The National Liberal Party (PNL) Senator Florin Citu stated that the PNL MEPs will ask in the European Parliament (EP) a check on the way in which the procedures on the European Investment Bank (EIB) and European Bank of Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) loans that were paid with EU funds were observed, mentioning that it’s a good thing that the action was confirmed by Eugen Teodorovici. “It’s a good thing that the Finance Minister confirmed. We will find out the rest of the details after my colleagues in the European Parliament will ask for a check of the way in which procedures were observed. Greece also seemed to have observed the procedures, and later it was revealed that they lied. In this case, too, I expect to find out that the budget deficit was adjusted by the transfer to the European Union of the payment of the tranches of EUR 1.2 billion in 2017, and EUR 1.4 billion in 2018, from the budget to the EU funds”, Florin Citu stated on Sunday for MEDIAFAX. The Liberal added that the Finance Minister Eugen Teodorovici “doesn’t recognize documents signed by him and sent to the EC”. “His credibility is zero. There is also another problem. If it turns out they did this illegally, who will pay the penalties? Liviu Dragnea?”, Citu also stressed. Eugen Teodorovici confirmed on Facebook that the external debt was paid with European funds, with the consent of the European Commission (EC), four years ago, adding that he is willing to provide additional explanations on this issue. His reaction comes after Florin Citu wrote on Sunday morning on the social network that the PSD-ALDE Government hided that they paid the external debt with EU funds. “The political world has nothing to do anymore with reality or professionalism of those who think they understand the finances or the economics overnight. It is both amusing and aberrant to see how measures that were taken at a certain moment by the Romanian Government, with the consent of the European Commission, indeed, (but not with a single Commissioner of the regional policy!), and not only by Romania, measures that led to the greatest progress in using EU funds starting with 2013, are presented today by politicians who are rather ignorant, not to say malicious, as lies or stunts”, Eugen Teodorovici wrote on Facebook on Sunday evening. The Finance Minister pointed out that either these measures are related to the continuation of financing the projects that weren’t ended in a single financial cycle, or to the settlement from EU funds of some important projects financed from national funds or funds attracted from various financial institutions (including EIB and EBRD), which are the so-called retrospective projects, such measures were taken by fully complying with the European regulations.
"There is no question of a nuclear dome over Romania," presidential adviser and former foreign minister Cristian Diaconescu said, commenting on the scenarios circulated about France using its nuclear umbrella to protect a larger part of the continent against the Russian threat, according to
The average net wage in Romania rose 9.7% y/y to RON 5,328 (EUR 1,070) in January, marking the slowest annual real growth rate (+4.7% y/y) since May 2023. Wages are expected to lose momentum through 2025, after the 4.4% and 7.7% advance, in real terms, during 2023 and 2024. The government’s forecasting body expects a […]
Romania’s public debt increased by 22.9% y/y to RON 964.3 billion (EUR 193.9 billion) at the end of December, after it surged by EUR 36.2 billion during the year. The public debt leaped by RON 27.4 billion (EUR 5.5 billion) in December, although the Treasury has not issued any FX bond – the increase […]
International rating agency Moody's followed Fitch and S&P in changing Romania's outlook from stable to negative, based on concerns about the fiscal situation aggravated by the political turmoil. All three major agencies rate Romania's debt at the lowest category in the investment-grade area – Baa3 in the case of Moody's. The decision to change the […]
Thousands of Romanians gathered in cities across the country and in major European capitals on Saturday, March 15, in a show of support for Romania's place in the European Union. The Euro Manifest rally took place in Bucharest, Timișoara, Arad, Oradea, Iași, and in the diaspora, including Brussels, London, and Dublin. Organizers estimated that between […]
The 2025 edition of the year’s first major film fest in Europe (and one of the biggest worldwide), the Berlin International Film Festival, took place between 13 and 23 February. My notes come with a bit of delay, as I was also hit by the festival flu that got so many of us sniffling and […]
