October 15, 2015

A roundup of domestic and international news

Newsroom, 15.10.2015, 12:15

Leaders of the 28 EU member
states gather in Brussels today for a
fresh summit on migration. The Commission is preparing long-term
measures to keep the inflow of immigrants under control, such as the reform of
the European asylum-granting system and a permanent refugee – relocation
scheme. The talks will focus on the aid granted to the countries surrounding
Syria, with a view to stopping the wave of migrants, and cooperation with
Turkey, a country that seems reluctant to contribute, according to France Presse, but which is already host to over 2 million Syrian refugees. At
the summit, Romania is represented by president Klaus Iohannis. Before the summit, the Romanian head of
state will have a meeting with the President of the European Parliament, Martin
Schulz. Last night he held talks with Romanians working with the European
institutions.

The US presence in Europe is
proof of that country’s strong commitment to world security, and its presence
in Romania is to Bucharest ‘a reassurance factor’, the Romanian Foreign
Minister Bogdan Aurescu has stated at a forum organized by the Aspen Romania
Institute today. Aurescu made a review of the situation in the southern and
eastern neighborhoods and the Middle East, saying that only a united
Euro-Atlantic community can deal with the current threats and can project
stability. Against this background, when the Euro-Atlantic community is at a
crossroads, Romania can act as a strong ally on NATO’s and the EU’s eastern
border and can use this position to create stability and prosperity in the
region, minister Aurescu also said.

The General Prosecutor of the
Republic of Moldova has today called for the lifting of the parliamentary
immunity of the former Prime Minister and Liberal Democrat leader Vlad Filat,
according to the media in Chisinau. He is accused of direct involvement in the frauds
committed at the Savings Bank, standing at hundreds of millions of Euros. The
request was made against the background of growing tension within the Moldovan
society, generated in particular by the scandal triggered by one billion
dollars missing from three banks, including from the Savings Bank. The leader
of the Liberal Democratic Party has stated that the action was carefully staged
in advance. The party is a member of the ruling coalition in the Republic of
Moldova, alongside the Democratic Party and the Liberal Party, but there have
always been tensions between the three.

The European Commission
Vice-President in charge of Energy Union, Maros Sefcovic, is coming to
Bucharest today, as part of a large-scale European tour. He will hold talks
with members of the Romanian Parliament and Government and also with
representatives of civil society and the industrial sector, whom he will
introduce to the advantages of the Energy Union. The EC Vice-President will
also attend a forum on energy strategy and security. Currently, the EU is the
largest world importer of energy, namely 53% of the total energy it consumes.
The energy union package is aimed at ensuring safe, sustainable energy, at
affordable prices.

The Romanian
Government has approved a bill under which the legal framework is established
for increasing the amount spent on an asylum-seeker. According to the new
regulations, the amounts paid by the state for food have increased three times,
and those for other expenses ten times. For the warm season, the total monthly
expenses have been estimated at 250 Euro, and for the cold one, at 270 Euro,
reads a communique issued by the Romanian Government. The law also establishes
the conditions in which those who request international protection can benefit
from the national health-care programs, can have access to the labor market and
get unemployment benefits, as provided by law for the Romanian citizens. The
bill will help consolidate the asylum-seekers rights, will increase the level
of integration of these people into Romanian society and will also help prevent
negative situations associated with illegal migration.

A Romanian Parliamentary
delegation headed by the Chair of the Senate’s Foreign Policy Committee, Petru
Filip, is in Ramallah, the West Bank, for talks with members of the Palestinian
Legislative Council. Yesterday in Israel, the Romanian senators had meetings
with representatives of the Israeli Parliament and Government. On the occasion,
they reiterated Romania’s intention to support the prospects of the peace
process, alongside its international partners. The head of the Romanian
delegation talked about Romania’s decade-long role as a mediator in the Middle
East area. The formal visit of the Romanian parliamentary delegation to Israel
and the Palestinian territories ends on October 17th.

Romania’s foreign
debt has this year dropped by 5 billion Euros, the National Bank has announced.
More than half of this decrease is owed to the drop in the public debt by 3
billion Euros. The data made public by Romania’s Central Bank reflects the
situation as it was early last month, when the public debt went below 30
billion Euros. In late August, the Romanian state had no debt to the
International Monetary Fund.

The Romanian
Constitution guarantees the freedom of expression of religious beliefs and
stipulates that all religious denominations are independent from the state and
have the freedom to organize themselves in keeping with their own rules and
regulations, reads the 2014 State Department’s Report on Religious Freedom. However,
the document draws attention to the fact that, although the Romanian Government
keeps implementing the recommendations made by the International Commission for
the Study of the Holocaust in Romania, the pace of return of church properties
seized by the previous regime, in particular those owned by the Greek-Catholic
church, is very slow. The report mentions a number of incidents of an
anti-Semite nature, such as statements, behaviors and even ceremonies
commemorating Iron Guard politicians, stressing the fact that the Romanian
authorities have started investigations into these matters. The ‘Wiesel’
Institute continues to educate the public about the Holocaust and many Romanian
politicians have publicly condemned anti-Semite and negationist attitudes,
voiced in TV shows and in the online media, the State Department report also
reads.