September 4, 2014 UPDATE
A roundup of domestic and international news
România Internațional, 04.09.2014, 20:01
The summit in Newport, Wales, will be one of the most important in the history of the Alliance, said on Thursday in the opening of the event, the NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen. He also said that the decisions to be made will aim at maintaining the security of the member states, ensuring the close ties between Europe and North America, and enhancing stability in the dangerous areas. The agenda of the summit that will end on Friday is dominated by the situation in Ukraine. The Ukrainian president Petro Porosenko has met with western leaders and has informed them that a cease fire agreement is to be signed in Minsk, Belarus on Friday. At the NATO summit Romania is represented by President Traian Basescu. In Bucharest, the Supreme Defense Council on Wednesday approved the presence of NATO fighter planes on Romanian soil, as at the summit a plan regarding the development of an advanced military capacity on the eastern flank will be adopted.
The Republic of Moldova is taking part in the NATO summit of the United Kingdom for the first time in its history, represented by its Defense Minister Valeriu Troenco. Moldova already has an ongoing cooperation with NATO within the Peace Partnership and a separate action plan carried out jointly with the Alliance. Moreover, Chisinau deployed troops to peacemaking operations in Kosovo. Although the Constitution provides that Moldova should remain neutral, the crisis in neighboring Ukraine has prompted many Moldovan officials to argue in favour of closer ties with NATO.
The future president of the EC, Jean Claude Junker, continued on Thursday the hearing of the candidates for the positions of Eruopean Commissioner, among whom the Romanian social-democrat MeP Corina Cretu. According to the Commission’s spokeswoman, with Mrs. Cretu’s nomination the number of women in the future commission would grow to 9, out of the total of 28 members, the minimum established by the European Parliament for the new Junker team to be approved. She has also stated that the seats will be allocated once all hearings are completed.
The Government in Bucharest has passed a law regarding the ratification of the agreement between the Government of Romania and the one in Ukraine regarding measures aimed at boosting security and confidence. The agreement was signed on a 5-year period in March, in Kiev, by the two countries’ Foreign Ministers. Under the agreement the two countries are to notify each other at least 42 days before engaging in any military activities conducted near the border. With respect to Snake Island, off the Romanian Black Sea coast, Ukraine commits against owning and deploying offensive equipment, such as tanks, airplanes and assault helicopters. Also today, the government is to approve the Protocol concluded in May 2013, between the Romanian Interior Ministry and the one in Serbia. The protocol concerns the set up and functioning of common contact office on the Romanian-Serbian border.
Romania’s Government and Airbus have signed a Memorandum that provides for building a factory in Brasov in 2015. Attending the singing of the document, Prime Minister Victor Ponta said the agreement was aimed at modernizing Romania’s helicopter fleet. The Prime Minister also recalled that, with the help of Airbus-manufactured helicopters, Romania managed to build one of the most effective medical response systems in Europe. In turn, Airbus representatives have said that the new factory will translate into numerous benefits for Romania, from new jobs to export opportunities.
The retail market in Romania has gone up by 6.3% in July as compared to the same period of last year, the Eurostat reports. This is the EU’s third largest growth after that of Luxembourg (14.1%) and Estonia (9.2%). In the first seven months of the year retail went by 8.2% as compared to the same period of 2013. According to the National Institute for Statistics, the growth was triggered by a hike in the sales of food and non-food products, drinks and tobacco. On the other hand, industry accounted for the largest share of economic growth in Romania in the first quarter of this year, while agriculture and constructions had negative overall evolutions. More on this after the news.
According to a report by the World Economic Forum, Romania ranks 59th in the world in terms of economic competitiveness. As compared to last year, Romania went up 17 places. At regional level, Romania fares better than Hungary and Croatia, although worse than Turkey and Bulgaria. The world’s most competitive economies are Switzerland, Singapore and the US. The 2014-2015 Global Competitiveness Report was based on feedback from 15,000 CEOs from over 140 countries.
The European Central Bank on Thursday reduced the monetary policy interest rate in the Euro zone to a new record minimum, namely 0.05% from 0.15%, in an attempt to stimulate the economy of the Eurozone, which is stagnating at the moment and to avoid deflation. It is for the second time in the past three months that the European Bank takes such a measure.
