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RADOR: News from Romania, 00-05-05
May 5, 2000
CONTENTS
[01] Laws Promulgated by Romanian President Emil Constantinescu;
[02] Joint Investigation by French and Romanian Judiciary;
[03] IMF Memorandum and Intention Letter Approved;
[04] Auto Showroom in Ploiesti;
[05] Ford Motor Company Presented Its New Transit V 184 Van;
[06] General Strike at the Nuclear Plant in Cernavoda;
[07] Finnish Prime Minister Paavo Lipponen on a Visit to Romania;
[08] Romanian President Emil Constantinescu Met Kurt Hellstrom, President
of the Swedish Ericsson Company;
[09] Romanian National Defence Minister Sorin Frunzaverde Met NATO Deputy
Secretary General Edgar Buckley;
[10] Protests Raised by the Basic Political Trearty Between Romania and the
Republic of Moldova.
[01] Laws promulgated by Romanian President Emil Constantinescu
Romanian President Emil Constantinescu promulgated the Budget Law and the
law on the budget for state-financed social insurance. In a statement on
Thursday, the president pointed out that the BudgeR was still an austerity
one, though this time it was based on a virtual economic growth. President
Constantinescu explained that he promulgated the laws as fast as he could
given the fact that the country's financial support and the foreign
financing depended on it. Refering to the unfair incomes the officials and
managers got, the president admited the problem was real and, in this
respect, he asked the prime minister to publicly announce the salaries of
the officials and public workers. He said the situation should get back to
normal as soon as possible. President Constantinescu has announced that,
along with some of his closest high-ranking advisers, he decided to offer
the additional raise in the salaries, recently approved by parliament
without previous consultations with the Presidency, as Church-coordinated
aid to help the poor. RADOR
[02] Joint investigation by French and Romanian judiciary
A meeting was planned on Thursday between representatives of the French and
RomaRian judiciary at the Supreme Court of Justice's Attorney Office in
Bucharest. A Romanian French businessman, Adrian Costea, has allegedly
involved his company in moneylaundring between Romania and France to the
benefit of Romanian politicians. According to the file opened last autumn,
the money resulted from oil transactions. The investigators are supposed to
assess whether the transactions were real or just a cover-up for an illegal
transfer of Romanian public money (some 70 million dollars) to France. The
French newspaper "Le Parisien" points out that, as presidential elections
are due in Romania later this year, the authorities should exercise some
restraint in order to ensure that none of the candidates would damage his
position in the race.
Presidential spokesman Rasvan Popescu pointed out that the facts in the
announcement of the Attorney General's Office, who provided the French
investigators with legal assistance, refered to events that happened before
the elections Rn 1996. According to the communique issued by the Attorney's
Office with the Supreme Court of Justice, the investigators question the
legality of contracts between two French and Romanian companies to the
benefit of Romania's Agriculture Ministry, more than 100 million dollars
granted and paid by BANCOREX between February 1992 - January 1996. The
French judiciary would like to examine a series of documents concerning the
contracts, and hear some Romanian officials and businessmen such as Viorel
Hrebenciuc, Mihai Ungheanu, Dan Nicolae Fruntelata, Liviu Razvan Temesan,
sotii Cazacu, sotii Pascu, Adrian Nastase, Iosif Boda, Teodor Melescanu,
Mircea Cosea, Ovidiu Grasu and Dumitru Iliescu.
In a statement on Thursday, Adrian Nastase, first vicepresident of the
opposition Party of Social Democracy in Romania (PDSR), said he did not
know any detail about the affair, and warned that the crisis could affect
Romania's credibility abroad. Adrian Nastase pointed out that he did not
met Rdrian Costea before 1998.
The leader of the Alliance for Romania party (ApR), Teodor Melescanu,
Romania's foreign minister at the time, said he was never involved in the
transactions, and he knew nothing about them. Mr Melescanu said that, in
his opinion, his name on the list of witnesses seemed rather strange, but
he intended to answer the hearing. RADOR
[03] IMF Memorandum and intention letter approved
At its meeting on Thursday evening, the Romanian Cabinet has approved the
Memorandum and the intention letter to the IMF aimed at extending the
existing stand-by agreement. The macroeconomic terms agreed with the IMF
include a GDP growth of 1.3% in the year 2000, an inflation rate of 27% and
a budget deficit representing 3.5% of the GDP. The government is expected
to mentain its restrictive monetary and fiscal policies. Before leaving
Romania, IMF chief negotiator Emanuel Zervoudakis pointed out that the
documents should be approved by the IMF executives by the end of this mRnth
if the Romanian government would accelerate some of the moves it delayed.
