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| The Week in Review 22/01/2011 |
| (2011-01-21) |
| Last updated: 2011-01-24 16:37 EET |
Romania will conclude a new accord with the IMF, the European Commission and the World Bank after the expiry of the current agreement. The information was confirmed both by the Romanian authorities and representatives of the aforementioned institutions. Another European Commission - IMF mission will travel to Bucharest on January 25th to evaluate if Romania has complied with the targets set for the 3rd quarter of 2010 and to discuss the conclusion of a new precautionary agreement. The head of the evaluation mission, Jeffrey Franks, has pointed out this week that the duration and value of the new agreement will depend on how fast the Romanian economy recovers. Also, World Bank director for Romania, Peter Harrold, has announced the international body will grant technical and financial assistance to Romania in 4 domains: social security, health care, the simplification of the tax system and the streamlining of state-owned companies. Romania currently has a foreign funding agreement running, which it concluded with the IMF, the EU, the World Bank and other international financial institutions. The agreement amounts to almost 20 billion Euro.
Hundreds of reservist or retired soldiers protested in several cities across Romania against the slashing of their pensions. Next week the former military personnel intend to take to the streets of Bucharest where they will picket the government and the presidency headquarters. They are unhappy with the new pension law, which has recently taken effect. The law provides for the recalculation of all pensions depending on the contributions the respective persons made over time and the elimination of special systems by which Army, Police and special services employees benefited, even after the fall of the Communist regime. Romanian defense minister Gabriel Oprea, says that, following the recalculation, only 20% of pensions of less than 1,000 dollars of the former military have been slashed, while the rest have been increased. The former soldiers contradicted the minister saying that their pensions were cut by almost 60%. The former soldiers and policemen announced that they would also carry on with their action in court to regain the money lost after the recalculation of pensions. In 2010 more than 250 former soldiers sued the Romanian state and the Supreme Court ruled in their favor.
As the initial deadline for Romania and Bulgaria's Schengen accession, March 31st, draws near, the number of EU member states that oppose the idea increases. Germany and France, which at the end of last year officially requested a deferral of the accession, were joined by Finland and Holland. While Bucharest continues to argue that Romania meets all the technical requirements for being accepted into Europe's passport-free zone, opponents claim that both Romania and Bulgaria still have flaws to address in the judiciary and the fight against corruption. President Basescu reiterated that Romania wants its Schengen accession to be decided exclusively on the basis of rules laid down in EU treaties, and that the country should not be discriminated against. He emphasised that there are no indications that Bucharest poses any risks regarding the flow of illegal migrants. The head of Romanian diplomacy, Teodor Baconschi, explained that the European experts' assessment report on Romania are positive “from A to Z.” But as far as Bulgaria is concerned, France, Germany and Finland expressed reserves as to the security of the land border and the implementation of the SIS/SIRENE IT system. The Hungarian presidency of the EU has reiterated support for Romania and Bulgaria's Schengen accession.
President Traian Basescu presented Romania's diplomatic priorities, during the traditional meeting with ambassadors representing foreign countries in Bucharest. According to the head of state, the two key objectives for Romania are Schengen accession and ensuring Romanians' free access to the labour market. This year, Bucharest aims to finalise the negotiations with the USA concerning the missile defence shield, and envisions sound economic relations with the US, Basescu added. He reiterated Romania's support for the European aspirations of the neighbouring Republic of Moldova, and the desire to build fair and pragmatic relations with Russia and Ukraine. The president also pointed out that in 2011 Romania will focus on cooperation with Middle East countries, including both Israel and its traditional Arab partners, in the economic, trade and energy fields, and will aim to improve access to the natural resources of this region. Bucharest will also continue to strengthen its relations with the Diaspora, and one measure in this respect would be the introduction of postal voting.
Swine flu has re-emerged in Romania, but according to experts we will not see the threat of an epidemic. So far several deaths have been reported, and more contamination cases have been confirmed. Last year, the World Health Organisation declared H1N1 flu a pandemic, after more than 10,000 died and hundreds of thousands were infected. In Romania, over 80 deaths were reported in January 2010.
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