The Nastase Cabinet deems the European Commission’s country report as a huge success, even though the European Union did not grant Romania the functioning market economy status and warned corruption is still “widespread’ and “affects all aspects of society”, while justice is not independent and the administration remains cumbersome.
Dan Ioan Popescu – Economy and Trade minister and also PSD (Social Democrat Party) vice-president, concluded the country report was “the first very clear signal announcing the end of the transition period.” He added he did not agree with the statement about the functioning market economy status being granted only after reform progress was maintained. Popescu manages an economy sector, the energy industry, where restructuring is far from satisfactory and privatisation is only conducted because of pressure from the international financial bodies.
The European Commission released the country report on Wednesday, saying Romania can be considered as a functioning market economy once the good progress made has continued decisively. The European Union put it diplomatically, because truth is Romania did not get the functioning market economy status. Bulgaria had got it in 2002.
PM Adrian Nastase sees the glass half-full when it comes to the country report, saying Romania is starting to become a functioning market economy. “The meaning is positive. Romania’s economy is a spotted, Dalmatian-like economy, and we are trying to make it work better and this is why we should add what is going on at Silcotub Zalau, Michelin and Continental to the country report,” PM Adrian Nastase said.
Finance Minister Mihai Tanasescu blames the failure of the report on translation. “As far as I’m concerned, Romania has a functioning market economy and this point of view actually is what Commissioner Gunther Verheugen (…) said in the European Parliament.”
Klaus Regling, Director General for Economic and Financial Affairs of the European Commission, said that even though progress had been made, there was still a lot to be done. Jonathan Scheele, the head of the European Commission Delegation in Bucharest, said he trusted the Romanian authorities would address the remaining issues so that they could sign the EU Accession Treaty side by side with Bulgaria by the end of 2005.
Enrico Grillo Pasquarelli, Chief Negotiator for Romania of the European Commission, told Mediafax news agency in an interview in Brussels why Romania had not acquired the functioning market economy status. The three capital things it needs to achieve are to curb inflation, to curb arrears and maintain privatisation and restructuring progress.
“Inflation is still very high and very far from the percentages in the other applicant states. Arrears account for one third of the GDP. This is State aid in disguise, ” Pasquarelli said.
The Government needs to get at the “bottom of the issue”, which is the poor management of those companies. iulian.anghel@zf.ro