RADOR
[04] Auto showroom in Ploiesti
The Book House in Ploiesti hosts the 11-th edition of the Auto 2000
International Fair. Participants in the opening ceremony included
businessmen, local officials and MPs. The fair include 35 Romanian and
foreign car and spare part manufacturers. RADOR
[05] Ford Motor Company presented its new Transit V 184 van
At a press conference taking place in the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Bucharest
on Thursday, Ford Motor Company, through its Romcar Srl representative, has
presented the new Transit V 184 van. Romcar director Viorel Niculescu said
the new car was part of Ford's plan to become the world leader in car
manufacturing and services. The first 20 Transit V 184 vans will be
delivered in May according to a five-year leasing contract. The Romcar
director expressed the hope that the Romanian clients would welcome the new
Ford model. RADOR
[06] General strike at the nuclRar plant in Cernavoda
The workers at the nuclear plant in Cernavoda have continued their general
strike on Thursday. Trade union leader Ion Monceanu told the RRA that the
plant executives called on trade unionists to suspend the strike until May
8 as Romanian Industry and Trade Minister Radu Berceanu might decide to
close the plant down. The trade unionists rejected the proposal and
expressed their commitment to further strike actions until their demands
would be answered. In a statement on Thursday, minister Berceanu reiterated
that that the pay claims the workers put forward were unjustified as their
wages were already 4 times higher than the average on the economy. RADOR
[07] Finnish Prime Minister Paavo Lipponen on a visit to Romania
After meeting the Finnish Prime Minister Paavo Lipponen on Thursday,
Romanian President Emil Constantinescu welcomed Finland's initiative
concerning the civil management of virtual crises, a project including both
EU and NATO member and applicRnt states. The Finnish prime minister pointed
out the importance of the Romanian - Finnish treaty concerning the return
of illegal immigrants, a document that, in his opinion, was expected to
improve the visa regime and border security. At a meeting with his Romanian
counterpart Mugur Isarescu, Prime Minister Paavo Lipponen reiterated his
country's support for Romania's efforts to join the EU as well as the
country's economic recovery. Before leaving Bucharest, the Finnish prime
minister met Romanian Foreign Minister Petre Roman and attended a lunch
offered by his Romanian counterpart. RADOR
[08] Romanian President Emil Constantinescu met Kurt Hellstrom, president
of the Swedish Ericsson Company
Romanian President Emil Constantinescu met Kurt Hellstrom, the president of
the Swedish Ericsson Company, who presented his plan of building a mobile
phone manufacturing plant in the city of Timisoara, in co-operation with
the Romanian Electec manufacturer. The Ericsson president expresseR his
confidence in Romania's economic growth while pointing out the skills the
young Romanian experts were proving. RADOR
[09] Romanian Defence Minister Sorin Frunzaverde met NATO Deputy Secretary
General Edgar Buckley
While in Brussels on Thursday, Romanian Defence Minister Sorin Frunzaverde
said NATO welcomed the recent military partnership between Romania, Hungary,
Bulgaria and Ukraine. The statement was made after a meeting between the
Romanian minister and NATO Deputy Secretary General Edgar Buckley. A
Romanian National Defence Ministry communique says Sorin Frunzaverde and
Edgar Buckley have agreed to accelerate the Romania - NATO consultations
concerning the country's national programme for future NATO membership.
RADOR
[10] Protests raised by the basic political Treaty between Romania and the
Republic of Moldova
The ProBassarabia and Bucovine Cultural Association has condemned the
recent ratification of the Treaty of favoured partnership and co-operation
between RRmania and the Republic of Moldova. In a communique issued to the
press, the association says that "the Romanians in Bassarabia, Bucovine and
Hertza feel deeply hurt about the treaty as, after the similar treaty
signed with the Ukraine, the Romanian diplomacy made nothing but restoring
the terms in the Ribbentrop-Molotov Pact, and such move was unfair and
unjustified". RADOR
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