Tag: Romania

Romanian President Traian Băsescu has asked for compensation from the EU for the abandoned Nabucco pipeline project which had been planned to carry Azeri gas to Austria through Romanian territory.

The Czech power utility ČEZ has complained to the European Commission about delays by Romania in paying green energy subsidies, saying they may cost it up to €66 million a year.

Some EU governments could be given greater leeway to meet budget targets, the European Commission said in proposing a liberal interpretation of its rules to counter accusations that spending cuts are holding back the economy.

Lithuania, which takes over the EU's rotating Presidency on 1 July, is not optimistic regarding the much-protracted accession of Bulgaria and Romania to the Schengen borderless area, the country’s envoy to Brussels said yesterday (18 June). 

Former Romanian MEP George (Gigi) Becali has been sentenced to three years in prison for abuse of power in connection with a land exchange deal with the Romanian Defence Ministry 15 years ago.

The European Commission has responded coldly to calls from four EU ministers to curb so-called ‘benefits tourism’ by introducing rules prohibiting EU nationals expelled for benefits fraud from returning.

A Foreign Office-commissioned report has directly challenged claims by UK Prime Minister David Cameron that Britain faces a massive wave of immigration from Bulgaria and Romania when labour restrictions applying to these countries are lifted next January.

Romania's prime minister handpicked six new chief and deputy prosecutors yesterday (3 March), defying EU calls for more transparency in a country where concerns about respect for the rule of law are growing.

Hannes Swoboda, President of the Socialists and Democrats (S&D) group in the European Parliament, has described as “populist and deceitful” Germany's threat to veto the accession of Bulgaria and Romania to the EU’s border-free Schengen area.

In a widely expected U-turn, Romanian authorities yesterday (31 January) gave the American energy giant Chevron the certificates it needed to start exploring for shale gas in the eastern part of the country.

The European Commission’s report on Romania, due to be published today (30 January), appears to turn the page of an extremely difficult 2012 year for EU-Romania relations, according to an advance copy seen by EurActiv.

Romanian members of parliament voted overwhelmingly yesterday (22 January) to boost their immunity from prosecution, a move set to annoy a European Commission already exasperated by Romania's hesitant efforts to tackle high-level corruption. An EU report on Romania under the cooperation and verification mechanism is expected next week.

José Manuel Barroso’s congratulatory message following the recent parliamentary election in Romania carries two important messages: it tells President Traian Băsescu that he should re-appoint Victor Ponta as prime minister, and warns Ponta he should work with Băsescu instead of reviving efforts to impeach him.

The failure to agree on the next EU budget at today's extraordinary summit leaves Germany with powerful negotiating leverage over the UK for the crucial summit on banking union scheduled in December, EurActiv has learned.

The European Commission on Wednesday (31 October) threatened to publish an extraordinary monitoring report on Bulgaria's ailing judicial system, hours after lawmakers in Sofia appointed a controversial figure to the country’s Constitutional Court despite EU warnings.

Romania has two months to react to a warning from the European Commission, which has identified serious problems in the country's anti-corruption procedures in the implementation of programmes in the field of transport, regional development and competitiveness, a spokesperson said today (26 October).

While there is significant disagreement within the Kremlin about how to deal with Sofia's challenge, Moscow is running out of ways to push Bulgaria into fast-tracking its commitment to South Stream, says Stratfor.

British Prime Minister David Cameron warned that he could veto the EU budget for 2014-2020 “if necessary”, and that measures would be taken to make sure that immigrants from EU countries would not take the jobs of fellow Britons.

Embattled Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta said European Commission President José Manuel Barroso did not reproach him during a meeting yesterday (17 September), and praised him for sticking to commitments to overcome the political crisis in his country.

Delays by Romania and Bulgaria in using EU funds since their accession in 2007 have hampered the nations’ transition to democracy and a market economy, the French Senate says in a report.

Romania's parliament ended a dramatic session yesterday (27 August) by accepting a Constitutional Court ruling to return the country's embattled president to office. With the publication of the decision in the country’s official journal, Traian Băsescu can now return to office after a 52-day suspension.

The French government will ask the Cyprus EU presidency to put the question of Roma inclusion on the agenda of the 18-19 October European summit, the government announced yesterday (22 August).