April 14, 2018

President Klaus Iohannis says Romania condemns the use of chemical weapons in Syria and expresses solidarity with the actions taken by its strategic partners / The European Commission has never intervened in the trials unfolding in Romanian courts

Bogdan Matei, 14.04.2018, 14:57

UPDATE: SYRIA– President Klaus Iohannis
said on Saturday in a message he posted on Twitter that Romania further
condemns the use of chemical weapons in Syria and expresses solidarity with the
actions taken by its strategic partners. The Romanian Foreign Ministry also firmly condemns the use of chemical
weapons in any circumstances, as the carrying out of such actions is totally
unjustifiable and pleads for bringing to justice all those proven guilty of
perpetrating such an act, following an investigation.The statements are made after the US,
the UK and France last night launched the most massive attack against Syrian
targets since the start of the civil war, in response to the alleged use of
chemical weapons by the regime in Damascus against its own citizens. US
President Donald Trump has confirmed overnight precision strikes had been
launched against targets associated with the chemical weapons capabilities of the
Syrian government. British PM Theresa May has said it is about a limited and
targeted strike that does not further escalate tensions in the region and that
does everything possible to prevent civilian casualties, whereas the French
President, Emmanuel Macron, said the Syrian actions were a threat to collective
security. Russia, which supports the regime of Bashar Al-Assad, has deplored
the attack on a sovereign state but it made clear that its military facilities
in Syria have not been affected by the air strikes. On the ground, also on
Saturday, the security forces of the Syrian regime entered the town of Douma,
the last fiefdom of the rebels in Eastern Ghouta, near Damascus. A week ago,
the town was the target of an alleged chemical attack, which left over 40
people dead. The Syrian regime has denied any responsibility

EC – The European Commission has never intervened in the trials unfolding in Romanian courts-says the EC President, Jean Claude Juncker. Thus, he answered the letter he received last month from the Romanian PM Viorica Dăncilă, in which she called for clarifications from the EC about a notification sent in 2012 to the then justice minister, regarding certain files. Juncker underlined the information requested six years ago was meant to help prepare the technical mission of November 2012, without Brussels requesting information related to the cases proper. He recalls that the CVM of the Romanian justice system included from the very beginning cooperation between the EC and the Bucharest authorities.

STEEL MARKET – The ArcelorMittal has confirmed it might sell the Steelworks in Galati, south-eastern Romania. Alongside five other works in Italy, Macedonia, the Czech Republic, Luxemburg and Belgium, the steelworks in Galaţi is on a list that the group has forwarded to the EC. Until May 23, European experts will analyse whether the selling of the six steel works manages or not to redress the steel output of the ArcelorMittal group, as ArcelorMittal is interested in buying the largest steelworks in Europe, located in Ilva, Italy. The EC says that by purchasing the Italian steelworks, ArcelorMittal will hold a dominant position on the continental steel market, a situation which might be redressed only by selling other steelworks the group owns in Europe. Arcelor Mittal is a multinational company, considered to be the largest steel producer in the world, with 310,000 employees in 60 countries. Disquieted by the arrival of another investor, which might resort to restructuring, the trade unions on the Galati steelworks platform, with a total number of some 7,000 workers, have stated their intention to discuss the situation with PM Viorica Dăncilă.

MADRID – The minister for the Romanians Worldwide, Natalia Intotero, is
currently on a visit to Spain, where she is having talks with representatives
of the central and local authorities, of the Romanian associations and
religious denominations. The number of Romanian residents in Spain exceeded one
million, according to official data made public at the end of 2017 by the
Spanish Permanent Immigration Observer. An increase of 2.4% was registered, as
compared to 2016.

APPOINTMENT -
Israeli doctor Zvi Herman Berkowits has been appointed honorary counsellor of
Romanian PM Viorica Dăncilă, according to a decision published in the Official
Gazette. He will not receive money for his activity. Berkowits is Romania’s
honorary consul in Israel and the personal physician of Israeli Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu. He was born in Târgu-Lăpuş, Maramureş (north-western
Romania), in 1947 and graduated from the Medical School in Cluj-Napoca, central
Romania. He is a specialist paediatrician and leads his own general and paediatric
medicine clinic in Jerusalem.

SPORTS -
The Romanian women’s handball team SCM Craiova
(in the south) is today facing the Turkish team of Kastamonu, in a
decisive match of the EHF Cup semi-finals. The Romanians won the first match,
played away from home, 23-22. If they
secure qualification, this would be the first finals played in the city of
Craiova, by the local team, during its second participation in the European
cups. On Sunday in the Champions’ league, the Romanian
champion, CSM Bucureşti, plays away from home, the round match
in the quarter-finals, with the French team of Metz.In the first
round played in Bucharest, CSM secured a clear victory, 34-21. The Romanian handballers
won the Champions League in 2016.