MAE says Romania is ready to take over Presidency of EU Council, as of 1 January 2019

Romania is ready to take over, as of 1 January 2019, the Presidency of the Council of the European Union and the preparations are carried out according to the schedule, the Foreign Affairs Ministry (MAE) mentioned on Tuesday evening. 

According to a release sent by the MAE, the statement comes "in the context of some pieces of information that surfaced in the mass media, according to which our country wouldn't be prepared to take over the Presidency of the EU Council and the Finnish government expressed its readiness to provide support, including by supplanting the Presidency of the Council of the European Union mandate to Finland, as of 1 January 2019. " 

"We draw attention that the Finnish Government believes that Romania's preparation to take over the Presidency of the EU Council is on schedule and the dialogue in the TRIO format confirms, once again, Romania's capability to successfully exercise this mandate," the MAE informs. 

The Romanian Ministry showed that, following clarifications provided by Romania's Embassy in Helsinki, the main Finnish daily published an update of the information related to the Finnish officials' statements, an update that includes the stance of the Romanian Executive and clarifies that "Romania is not in the position of not being able to exercise its Presidency of the EU Council mandate and will not ask for assistance to the Finnish Government in this regard." 

"We reiterate that the proper exercise of the mandate of Romania's Presidency of the Council of the European Union is a common exercise, which must be based on a political consensus among all the state institutions, and an open and honest dialogue that allows Romania to successfully fulfill this responsibility," the MAE release points out. 

This tenure "represents an opportunity for Romania to confirm its commitment towards the European Union and to promote its values, as well as strengthen and articulate Romania's role at the member states level," the MAE says. 

"We underscore the importance of treating with maturity some pieces of information that are not based on real demarches and which can affect the image of Romania, its influence, credibility and status at European level," the Foreign Affairs Ministry release said.