THE WEEK IN REVIEW
March 20-24, 2023
Roxana Vasile, 25.03.2023, 14:00
The Romanian president goes to Brussels
Late this week in Brussels, the Romanian president attended the spring European Council, expressing the need for unity in supporting Ukraine. The main topic of the meeting of European leaders was continued support for this country in the face of Russian invasion. President Iohannis recalled that Romania supports a blanket European approach in supplying Ukraine with munitions. At the same time, he talked to EC President Ursula von der Leyen, the difficult situation facing Romanian farmers, who need aid as a result of losses suffered as grain exports to Ukraine are ever higher. President Iohannis called on the Commission to review the subsidies granted to Romania, and von der Leyen said she would make adjustments in the figures. Klaus Iohannis said that EC officials should take into account the sacrifices made by Romania in order to facilitate exports of Ukrainian grain. He said that it was very strange that the EC is not negotiating anything, but instead is using formulas. He concluded that these things cannot be solved through accounting. Romania obtained a mere 10 million Euro, way below estimates, in the negotiations within the council of European agriculture ministers, as compensation for the farmers affected by the trade in cheap grain with Ukraine.
PM Ciuca goes to Chisinau
While the Romanian president was announcing in Brussels that the Republic of Moldova would get sizable supplementary aid from the EU, the Romanian PM, Nicolae Ciuca went on Thursday on his first official visit to Chisinau. He reaffirmed the unconditional support from Bucharest for the small neighboring republic in its European membership bid, as well as in its attempt to consolidate economically, maintaining stability and security against the challenges in the region. Ciuca discussed with his counterpart, Dorin Recean, the renovation or construction of bridges over the river Prut, and about opening new border crossing points and developing the energy infrastructure between the two countries. They also discussed the presence of Romanian investors in the Republic of Moldova, and the creation of a business climate up to European standards, supporting increasing investments. Moldovan political analysts underlined that, in the present geopolitical context, the visit by the Romanian PM to Chisinau has special connotations, noting that Romania plays a special role in ensuring the security of the small neighboring state as the general situation changed after the Russian invasion in Ukraine. Over the last few years, Bucharest granted support in various forms to the Republic of Moldova, and now, in the context of the war, it has become an economic and trade lifesaver for the republic, and a major force in assuring it can overcome a major energy crisis. During the meeting with PM Ciuca, Moldovan President Maia Sandu thanked Romania for its support.
Romania — UK — USA
Romania and the US signed in Bucharest an agreement on social security, with the purpose of protecting the rights to retirement benefits for Romanian and American workers employed on the territory of the other state. According to the document signed by US Ambassador Kathleen Kavalec and Labor Minister Marius Budai, this allows counting towards retirement the time spent working both in Romania and the US, opening up the right to pensions. The agreement is to be voted into law by the parliament of Romania. Meanwhile, in London, Romanian Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu and the British foreign minister, James Cleverly, signed an updated common declaration on the Romanian — British strategic partnership. They also opened the first edition of the Romania — UK bilateral forum, meant to identify opportunities for consolidating bilateral cooperation.
A celebration of francophony
On March 20, International Francophony Day was celebrated in 88 states and governments on five continents, with a total of 321 million French speakers, as members or observers of the International Organization of Francophony. For Romania, a member of the IOF, 2023 is a double event, as it celebrates three decades since it joined the organization. On this occasion, the foreign ministry, through its embassies and consulates, as well as the Romanian Cultural Institute, scheduled dozens of events in approximately 50 states around the world. (CC)
