Romanian language teachers may be dispatched to Kazakhstan
Mar 3, 2010

Romanian language teachers may be dispatched to Kazakhstan.
Karaganda, Kazakhstan, March 3 /Agerpres/ - Agerpres correspondent Irinela Mica reports:

President Traian Basescu on Wednesday told a meeting in Karaganda, Kazakhstan, with officials of the Romanian community of Kazakhstan that Romania is ready to dispatch there Romanian language teachers to teach at Sunday schools.

He added that Romania has significantly modified the law concerning citizenship so as to allow the people having unwillingly lost the Romanian citizenship to win it back. Basescu mentioned that the new modifications will allow even Romanian nationals living outside the country to qualify for some advantages resulting from being a European Union citizen, including free circulation within the European Union, employment rights and the right to study at EU universities. He pointed out that the Romanian citizenship is granted in full compliance with the legislation of the countries where the applicants reside and conditional on the applicants' expressed will.

At the meeting with officials of the local Romanian community and members of the Dacia cultural society, President Basescu thanked them for having preserved the Romanian language and culture despite being so far away from their home country. He also thanked the Kazakh authorities for the treatment extended to the Romanian minority, adding that this is a sign of democracy.

'In the period immediately ahead a jump in the economic and political relations of Romania with Kazakhstan will be visible. I am not saying this out of politeness, but because that is how it will happen,' said Basescu.

The President mentioned that Kazakhstan is Romania's most important foreign trade partner in Central Asia, that Romania is a bridge to the European Union for Kazakhstan and that there is an interest in the development of very important energy and transport projects.

Basescu was offered a nature painting, a book of the seven wonders of Kazakhstan and a photo album as a gift from the local administration of Karaganda.

The President also had a short conversation with Romanians from this region, who wanted to be taken pictures with the President. Some of them were dressed in Romanian folklore attire and shared some of their recollections from Romania and confessed their attachment to the Romanian language and culture.

In the after-noon, President Basescu toured the Memorial of Spassk, where he laid a flower basket at the monument, which was erected to commemorate the Romanian prisoners and victims of the communist repressions. Nearly 8,000 Romanian prisoners of war were encamped at Spassk during WWII, 900 of whom died there.

Also on Wednesday, the President laid a flower basket at the Burning Flame of the Country Defenders' Monument in Astana.

In Astana, President Basescu visited the First President's Museum located in a building that once housed the Kazakh Government. On display there are presents received by the Kazakh president, a library of more than 13,000 books and an archive of over 110,000 documents.

At the Independence Museum, President Basescu was presented a general city planning design of Astana comprising the city development objectives throughout 2030. AGERPRES
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