PHOTO: Nineo’clock. Social Democrat Marcel Ciolacu, the new Speaker of Romanian Chamber of Deputies.
On May 29, 2019, the Romanian Chamber of Deputies elected Marcel Ciolacu, legislator of the ruling Social Democratic Party (PSD), as the new Speaker to fill the vacancy left by predecessor Liviu Dragnea who was sentenced to jail on May 27.
A total of three candidates competed for the post. Ciolacu won 172 votes, more than Kelemen Hunor of the Hungarian Democratic Union with 20 votes and leader of the National Liberal Party caucus Raluca Turcan (jointly proposed by the three most important oppositions in the chamber, National Liberal Party, Save Romania Union and the People’s Movement Party) at 100 votes.
Ciolacu was a founding member of the PSD Buzau organization and led the branch between 2010 and 2012. He has been a vice mayor, local and county councilman, interim prefect and Buzau MP. He was also a known critic of former PSD leader and former Speaker Liviu Dragnea.
In his inauguration speech, he said that his approach will be different in contrast to that of former House Speaker Liviu Dragnea, his plan being for the institution to enter “normalcy.” Moreover, Speaker Ciolacu states that he wants to observe parliamentary customs. “I suppose I will have a different approach, [former Speaker Dragnea] was also party president, I’ve avoided this, and I don’t want it. My approach will be very clear, just as I said in the House, I’m not the head of House lawmakers, I have only one role in the upcoming period: first and foremost, that of entering normalcy. This means observing parliamentary customs, all the agreements with House whips should be signed by everyone. For example, the composition of the Standing Bureau, the committees, I will focus more on organizing and managing the political problems within the House.”
This was the first contest between the main ruling party and the opposition in the national parliament after the European parliament elections which took place on May 26, in which the ruling Social Democratic Party (PSD) lost to the opposition parties. PSD won just 23% of the vote, its lowest win in any election since Romania returned to democracy in 1989.
The previous Speaker for the Romanian Chamber of Deputies Liviu Dragnea began a three and a half year prison sentence on Monday after the Supreme Court upheld a 2018 corruption conviction. Liviu Dragnea served as the leader of the ruling Social Democratic Party and as de facto prime minister.
http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/europe/2019-05/29/c_138100539.htm
http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2019-05/30/c_138100864.htm
https://www.romania-insider.com/opposition-candidate-chamber-deputies
http://business-review.eu/news/psd-mp-marcel-ciolacu-elected-speaker-of-romanian-parliaments-chamber-of-deputies-201569
PHOTO: Russian State Duma. Chairman of the State Duma, Viacheslav Volodin.
On May 30, Russian President Vladimir Putin introduced into the State Duma a draft federal law on the suspension by the Russian Federation of the Treaty Between the United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics on the Elimination of Their Intermediate-Range and Shorter-Range Missiles (more commonly known as the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, or INF Treaty).
The draft law stipulates that the President is granted the right to decide on the renewal of the treaty, and the bill will enter into force from the moment of its official publication.
Chairman of the State Duma Viacheslav Volodin announced on the plenary session on May 30 that the State Duma will review the bill on June 18. “We proposed to review this bill as a matter of priority at a meeting on June 18,” said Viacheslav Volodin, noting that the bill of the head of state was reviewed at an extraordinary meeting of the State Duma Council on May 30 and sent to the relevant authorities for comments until June 10. The Committee on International Affairs was appointed as the executor committee for this draft law, the Committee on Defense and the Committee on Security and Corruption Control were set as contributors.
Commenting on the bill, Speaker Volodin said, “Based on the steps of the United States of America that violated this Treaty, we believe that it is a right move to suspend it and do everything possible to ensure global security and, first of all, the security of our citizens.” He also stressed that Russia has done everything to preserve the contractual relations and obligations that were made by the USSR and the United States back on 1987.
The INF Treaty was signed in Washington on December 8, 1987, and banned all nuclear and non-nuclear missiles with short and medium ranges. On February 2, 2019, President Trump unilaterally suspended the fulfillment of its obligations under the Treaty, accusing Russia of violating the treaty by building and testing systems prohibited by the treaty.
http://duma.gov.ru/en/news/45168/
http://duma.gov.ru/en/news/45169/
http://duma.gov.ru/en/news/45174/
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-47101429
PHOTO: IISS. Prime Minister of Singapore Lee Hsien Loong during his keynote address.
The 18th Asia Security Summit: IISS (International Institute for Strategic Studies) Shangri-La Dialogue took place from May 31 to June 2, 2019 in Singapore. Key ministers such as Prime Minister of Singapore, Acting Secretary of Defense of the United States, Ministers of Defense for China, Korea, Japan, Malaysia, United Kingdom, France, Canada, Vietnam, Philippines, Australia, Indonesia, New Zealand, Singapore, and High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Frederica Mogherini attended the event. This was the first time China sent its defense minister to the Dialogue in 8 years.
The Dialogue has been launched in 2002 to build confidence and foster practical security cooperation by facilitating easy communication and fruitful contact among Asia’s defense and security policymakers. This year, the focus of the summit was on heightening U.S.-China competition.
In the keynote address that kicked off the Dialogue, Prime Minister of Singapore Lee Hsien Loong noted that while both China and the United States could still make a series of adjustments to accommodate each other’s’ interests to ensure that heightened competition would not give way to conflict, the recent hardening of attitudes on the part of both sides as well as the lingering trust deficit between them suggested that the international community was headed for a “more divided and troubled world”.
The Dialogue also had plenary sessions on Korean security and Asia’s evolving security order, as well simultaneous special sessions on competition in the South Pacific and security implications of regional infrastructure development articulated in visions such as China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Participants also had an opportunity to discuss maritime security, cybersecurity, and confidence-building measures.
Videos and transcripts of the keynote addresses, plenary speeches, and simultaneous special sessions can be accessed here: https://www.iiss.org/events/shangri-la-dialogue/shangri-la-dialogue-2019.
https://thediplomat.com/2019/05/2019-shangri-la-dialogue-us-china-competition-looms-over-asia-security-summit/
https://thediplomat.com/2019/06/2019-shangri-la-dialogue-us-china-divide-lingers-amid-asias-anxiety/
https://www.iiss.org/events/shangri-la-dialogue/shangri-la-dialogue-2019/outline-agenda
BY MSEAP Cyber Secretariat (mseap@assembly.go.kr) |
