Press Review - October 16, 2015

10.16.2015 By Gabriela Stan

Gabriel Oprea, Work Meeting With UK Ambassador Paul Brummell

Deputy Prime Minister for National Security and Interior Minister Gabriel Oprea on Thursday had a work meeting with the United Kingdom’s Ambassador to Bucharest, Paul Brummell, according to a statement of the Romanian Interior Ministry.

The two officials had talks about the strategic partnership relation in the security sector in particular, about military cooperation, the fight against crime, cooperation in the justice sector and the support of Romanian authorities in fighting crime among Romanians living in UK.

In his turn, the UK ambassador praised the permanent collaboration between the law enforcement authorities of the two countries, as well as the bilateral dialogue, and expressed his wish to strengthen the partnership in order to attain all the goals on the common agenda. (Puterea)

SRI Head: We Are Going Through A Historical Stage Whose Catchword Is Crisis

Eduard Hellvig, head of the Romanian Intelligence Service (SRI), stated on Thursday in Cluj, at the opening of the academic year of the Doctoral School in International Relations and Security Studies, that “we are going through a historical stage whose catchword is crisis”.

SRI head said the Romanian Intelligence Service is already undergoing an extensive process   of adaptation to the "new asymmetric challenges".

Hellvig said that the energy or demographics crisis, the economic crisis, the Ukrainian, the Syrian or the Greek crisis, terrorist threats or the refugee crisis and migration to Europe are contributing to an unprecedented pressure in the last decades over the entire world. (Romania Libera)

EC Could Sanction Romania Over Irregularities At Sibiu-Orastie Highway

The European Commission could sanction Romania in case of the delay of works at Sibiu-Orastie highway, caused by the problems at kilometer 60, or for a potential rebuilding of the damaged segment by the Romanian state instead of the constructor.

“The European Commission is paying attention to such claims (e.n. – irregularities in the execution of works financed with EU funds) and could sanction Romania, asking it to return the entire EU contribution, which totals RON1.6 billion for Sibiu-Orastie highway – over EUR370 million,“ said Gheorghe Boeru, expert in infrastructure works.

A segment of 200 - 300 meters of Orastie-Sibiu highway will be completely demolished and rebuilt due to foundation issues caused by seepage. This is an absolute premiere among the highway and infrastructure projects financed by the European Union. (Adevarul)

Liviu Dragnea: I Don’t Want To Enter The Government In 2016

PSD president Liviu Dragnea stated, when asked about his plans for 2016, that he does not want to be part of the government in any way and that he does not plan to become Prime Minister, to have more time for the party.

When asked about his plans for 2016 in a TV show, Liviu Dragnea stated he hopes he will continue to be PSD president and that he has no plan to be part of the government.

"I hope I will continue to be the president of PSD, I don’t want to be part of the government in any way. (...) Not as PM either, because I cannot afford to mock 453,000 people and many other citizens whose opinion I asked for on various issues (…). In my opinion, if you are part of the government, you cannot take care of the party as much as you should," said Dragnea. (Adevarul)

First-Born Children 20% More Likely To Develop Myopia - Study

According to a study by researchers from Cardiff University, first-born children are approximately 10% more likely to develop myopia (short-sightedness), than later born children, and approximately 20% more likely to have a more severe form of the condition.

According to experts, one of the causes for myopia in first-born children could be that parents invest more in their education than in the education of later-born children, although they do not prove a causal relationship.

The report suggests that spending more time outdoors and restricting access to TV and mobile phones reduces nearsightedness rates.  (Jurnalul National)