Romania

Victor Ponta's centre-left government in Romania says it has enough funds to raise pensions by 5 per cent rise, starting in January.

The minimum gross monthly salary is to increase from 900 lei to to 975 lei (221 euro) at the same time.

BELGRADE - Serbian Interior Minister Nebojsa Stefanovic and his Romanian counterpart Gabriel Oprea stated on Tuesday that strengthening of bilateral cooperation is one of the two countries' priorities.

BELGRADE - Officials of European countries' central banks met at the National Bank of Serbia (NBS) on Tuesday for a three-day forum on information and communication technology in central banks, the NBS has stated.

The meeting, the largest of its kind in Europe, was opened by NBS Vice-Governor Ana Gligorijevic and head of the IT Sector goran Kunjadic.

The presidential candidate of the People's Movement Party (PMP), Elena Udrea on Tuesday requested Victor Ponta to withdraw from the presidential race and resign as prime minister, following President Basescu's statement according to which Ponta was an undercover officer of the Foreign Intelligence Service (SIE) between 1997 and 2001.

Romania's President Traian Basescu accused Prime Minister Victor Ponta of working for the the country's secret services between 1997 and 2001.

"Victor Ponta has to acknowledge that he was an undercover employee of the Romanian secret service between 1997 and 2001," Basescu urged on Tuesday the head of state as quoted by the website Dnevnik.bg.

Prime Minister Victor Ponta declared that Romania is a NATO member state, wishing to play a balancing role in the region, and as such it cannot accept threats.

The temperature of Romania's Presidential election moved up a notch on Monday night after the incumbent head of state, Traian Basescu, dramatically accused the Prime Minister, Victor Ponta, of having worked an undercover intelligence agent.

Liberal head Klaus Iohannis, running for president of Romania in the Nov. 2 polls urged Prime Minister Victor Ponta on Tuesday to clarify his 'situation' and explain what is true of allegations he was a Foreign Intelligence Service (SIE) officer between 1997 and 2001.

Hungarian Democratic Union of Romania's (UDMR) Hunor Kelemen, a candidate in the presidential elections, believes, in the context of Traian Basescu's statements regarding Victor Ponta, that Romania will have "a great deal" to suffer in what regards credibility after this campaign and that the topic of the covert office will cause "many questions externally".

Romania's chamber of deputies on Monday gave its approval for prosecutors to open a criminal investigation into Valerian Vreme, a parliamentarian suspected of money laundering, abuse of office and bribery in relation to software licences for schools.