October 3, 2015 UPDATE

For a roundup of domestic and international events, click here.

Newsroom, 03.10.2015, 12:15

GERMAN UNITY DAY – Romanias president Klaus Iohannis on Saturday congratulated Germany on celebrating the German Unity Day. “Romania and Germany are friends and partners. We want to share a path with this important actor at global level, to the benefit of both countries and of European construction, particularly for our citizens, Klaus Iohannis wrote on his Facebook page. On October 3 Germany marked 25 years since its reunification, which ended all state divisions in Europe after the end of World War II. Divided by the Allies after the collapse of the Nazi regime, Germany was made whole again on October 3, 1990, when the former German Democratic Republic adhered to the laws and Constitution of the Federal Republic of Germany. The decisive shift to democracy came earlier on November 9, 1989, with the fall of the Berlin Wall. The two states negotiated the Reunification Treaty, with the consensus of the four European victorious superpowers, which came to be known as the 2+4 Treaty, whereby Germany became an internationally sovereign state.

VISIT – Prime Minister Victor Ponta is as of Saturday on a two-day visit to Jordan responding to the invitation of his counterpart Abdullah Ensour. The visit is aimed at reasserting the good level of political and diplomatic relations, as well as security cooperation between the two states. Additionally, the two countries want to identify better solutions for an effective economic cooperation. Joining the PM is an important Government delegation. Victor Ponta will meet with high-ranking Jordanian officials, as well as with a group of Iraqi businessmen whose companies operate in Jordan and Iraq. Agriculture, energy, health care, tourism and telecommunications are key topics on the agenda for talks. The refugee crisis also ranks high on the agenda, the Romanian state being prepared to earmark some 250,000 euros worth of emergency humanitarian aid, thus joining the list of countries supporting local communities in Jordan, a country hosting a large number of Syrian refugees.

RESIGNATION – Social-Democrat Prime Minister Victor Ponta reiterated his decision not to resign from the helm of the Government as long as he enjoys the support of the ruling coalition. In a Facebook post on Saturday the Prime Minister said his priorities were the salary law, the state budget for 2016, which should include the provisions of the new Fiscal Code, as well as the new law on public procurement. Ponta was indicted by anti-corruption prosecutors, being accused of forgery of deeds, accessory to tax evasion and money laundering while he was a lawyer. On Tuesday, the Government survived a new vote of no-confidence filed by the Liberal opposition, who claims the accusations the Prime Minister is facing do not allow him to sign laws or manage the countrys budget, and that his indictment seriously affects Romanias credibility.

EXERCISE – NATO is today conducting its largest military exercise in the last 13 years. For a month, 36,000 military from NATO Member States, including Romania, 60 battleships and 200 fighter jets will take part in military applications held concurrently in Italy, Portugal, Spain, the Atlantic Ocean, the Mediterranean Sea, Canada, Norway, Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands. Through this exercise, NATO wants to showcase and to extend its capability to respond to current and future threats.

ROMANIANS ABROAD – Public policies in Romania should reflect the signals coming from our co-nationals from the Diaspora, Minister Delegate for Relations with Romanians Abroad Angel Tilvar said in Dublin. The Romanian official met with representatives of the business sector, the Romanian press and representatives of the Church of Romania in Ireland, saying that Romanians at home and abroad can help promote the image and interests of Romania. As in previous meetings with representatives of the Romanian Diaspora in Italy, Austria or Portugal, Tilvar encouraged Romanians in Ireland to set common goals and undertake joint actions with the citizens of the Republic of Moldova, so that Bucharests support for the European integration prospects of Moldova should be mirrored in the Diaspora.

NATO-EU RELATIONS – Romania Secretary of State for Strategic Affairs pleaded for increasing the level of cooperation and coordination between NATO and the EU. Attending a forum in Washington devoted to trans-Atlantic security, the Romanian diplomat said that increasing cooperation and coordination between the two organizations may generate a common and consistent response to long-term threats to collective security. Ionita also referred to the developments on NATOs eastern flank, where Russia has had a competitive approach, with the potential of amplifying security risks at regional level, with the illegal annexation of Crimea and its support to separatists in Eastern Ukraine. On the other hand, Ionita highlighted the political agreement in Bucharest to increase the national defence budget to 2% of the GDP by 2017.

PROTESTS – Chisinau Mayor Liberal Dorin Chirtoaca called on the judiciary to ban the protest movement of Socialists and pro-Russian populists who have blocked the centre of the Chisinau. The left-wing opposition has lately rallied the protests organized by the civil society aginst top-level corruption. Civil organizations expect a turnout of some 100,000 people in Sundays protest, which they have called on foreign embassies and the media to monitor. Protesters call on their leaders to step down and to organize snap elections, which the current power rules out, saying these claims would sink Moldova into a prolonged political and economic crisis. The pro-Western government coalition has lost all credibility after a billion dollars mysteriously disappeared last year from the banking system, accounting for nearly 15% of the countrys GDP.

SYRIA – US President Barack Obama has condemned Russias military intervention in Syria, naming it a “recipe for disaster, which will consolidate the position of the Islamic State. Russia has again confirmed its airstrikes in Syria as of Thursday to support the regime of president Bashar al-Assad. The US President said Washington was ready to cooperate with Russia only if Moscow changed its attitude. Several countries of the International coalition in Syria (the US, the UK, France, Germany, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey) called on Russia on Friday to immediately cease strikes against the Syrian opposition and civilians and to concentrate efforts against the IS. Russian PM Dmitri Medveded told a television station that the Russian Air Forces in Syria are targeting the Islamic State and are meant to protect Russian citizens against the terrorist threat. The Russian head of government also said that the Syrian conflict should be solved peacefully, which requires the Syrian power and opposition to sit together at the negotiations table.

IMMIGRANTS – The Czech Government proposes to dispatch the police and the army to help Hungary strengthen its Schengen borders to prevent immigrants from crossing. Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka said the idea would be discussed next week at the meeting of Visegrád Group Interior Ministers. The Red Cross on Friday signalled that most migrants in Hungary and the Western Balkans are not ready to face the approaching winter, and are in need to clothing, footwear and other apparel lest the humanitarian crisis should risk further deterioration. At present UN officials said the unfavourable weather in the Mediterranean has triggered a drop in the flow of refugees, while Radio Romanias correspondent in Hungary says the number of migrants coming in from Croatia has halved in the last days.