Organizations

So many people seem to have reached breaking point, slammed physically and mentally by exhaustion. The pressure on the people of a country that is bankrupt on so many different levels is calculable in megatons; more so because whatever light may be shimmering at the end of the tunnel is constantly being blocked out by toxic and torpid forces.

The World Trade Organization (WTO) is in a difficult situation at the moment, and swift action is needed for this entity not to fall apart, Cecilia Malmstrom, European Commissioner for Trade told on Friday a joint press conference held at the Parliament Palace with the Minister for the Business Milieu, Commerce and Entrepreneurship, Stefan-Radu Oprea.

The meeting of the Joint Parliamentary Scrutiny Group (JPSG) on Europol is to take place on 24 and 25 February in Bucharest, in the context of the parliamentary dimension of the Romanian presidency of the European Union's Council.

The Euro-Atlantic family is going through one of the worst crises in its history, as its unity is being challenged, mainly by its most powerful member. The parents in the Western family - the US and Europe - are locked in a confrontation that until a short while ago seemed unthinkable, leaving their creation, NATO itself, in the grips of - one could argue - existential angst.

* Challenges but also benefits ahead, says latest EBRD Transition Report * Serbia should advance public sector reforms, privatisation and SOE restructuring, report says * Better access to finance for SMEs and transparent rules are key for progress

The Permanent Representative Committee of the governments of Member States approved the provisional agreement reached by the Romanian presidency of the Council of the European Union with the European Parliament on the Natural Gas Directive, with the next step being the adoption of the Directive by the European Parliament, the Ministry of Energy announced on Thursday.

Minister-delegate for European Affairs George Ciamba met on Wednesday with Secretary of State for European Affairs with Portugal's Foreign Affairs Ministry Ana Paula Zacarias. The discussions of the two officials focused on the working programme of Romania's Presidency at the EU Council and the ongoing developments at European level in relation with the current agenda.

EU ambassadors on Wednesday agreed on a European Council's negotiating position on a regulation on the European Border and Coast Guard; on the basis of this mandate, the Romanian presidency of the Council will start negotiations with the European Parliament, Romania's Interior Ministry (MAI) reports in a press statement.

The number of illegal migrants entering the European Union fell sharply for the third year in a row in 2018 but arrivals remain high and stronger border controls are needed, the head of the EU's border control agency Frontex said Wednesday.

Maintaining the macroeconomic stability and fully implementing the reforms required to tackle the basic structural deficiencies of the Serbian economy will be the main challenge for the economic policy, says Sebastian Sosa, head of the IMF Office in Serbia.