May 9, 2018 UPDATE
Click here for a roundup of domestic and international news
Newsroom, 09.05.2018, 19:58
EUROZONE Romanian president Klaus Iohannis on Wednesday said that Romania was committed to joining the Eurozone as quickly as possible and that the country would continue its moves to join the Schengen area. After all the criteria have been met, the country’s accession to the Euro area will be both to the benefit of its citizens and of the Romanian economy. On the other hand, Romania’s Schengen accession will contribute to the consolidation of security in the entire European Union, the Romanian official has also added. He has also referred to the upcoming Romanian presidency of the EU Council in the first semester of 2019 and the major EU summit to be hosted by Sibiu, in central Romania, on May 9th 2019. President Iohannis made the statement at a reception hosted on Europe’s Day in Bucharest.
TENNIS The world’s number one tennis player Simona Halep on Wednesday clinched a two-set win, 6-1, 6-4 against Kristyna Pliskova of the Czech Republic in the round of 16 of the WTA tournament in Madrid with roughly 6.7 million euros in prize money. In the quarterfinals the Romanian will be up against Kristyna’s sister, Karolina Pliskova. Halep has won the latest two editions of the Madrid tournament.
MOTION The Romanian MPs on Wednesday turned down a simple motion on healthcare issues tabled by the National Liberal MPs in opposition. The motion, which had been debated upon on Monday, was backed only by the Save Romania Union and the People’s Movement Party. After reaching an agreement with the government over their benefits, on Tuesday trade unions from the country’s healthcare system have announced that the all-out strike scheduled for Friday has been canceled. According to SANITAS leader Leonard Barascu, all the provisions of the agreement are applicable beginning the month of May. Talks over the collective labour agreement are also to be resumed.
WITHDRAWAL American President Donald Trump announced the US would withdraw from the Iranian nuclear deal and reimpose economic sanctions against Iran. The 2015 nuclear deal curbed Irans nuclear activities in return for lifting the sanctions that had been imposed by the UN, US and EU. President Trump harshly criticized the deal claiming that the agreement did not prevent Iran from funding terrorism and from destabilizing the Middle East. In a joint declaration, France, Germany and Great Britain have expressed regret for Mr. Trump’s decision and announced they remained committed to the deal. The EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said that the EU decided to support the agreement. The Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said that Teheran would observe the deal. The American President’s decision was hailed by Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Israel while the Russian Foreign Ministry said Russia was deeply disappointed with Donald Trump’s decision.
