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Dăncilă: I discussed with the president yesterday, I motivated the reshuffle proposals. Today I will call
him / ALDE decides on the ministers of this party

 News.ro - Viorica Dăncilă said on Thursday after the coalition meeting that she had a talk with
President Klaus Iohannis motivating the reshuffle proposals and today she will call him. She also
said that so far, the coalition has not discussed on a wider reshuffle, and ALDE is to decide on the
ministers of this party.
o She also said that a decision on nominating a Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs
will be made within the party, as Viorel Ştefan will go to the European Court of Accounts.
o Asked if she is considering a broader reshuffle, including ALDE ministers, including Teodor
Melescanu, the prime minister replied: "ALDE will decide if it wants this reshuffle, I will
talk with Mr. Tariceanu. For now, we have not discussed this topic. "
o On the other hand, Dăncilă claimed that Iohannis expressed his appreciation for the way
the EU rotating presidency was managed and said that he would shortly come up with a
final decision on the reshuffle.
 Digi24: Sources: Viorica Dăncilă and Klaus Iohannis had a private talk. Who will leave the
Government - The stake is great for PSD members, as the list of those who are likely to lose their
post of ministers is large. Carmen Dan, the interior minister, whose dismissal was demanded by
Klaus Iohannis "immediately," last week, will surely lose her job if the Dăncilă Government will
survive the motion of censure. Ecaterina Andronescu's education mandate has been questioned
since the last meeting of the PSD's CEX, along with her staff policy at the ministry. Răzvan Cuc
from Transport is being targeted by PSD Giurgiu president, Niculae Bădălău, who wants the
Ministry of Transport for the organization he is leading.
o The ALDE partners will also make changes in the line of ministers, replacing all three
portfolio holders in the government - Teodor Melescanu, Anton Anton and Gratiela
Gavrilescu, in an attempt by Călin Popescu Tăriceanu to change the image of the party.

Senator Calin Popescu Tariceanu, after the political pact initiated by Klaus Iohannis: The pact must be
made by parties, not by the president

 Mediafax - Calin Popescu Tariceanu said on Thursday that the pact should have been built around
the parties, not by Klaus Iohannis. The ALDE leader proposes a discussion between all political
parties about a possible pact, on the president’s super-immunity, but also on the rule of law.
o He said ALDE has proposals for a pact between the political parties.
o Asked whether he would send the pact proposals to Klaus Iohannis, Calin Popescu
Tariceanu said the pact is aimed only at political parties.

ALDE NEWS
Tariceanu, after the coalition meeting: We agreed that an analysis should be made on GEO 114

 News.ro - ALDE leader Calin Popescu Tariceanu said on Thursday it was agreed at the level of the
coalition to analyze GEO 114 to see if there are any provisions that negatively affect the business
environment.
 o He added that he had decided along with Viorica Dăncilă "that a clear signal should be
given to the business environment in the sense of showing the willingness to correct any
deficiencies that the ordinance might still produce".

Calin Popescu Tariceanu was relieved when the DNA request was rejected in the Senate: "The
prosecutors were saved so that they would not make fools of themselves again"

 Stiripesurse - Senate President Călin Popescu Tăriceanu considers that by the Senate's rejection
of the DNA request for the approval of the prosecution in its case the prosecutors "have been
saved, so that they will make fools of themselves again"

POLITICAL NEWS
Dacian Cioloş: We can have an interim government and early elections right after the presidential
elections

 Hotnews - PLUS leader Dacian Ciolos said Thursday at Digi24 that a new majority should be tried
to support an interim government until after the presidential election, and then to hold early
parliamentary elections.
o He specified that the PLUS representatives are ready to take over the government after
the parliamentary elections.
 Evz: Cioloş with last-minute details about the USR-PLUS strategy: "We are preparing during this
period!" - Dacian Ciolos said on Thursday that a new majority should be tried to support an interim
governmental formula until after the presidential election and afterwards organize early
parliamentary elections.

Traian Basescu, about the Petrov file: I guarantee you one thing - I cannot lose this trial

 Mediafax - Former President Traian Basescu said on Thursday evening that he "guarantees" that
he cannot lose the trial with CNSAS, who asked the court to declare his status as a collaborator of
the Securitate. "There are made-up accusations made on things that were not taken in analysis,"
he said.

Last minute calculations for the no-confidence vote. The liberals’ hope is Victor Ponta

 Antena 3 - The National Liberal Party is in negotiations for the no-confidence vote. The Liberals
are missing 22 votes, even if the USD, PMP, UDMR and Pro Romania have announced their
intention to back the effort to bring down the Government.
o According to political sources, the National Liberal Party have high hopes with Victor
Ponta, which would be the key to persuading PSD lawmakers to back the effort.
o Also, the Social Democrats form ranks and want to show they still have a majority in
Parliament with the support of ALDE.

