Romania’s new government expects its investiture vote
Romania’s new government of Prime Minister Mihai Tudose is expected to get its investiture vote in parliament on Thursday. Hearings before parliamentary committees are expected to end by 3PM (local time) when the country’s parliament will meet for a vote in a joint session. Mr Tudose’s cabinet includes familiar faces of the former government of ousted Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu with some new ministers such as Defence Minister Adrian Ţuţuianu, Finance Minister Ionuţ Mişa, Culture Minister Lucian Romaşcanu and former trade union leader Liviu Pop as Education Minister. Mr Tudose is seen as an ally of Liviu Dragnea, the powerful leader of the governing Social Democratic Party (PSD) who is prevented from holding ministerial office because of a conviction for electoral fraud.
Romanian – Bulgarian Business Forum opens in Bucharest
Romanian President Klaus Iohannis and his Bulgarian counterpart Rumen Radev are expected to open a Romanian – Bulgarian Business Forum in the capital Bucharest on Thursday. The Bulgarian president is in Romania for a two-day visit. Official talks on Wednesday focused on trade and economic co-operation between the two countries at a time when Romania ranks third among Bulgaria’s most important trade partners in the EU. The two presidents also discussed NATO, security in the Black Sea region, and EU issues. The leaders talked about the presidency of the EU, which Bulgaria takes over on Jan. 1, 2018, and Romania a year later. Mr. Radev said the neighbours had bilateral trade worth 4 billion euros ($4.48 billion) last year.
Romanian suspected of terrorism
Raids are underway in the Romanian southern couty of Argeş where prosecutors of Romania’s Directorate for Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT) and the Argeş police are looking for a man suspected of terrorism. The investigation opened in 2015 when the man, aged 39, allegedly joined the Islamic State terror group. The man expressed his support for Paris terror attacks in November 2015 by mailing messages and terror attack photos through social media networks. He is also suspected of providing Jihadists with information about a military target for a future terror attack, according to a DIICOT statement issued on Thursday.
Alexandru Danga – RADOR
