Informal meeting of the Justice and Home Affairs Council in Bucharest
European interior ministers are meeting in Bucharest on Thursday, to discuss issues such as the Schengen area, migration and cooperation in data exchange. It is the first day of the informal meeting of Justice and Home Affairs Council and the ministers of justice are due to meet on Friday. Romania is hosting the meeting as the county holds the six months rotating presidency of the European Union Council. The Romanian Interior Minister Carmen Dan has said that the issue regarding the Schengen area has been included on the agenda and will be debated not only because it is a subject of interest for Romania and Bulgaria, but also because it deals with other important aspects, such as maintaining border controls for long period of times. „We have to find a balance between ensuring security for these citizens in states exposed to the terrorist risk and the fundamental value that the European Free Movement Area represents”, minister Carmen Dan has said.
Prime Minister Viorica Dancila is on a working visit to Brussels
The Romanian Prime Minister, Viorica Dancila, is continuing her working visit to Brussels, where she is due to take part in a conference dedicated to fighting anti-Semitism. The head of the Romanian government is also meeting the European Commission’s First Vice President Frans Timmermans and the President of the European Council Donald Tusk. On Wednesday, Prime Minister Dancila took part in the plenary session of the European Regions Committee, where she underlined that Romania’s priority during the European Union presidency was the cohesion policy. On the same occasion, Viorica Dancila has reaffirmed that since 2011 Romania has been meeting the technical criteria for the accession to the Schengen Area.
The European Commission forecasts a continued slowdown of Romania’s economic growth
The European Commission estimates that Romania’s economic growth pace will continue to slow down. It is forecasting a 3.8% economic growth in 2019 and 3.6% in 2020, driven mainly by consumption. The Commission is warning that the evolution of the investments will depend on the impact of the fiscal measures introduced by the government at the end of last year, due to possible negative effects on lending and predictability for the economic environment. Romanian authorities have made the budget plan for this year based on a growth forecast of 5.5%, which both the Fiscal Council and the financial agency Fitch believe is optimistic or unrealistic.
Mădălina Brotăcel, RADOR
