September 30, 2015 UPDATE

Click here for a round-up of news from Romania

Roxana Vasile, 30.09.2015, 12:35

REFUGEE CRISIS – Romania will grant emergency humanitarian aid to Jordan, because of the size of the refugee crisis in that country. In its Wednesdays meeting, the Romanian government passed a decision by which it earmarks some more 250,000 Euros from the Budget Reserve Fund for the Romanian Foreign Ministrys budget. Thus, Romania joins the countries which answer the calls launched by Jordan to the international community for increased financial assistance for the Syrian refugees. Over 4 million people in Syria fled the country to take refuge mainly in the neighbouring states of Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey. Jordan provides shelter to some 1.5 million Syrian nationals, in the context in which it is a country with an estimated number of 8.1 million inhabitants.

SYRIAN FILE – The Russian forces stationed in Syria on Wednesday carried out the first air strikes in that country. According to the Russian Defence Ministry, military equipment as well as arms and ammunition caches of the Islamic State terrorist group were destroyed during the raids. Earlier, FP quoted a US official as saying the US had been briefed on the start of the air strikes. Washington and Moscow take different stands on the Syrian file. Whereas the US insists that president Bashar al-Assad should leave power, Russia, which is Syrias ally, alongside Iran, says cooperation with president al-Assad is the only viable solution to resolve the Syrian conflict. US President Barack Obama and Russian leader Vladimir Putin have however accepted the idea of cooperation to defeat the Islamic State and to find a diplomatic solution to the civil war which is ravaging the country. The US is leading a coalition which has launched air strikes against positions of the Islamic State terrorist group in Syria and Iraq, for a year.

MEETING – Romanias President, Klaus Iohannis, and Moldovan Prime Minister, Valeriu Streletz, have had a meeting in New York, on the sidelines of the 70th UN General Assembly. According to a communiqué issued in Chishinau on Wednesday, the two officials have approached, among others, key domains of bilateral cooperation. Klaus Iohannis and Valeriu Streletz have also discussed ways to better capitalise on the reimbursable financial assistance granted by Romania to the Republic of Moldova. President Iohannis reiterated Romanias support for the European path the Republic of Moldova has embarked on, and for implementing the pro-European reforms adopted by the Moldovan government. Romanias president, who attended the UN anniversary summit in New York, devoted to the sustainable development of the world in the following 15 years, delivered three speeches on the fight against terrorism, the refugee crisis, gender equality and eradicating poverty. He also attended, at the invitation of the US President Barack Obama, the summit countering extreme violence and the Islamic State terrorist organisation. He also had a bilateral meeting at the White House with US Vice-president Joe Biden.

FINANCIAL – Liviu Dragnea, the interim president of the Social Democratic Party, the main party of the ruling coalition in Bucharest, said that the government must spell out a serious analysis on the need for another agreement with the IMF to be concluded. In turn, Vasile Blaga, the co-president of the National Liberal Party, the main party in opposition, believes that such a document is not absolutely necessary. The statements were made after Finance Minister, Eugen Orlando Teodorovici, had announced that Romania would ask for another agreement with the IMF to be concluded this year. Prime Minister Victor Ponta said it would be good for Romania to sign another agreement with the IMF and a decision in this respect must be made after consultations with the political parties.

CONFIDENCE CHART – Romanias president, Klaus Iohannis, continues to top the Romanians confidence chart, according to a sociological survey of the INSCOP Barometer commissioned by the paper Adevarul. So, 58,6% of the respondents say they have great and very great confidence in president Klaus Iohannis, as against 61.6% in July. President Iohannis is followed in the chart by the governor of the National Bank of Romania with 41.6%, Romanias ambassador to the USA, George Maior, with 29.7% and Prime Minister Victor Ponta, with 22.8%. Vasile Blaga, the co-president of the National Liberal Party, Crin Antonescu, the former leader of the National Liberal Party and Romanias former president after December 1989, Ion Iliescu, rank last in the confidence chart. The barometer survey commissioned by Adevarul was conducted by INSCOP Research over September 10-15th 2015. The survey included 1,085 people, the maximum data error being plus/minus 3% for a 95% confidence degree.

COMPETITIVENESS REPORT – According to a report of the World Economic Forum, Romania ranks 53rd in the chart of the most competitive 140 states of the world. On a 1-7 scale, Romania got 4.32 points, as compared to 4.30 points last year. Switzerland comes first with 5.8 points, being followed by Singapore, the USA, Germany, Holland, Japan, Hong Kong, Finland, Sweden and Great Britain. Mauritania, Chad and Guinea come last in the chart. According to the report, Romania has low pointers for business sophistication, institutions and infrastructure. In exchange, Romania has a good position in terms of macroeconomic environment and the market size. The Global Competitiveness Report 2015-2016 published by the World Economic Forum on Wednesday assessed the competitiveness of 140 countries of the world on the basis of such criteria as government institutions and policies, the effectiveness of the labour market and financial markets.

LIVESTOCK SUMMIT – Romania will be the honorary guest of the 24th edition of the European “Sommet de lElevage (Livestock Summit) dedicated to the professional sector, to be held in Clermont-Ferrand, France, between October the 7th and 9th. Attending will be some 50 Romanian cattle and sheep growers and breeders. Their main aim is to get more information on the French breeds and to get into contact with French exporters and producers of specific equipment. The fair brings together 1,300 exhibitors (of which 270 international participants and representatives of 28 countries) as well as 85,000 visitors from the professional sector. At the end of 2014, Romania ranked 10th in the EU in terms of the number of cattle, with over 2 million heads. As regards the sheep and goat flock, Romania ranks fourth in the EU, with some 11 million heads.

TENNIS – Romanian tennis player Simona Halep, ranked second in the world, sustained an incredible defeat from British Johanna Konta, 6-3, 3-6, 7-5, on Wednesday, in the eighth finals of the WTA tennis tournament in Wuhan, China, with over 2.2 million dollars in prize money up for grabs. Also in Wuhan, the pair made up of Romanians Irina Begu and Monica Niculescu qualified for the doubles quarter finals of the tournament, after defeating third seeded Caroline Garcia (France)/Katarina Srebotnik (Slovenia), 6-2, 6-2. Begu and Niculescu will face, in the quarterfinals, the seventh seeded Spanish pair Garbine Muguruza/Carla Suarez Navarro.