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Former Romanian Prime Minister Adrian Nastase is to be given early release on parole from a two-year jail sentence, following a court decision on Monday. The court’s decision is final. Nastase, who served as prime minister between 2000-2004, appeared in Court on Monday for a final hearing on his early release. The Anti Corruption Directorate (DNA) had challenged the move to free the former PM, but after deliberating for over an hour, the Court returned a verdict in Nastase’s favor. In June 2012 he had been given a definitive two-year jail sentence by the Romanian Supreme Court, for corruption deeds. Part of the prosecutors’ claims against the parole are based on press articles and other materials written by the former PM in jail, which they say proves he has no regret for the deeds he was prosecuted for. When issuing the parole decision, magistrates invoked good behavior during incarceration. Nastase is the highest office holder prosecuted for corruption in post-communist Romania.
The parliament of Cyprus has postponed for Tuesday the process of ratifying the financial rescue plan negotiated with the European Union, which includes a controversial measure, the additional taxation by up to 10% of all bank deposits. The rescue plan is worth 10 billion euros. Numerous banks customers are threatening to pull their money from the banks. Moscow, for instance, announced that Russians alone hold 20 billion dollars in banks in Cyprus. The communists and socialists in the Cypriot parliament oppose the plan.
Heads of state and government have started to arrive in Rome to attend, on Tuesday, Pope Francis’ installation mass. Among them is Romanian President Traian Basescu. In a historic development, it was announced that the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople would attend the new pope’s installation mass. This is the first time an ecumenical patriarch is attending a papal investiture since the churches split nearly 1,000 years ago, a church official said Monday. The Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches were united until the Great Schism of 1054, which was precipitated largely by disagreements over the primacy of the pope. According to Orthodox Church representatives, he decision to attend the Mass at St. Peter’s Square on Tuesday was “the fruit” of the growing dialogue between the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches.
A Russian deputy minister speaking to the daily Kommersant said that his country sees no concession being made by the US after the latter announced changes in the European anti-ballistic shield. On Friday, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel announced improvements in the shield to counteract ballistic threats from North Korea, as well as a restructuring of this NATO program against potential attacks from Iran. According to the US, these changes will not be affecting Romania, where interceptors are to be deployed. The Romanian project was launched in 2010 as part of a wider effort to deploy gradually interceptors and high power radars in Eastern Europe and Turkey. Moscow sees the shield as a threat to its security, and demands guarantees that it would not affects its deterrence capability. Stay tuned for more after the news.
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2025-04-03
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