured the citizens of Bucharest that they will not be affected by this
situation. The company that provides heating in the capital has been under
insolvency for three years, and the causes that have led to the current
situation are many. Among them, the huge debt, of more than 840 million Euro,
to the producer ELCEN, the state not paying the due subsidies and also the old
installations owned by RADET.

INFLATION – The annual rate of
inflation in Romania dropped in October to 3.4%, from 3.5% in September,
against the background of an increase in the prices of non-food products and
services. The National Bank has decreased to 3.8% the inflation forecast for
the end of this year and it estimates an inflation rate of 3.1% next year. The
International Monetary Fund has revised upwards the forecasts regarding
consumption prices in Romania this year, up to an average annual increase of
4.2%, as to the 3.3% estimated in spring.

(Translated by M. Ignatescu & V. Palcu)