Ludovic Orban: We call on the Dăncilă Cabinet to implement the recommendations of the Venice
Commission

 Mediafax - PNL leader Ludovic Orban urges the Dăncilă Executive to urgently implement the
recommendations of the Venice Commission regarding the latest Emergency Ordinances on
Justice, expressed at the request of the PNL.
 o The quoted source states that lawmaking in the field of Justice through Emergency
Ordinances is abolished by European law experts, and changes to the organization of the
Special Section for Magistrates are "alarming" because prosecutors in this section may
review decisions previously taken and hierarchically superior control is not clear.

USR Local Councilor, manager of a forest exploitation firm

 Stiripesurse - New information on important USR members is brought to light. After information
about contracts of USR MEP Dragos Pâslaru and CJ Teleorman led, at the time of their assignment,
by former PSD leader Liviu Dragnea, new information on the affairs of some USR members is now
revealed.
o Ana Ciceala, USR local councilor, known for her public demonstrations of defense of parks
and trees in Bucharest, runs a foreign company that has bought 11,000 hectares of forests
in Romania for logging. The company was acquired in December 2012 by the famous
Holzindustrie GMBH, the largest timber exporter in Romania. It is the conclusion of an
investigation conducted by the Political Investigation Group.

Liviu Pleşoianu, open letter to colleagues in PSD: The party was taken over by executioners

 Mediafax - Liviu Pleşoianu addressed an open letter to his colleagues from PSD, stating that the
party was taken over by "executioners without any principle, who double themselves and invent
their new versions today, which are to fight with their versions from yesterday."

PRO Romania announces that it has submitted to the Senate a legal proposal regarding the organization
and conduct of the electronic vote / Senator PSD Şerban Nicolae also has a vote project

 News.ro - PRO Romania announces that it submitted on Thursday a legislative proposal on the
organization and conduct of the electronic vote. "Unlike other online voting options, the version
proposed by PRO Romania is based on a decentralized technology, so not even the institution
managing the system can change the results. The security of this voting system is guaranteed by
mathematics and cryptography, not by dusty institutions and 4-star generals", the party's
representatives said.
o PSD MP Serban Nicolae has already filed a legislative draft on the vote of Romanians living
abroad, which proposes that Romanians living in the diaspora should vote on permanent
electoral lists and that voting sections be organized based on their number.

GOVERNMENT
Kelemen Hunor: We ask the Prime Minister to dismiss the Minister of Interior and the Prefect of
Harghita; Authorities must seek out and hold accountable those who have entered the cemetery of the
Uz Valley. Melescanu's reaction

 News.ro - UDMR leader Kelemen Hunor calls for the dismissal of Interior Minister Carmen Dan
and the Prefect of Harghita County as a result of the situation at the Cemetery of Heroes in Uz
Valley, where tensions between Romanians and Hungarians have escalated. In addition, UDMR
calls for authorities to seek out and find those who entered the cemetery and hold them
accountable.
 o Minister of Foreign Affairs Teodor Melescanu had a telephone conversation with
Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs Péter Szijjártó on Thursday, addressing the situation
at the international military cemetery in the Uz Valley. Melescanu assured that the
necessary measures are taken to avoid unwanted escalation of the situation, without the
need for non-constructive external interventions in this respect.
 Hotnews: MAE: Melescanu asked the Hungarian counterpart to "send a very clear message to
the Hungarian community to avoid confrontations and escalation of tensions"
 Hotnews: The Government of Hungary has sent the Dăncilă Cabinet a protest note on the
incidents in the Uz Valley: The Romanian government is "called" to investigate the case in detail
and to respect the international commitments.
 Hotnews: Tense atmosphere at the Cemetery in the Valley of Uz, where several members of
some Romanian organizations broke the gate after more than a hundred Hungarians had
formed a chain around the cemetery. After the Hungarians' withdrawal, a group of Orthodox
priests held a service.

DNA opened a criminal case on the diaspora vote in the Euro-parliamentary elections and the
referendum; 42 complaints about irregularities have been received

 News.ro - The National Anticorruption Directorate (DNA) announces that a criminal case has been
opened regarding the diaspora vote in the European Parliament elections and the 26 May
referendum, after receiving 42 complaints from the General Prosecutor's Office vote.
 Mediafax: MAE report on the diaspora vote: There were coordinated actions to bring large
numbers of citizens with buses for the vote – MAE says, in the report on the Diaspora vote sent
to the prime minister, that among the factors leading to the queues formed during the vote in the
European Parliament are the overlap of the referendum with the European Parliament elections
and "coordinated actions of bringing large numbers of citizens with 5-6 buses to vote".
 News.ro: Tariceanu: Someone is guilty for what happened in the Diaspora vote, but it is not the
minister - ALDE leader Calin Popescu Tariceanu said on Thursday that the coalition meeting did
not discuss a reshuffle of the ministers, underlining that is not a fan of finding scapegoats and that
Foreign Minister Teodor Melescanu is not responsible for what happened in the Diaspora vote.
o He said that Teodor Melescanu still has support from ALDE for the Foreign Minister.
o On the other hand, Tariceanu said that he proposed an electoral code committee to draft
a proposal to solve this problem.
 Mediafax: Viorica Dăncilă, after the coalition meeting: On Monday I will show the analysis
related to the vote in the Diaspora. I talked to the head of state about reshuffle.

