Romania: Press review - February 5

Bucharest, Feb 5 /Agerpres/ - The Romanian dailies on Friday give main coverage to an announcement that Romania will join the planned U.S. anti-missile shield, the future facing the financing of Transylvania Motorway built by U.S. company Bechtel, possible solutions for the development of infrastructure over the next years and the continued drop in the wages.

U.S. President Barack Obama sent Romania an invitation to take part in the development of the U.S. missile shield. The message was communicated Bucharest on Thursday by visiting U.S. Under Secretary of State for Arms Control Ellen Tauscher. According to President Traian Basescu, the development of the U.S. missile interceptors involves 'hosting certain components by Romania too', Jurnalul National reports.

Romania is the first country to have officially answered the United States' invitation to take part in the anti-missile shield proposed by Obama. The decision was made at a meeting of the Supreme Defence Council on Thursday, that was called at the presidential Cotroceni Palace immediately after Basescu met Tauscher, who communicated Washington's message. The announcement made by Basescu was hailed by the U.S. embassy in Bucharest, Evenimentul zilei reports. The Bucharest-based dailies give extensive coverage to the topic under such headlines as 'Romania behind the shield' (Jurnalul National), 'Politicians hail Romania's hosting the U.S. anti-missile shield, but they fear Russia's reaction' (Gandul), 'Whom will the missile interceptors defend us from?' (Romania libera), 'Romania joins the ‘Stars War'' (Adevarul), 'How has Romania come to host the anti-missile shield' (Cotidianul) and 'The U.S. officially puts Romania behind the missile shield' (Curentul).

Thursday's meeting of the Social Democrats' National Council provided the hottest topics of yesterday's political news, because each speaker delivered an electoral address preparing him for the big confrontation at the PSD congress due on Feb. 20, says Cotidianul in an item reporting on the meeting held by the main opposition party's leading body. The print media carries detailed reports of the party leaders' viewpoints of the future of Romanian social democracy and the PSD's chances to become again the main party ahead of the 2012 general elections.

The construction works to be carried out this year on the motorway to link the central Brasov city to the western Bors checkpoint, also dubbed Transylvania Motorway will be funded from a loan to be drawn with the state guarantee, State Secretary at the Transport Ministry Constantin Dascalu announced. The authorities have yet to decide what financial institution the loan will be taken from as well as how much money will be borrowed. 'The loan can be made by the Finance Ministry or by (motorway constructor U.S. company) Bechtel. We have not decided yet, anyway we must be careful so that this loan does not take us to deficit', Dascalu said. He added Bechtel should hand in a timescale of the works that should also include the money required for such works, Jurnalul National reports.

Transport Minister Radu Berceanu wants the budget deficit to be increased above the limits accepted by the European Union officials in order to have the required funds to start the infrastructure works. Thus, the Romanians must choose between joining the European currency euro according to the set calendar (by 2014-2015) or having more kilometres of motorway, Evenimentul zilei reports.

Hidroelectrica hydro-electric power producer is currently in talks with two banks in order to contract two loans worth a combined 100 million euros that it needs so as to continue the investment programme it began last year, company managing director Mihai David is quoted by Ziarul financiar as saying.

The Romanian state must recoup more than one billion euros worth of arrears incurred by the big contributors to the state budget on Dec. 31, 2009, Bursa daily reports by citing figures supplied by the National Tax Management Agency; the big debtors' list includes 448 contributors.

The Romanians' real wages keep on dropping, Financiarul says in comments to the figures released by the National Institute of Statistics. The wage cuts made by part of the employers in an attempt to keep costs under control and to limit losses begin being visible in official statistic figures too. Thus, last December was the third consecutive month when the real wage dropped compared to the same period in 2008. The decline was 5.3 percent; this compares to 4.1 percent in November, the daily says.

Official statistics say Romanians live 68 and seven months on the average for men and 75 and eight months for women. The World Bank, however, says Romanian men live till 70 and women till 77. Moreover, the World Bank by its special programme called PROST calculated that the life expectancy increases significantly for the Romanians who live long enough to retire, with the pensioners living till 79 and four months on average for men and 80 and nine months for women. Our children and grandchildren will live even beyond 86-88 years old, according to the estimated life expectancy by 2075, Gandul reports. AGERPRES

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