National Press Review, 22 November

The Social Liberal Union’s started the procedure to suspend President Traian Băsescu, today’s decision of the Executive Committee of the Social Democrat Party regarding the proposal to exclude the member of the party Mircea Geoană, and an exclusive interview on South Atlantic security – these are some of today’s headlines.

"The Social Liberal Union starts the suspension of President Traian Băsescu" – is the first page headline in the Jurnalul Naţional, stating that the head of state is accused of authoritarianism in continued form.

The newspaper presents the views of political and economic analysts who comment on the action of the opposition in terms of opportunity, as well as its chances of success.

Furthermore, the article emphasizes the fact that the opposition does not have the necessary parliamentary majority.

The România Liberă also addresses this topic and examines why the Social Liberal Union has started the procedure at this exact moment.

The newspaper comments that "Traian Băsescu’s suspension is part of a plan of the founding president of the Conservative Party, Dan Voiculescu", and brings arguments to support this theory.

In order to tackle the question “why now?”, the author of the article lists the decrease in polls of the Social Liberal Union as one of the reasons, and also highlights the possible consequences of a suspension procedure, including the effects it might have on Romania’s economic situation, due to a possible political instability.

Under the headline "The Social Liberal Union starts playing suspension", the Adevărul offers a detailed account of the procedure steps, and cites the exchange of accusations and retorts between the opposition and the governing parties.

The newspaper compares the current situation with that of 2007 – when the head of state was suspended – adding that, after the request for suspension will have passed the Parliamentary Plenum, another obstacle would be the Constitutional Court, which, since last year, has been entitled to rule on the decisions of the Parliament.

The Adevărul headlines "Geoană, on trial by the Social Democrat Party", referring to the decisions which will be made today by the party’s Executive Committee concerning the President of the Senate, Mircea Geoană.

The newspaper estimates that the vote might have similar results as in the case of the Integrity Commission, which submitted the proposal to exclude him from the Social Democrat Party, and notes the expectations of the social democrat leader, Victor Ponta, as well as Mircea Geoană’s future plans.

Finally, the Evenimentul Zilei presents an exclusive interview with Armando Guedes, an expert in international relations, who believes that "NATO must ensure security in the South Atlantic".

What are the factors which would make the area sensitive from the point of view of security and what are the costs of the Alliance’s non-involvement in the region?

These questions will be answered in the pages of the newspaper.

Translated by: Cristina Baciu
MA Student, MTTLC, Bucharest University