Disastrous situation at the Oltenia Energy Complex: Loss - over one billion lei, the continuation of
activity – uncertain, the Government has closed its eyes

 Hotnews - The Energy Complex Oltenia, one of the largest energy producers in Romania, with over
13,000 employees, has never been in a worse situation than it is now. The company's
management has tried as much as possible to postpone the publication of the figures announcing
the disaster. An official document shows that there is a high risk of meeting short-term liabilities
and that there is a "significant uncertainty" about the company's ability to continue its business.

Minister Pintea, about data of the Transplant Agency: Let's wash our laundry in family
  Mediafax - Sorina Pintea said on Thursday, in the context in which a series of details of a report
on the work of the Transplant Agency appeared public that she chose not to make this information
public, motivating that it seemed fair to her to "wash the laundry in family".
o The conclusions of the report, according to Sorina Pintea, cover a period of 10 years and
in the context of solving the problems identified, measures have already been taken. "Of
course, the report is true, we have seen it, signed it and took action. The first step was to
change the director, the second change", says Pintea.
o Sorina Pintea also said that things were presented in a hard note in the report, at her
request, in order to have a clear picture of the reality that the minister says is "cruel".
o In the same context, the minister has stated that important international transplantat-
related voices have stated that, until Romania will be able to establish its donation
activity, it will not be able to link its cooperation with other states.
o The Minister concluded by saying that the current situation, where the state can do
nothing for the thousands of patients on waiting lists is "very frustrating".
 Antena 3: Health Minister on lung transplantation: "We have signed the agreement with
Hungary" - Health Minister Sorina Pintea announced on Thursday that she has signed an
agreement with Hungary on lung transplantation, technical conditions are being discussed at the
end, and at the end of June, the technical agreement could be signed, so that the actual
collaboration could begin.

Venice Commission draft: The most problematic elements of the justice reform in 2018 either remained
unchanged or worsened

 News.ro - The Venice Commission notes with regret that the most problematic elements of the
justice reform in 2018 identified in the October opinion either remained unchanged or worsened
and the most worrying is that the Government continues to promote legislative changes through
emergency ordinances, says the draft opinion of the Council of Europe body.
o According to the Venice Commission, "the reasons for setting up the Special Section for
Investigating Criminal Offenses with a vaguely defined competence remain unclear."
o The document also shows that the system of appointing and removing high-level
prosecutors remains essentially the same, with the Minister of Justice playing a decisive
role in this process, without counterbalancing the powers of the Romanian President or
the SCM.

Finance Minister wants to run for presidential: "When, I do not know! At some point, surely!"/ What
Teodorovici says about eliminating the budget deficit

 Mediafax - Eugen Teodorovici admitted he is tempted by a presidential candidacy, but he did not
specify the moment when he would do so. At the same time, the minister added that Romania
could, in two years, eliminate the budget deficit of 28 billion lei, if the areas where the public
money is spent in an unusual way will be restructured.
o Teodorovici said that funding is not the reason why infrastructure projects are not being
carried out, but because of the weak capacity of structures such as the road or railroad
company that is not moving enough.

NIS confirmed the 5% growth of the Romanian economy in the first quarter
  News.ro – The National Institute of Statistics (INS) confirmed on Thursday the 5% gross series
growth of the Romanian economy in the first quarter of this year, compared to the same period
last year. The government is counting on this year's economic growth of 5.5%.
o Compared to the same quarter of 2018, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) reached an
increase of 5.1% on the seasonally adjusted series.

The European Commission has launched three infringement procedures against Romania

 Mediafax - The European Commission has launched three infringement procedures against
Romania: Environment in relation to the obligation to apply European ship recycling legislation
and two on the Internal Market, to improve single point of sale and electronic invoicing for public
procurement.

PARLIAMENT
CCR: The Long-Term National Strategy Act, the "Strategy 2040", unconstitutional

 Mediafax - The Constitutional Court has accepted the objections of unconstitutionality formulated
by PNL, USR, PMP and President Klaus Iohannis on the Law on the elaboration and updating of
the long-term national strategy "Strategy 2040". The CCR judges declared the unconstitutional
law as a whole.

Alina Gorghiu: "Next week I will ask the Joint Parliamentary Bureaus to initiate the procedure of
appointing the new People's Advocate"

 EVZ - Alina Gorghiu said in Timisoara on Thursday that she will ask during the next week to the
Joint Bureaus of Parliament to start the procedure of appointing the new People's Advocate.
o The current holder of the position, Victor Ciorbeaș’s mandate has expired and is not
concerned with the "abusive" government ordinances.

JUSTICE
UNJR and AMR request the SCM to declassify and publish the classified annexes of the Judicial
Inspection Report on the PICCJ-SRI Protocol

 News.ro - AMR and UNJR on Thursday demanded in a letter to the Superior Council of Magistracy
that, as a guarantor of the independence of the judiciary, "to urgently undertake all steps to
finalize the declassification and publication of the 19 annexes to the Judicial Inspection Report on
the manner of application of the cooperation protocol between the PICCJ and the SRI in 2009 ".