00:00C'est parti !
00:30Thank you, and thank you for the invitation.
00:32Let me start with the domestic situation in Romania,
00:35because new data suggests that the country is now in a technical recession,
00:39but you've said that we need to be optimistic,
00:42that you have measures that will turn things around.
00:46Tell us more about this economic recovery package
00:49that you hope will boost investments in the country.
00:52First and foremost, I would say that conditions related to Romania,
00:56also the relation with the European Commission and the way Romania is perceived in the Council
01:01is much better now.
01:03It's significantly improved compared to what it was six months ago.
01:09So six months ago, there were all sorts of discussions regarding the rating agencies,
01:13about Romania's rating, about the RRF, the renegotiation of the RRF,
01:21the possibility of not meeting the deficit target that we had for last year.
01:29And all these things are gone.
01:30We've met the deficit target for 2025, but we overperformed with 0.7%.
01:37We succeeded to reduce the deficit from 0.6% in cash terms to 7.6% in cash terms.
01:44The primary deficit, which is even more important, was reduced 1.5%.
01:49And most likely, the ESA deficit will also have around 1% adjustment.
01:58So all these things performed in six months, along with our consolidation packages,
02:05which were more than 3% of GDP,
02:09ensure that we are much more closer to our trajectory than before.
02:14Yes, your country still has one of the highest deficits in the bloc.
02:20It's under the excessive deficit procedure.
02:23The Commission is urging you to take further action.
02:26And it is also affecting borrowing costs.
02:29When it comes to that interest rate on government's debt,
02:34is that something that you're prioritising?
02:36Because it remains very, very high and it's impacting, I would imagine,
02:40your country's capacity to really move on and make progress.
02:43This was one of our primary targets because in order to accelerate the economic recovery,
02:50in order to support growth, we need to bring the interest rates down.
02:55And if you look, there is a very big difference from what it was in May last year.
03:00So for the maturity of 10 years, for the Ron, not for the Euro,
03:06the interest rates went from 8.5 to around 6.5.
03:12So it's almost 2% reduction of interest rates in around six months.
03:18This will help Romanian economy in 2026.
03:23Because it will help the crediting in general.
03:26It will bring more money into the economy and will allow more investments in Romania.
03:31You seem to have a very optimistic tone, but I do believe that Fitch has kind of raised issues
03:36and there are doubts around the credit rating.
03:39Is that something that concerns you?
03:40I think the discussion with Fitch that we had in January and February is much better than the discussion we
03:48had in August last year.
03:49It's a completely new tone, completely new way of addressing the issues.
03:56Fitch recognises the progress that Romania has and, of course, underlines future risk.
04:01I know, Minister, that you've been part of talks around the economy in Romania and the wider EU for many
04:07years.
04:07You've been part of a minister's gathering here many times before.
04:12What is the trajectory for Romania in terms of joining the euro?
04:17Because we know that several other finance ministers, such as the Polish counterpart of yours,
04:21are saying we're not interested in joining the euro.
04:23We have our own currency.
04:24What are Romania's aspirations?
04:27First of all, we need to raise the ambition towards how we treat economy in general.
04:34Our ambition regarding where we want to see Romanian economy needs to change.
04:40And this is part of what we're doing.
04:43And in order to do this, of course, we need to exit the excessive deficit procedure.
04:50We spent too much time the last five years in the excessive deficit procedure.
04:57And now, with the measures that we've taken, we come back in the trajectory.
05:02We return to where we were supposed to be in order to be able, 2029, 2030, to exit the procedure.
05:10And for the euro is the same discussion.
05:12We cannot discuss euro before we do this, before we get out of the procedure.
05:18So this is a prerequisite, and this is a very important project for Romania,
05:23that fiscal discipline comes back, measures to support the economy and to support growth
05:31in a very intelligent way, aligned with what Draghi and Leta are projecting for entire euro.
05:38And this is what we put in our economic recovery plan,
05:43in our economic recovery program that we recently presented.
05:47So we basically have a completely modernized menu for attracting FDI in Romania.
05:54It's a very coherent menu that Romania didn't have until now.
05:59We will have an instrument for investments over 200 million in Romania,
06:05which will be very flexible with grants, with tax credits,
06:10with different ways of, let's say, avoiding bureaucracy,
06:17ensuring that the lands are given by local administrations for bigger investors,
06:22ensuring ways in which the investors should be treated differently.
06:26You mentioned Draghi and Leta, and I'd like to take a look at the European situation,
06:31because we know now that by the summer, by June, the EU wants to introduce specific measures
06:37in order to regain its competitive edge.
06:40Some of the ideas on the table include euro bonds,
06:43so more joint borrowing at the EU level in order to fund strategic investments.
06:48Is this something Romania supports?
06:50We've done it with the next generation.
06:54We've done it again with SAFE.
06:57I think if this is aligned with our strategic priorities,
07:01and definitely it somehow responds to the investment European economy needs
07:08in certain strategic fields like AI, for instance,
07:12or all these areas in which Europe needs investment,
07:18if these things are aligned, yes, I think it's a very good idea.
07:22And what about the other concept that's being floated mainly by the French
07:25for prioritising made in Europe,
07:28giving a European preference in public tender contracts and so on?
07:33Is this something that you also think it's a good idea?
07:36It supports the strategic autonomy that we're discussing.
07:39I mean, this should be a European project,
07:41and this is the core of the project.
07:44I mean, imagine that ever since the European Union was created,
07:50this was the entire idea behind.
07:53That should be one powerful bloc, a pan-European bloc.
07:58But even if that would mean limiting the amount of, let's say,
08:02American products that can be bought.
08:05I know that Romania has a very strong economic relationship with the US,
08:09but the world order is changing swiftly.
08:12Is that going to impact, do you think,
08:14Romania's relationship with the US and Europe's relationship with the US?
08:18I think the more we create an investment-friendly environment in Europe,
08:24the better.
08:25Now we have $300 billion of our savings invested abroad.
08:32If we make the best that these billions invested abroad are invested in Europe,
08:37it's very good for Europe.
08:39So we don't necessarily have to look at the competitiveness.
08:43We have to look at how to better use the savings that we already have as European Union.
08:50There's also talk, however, of this two-speed Europe.
08:53So a Europe where a group of maybe powerful economies move ahead on their own
08:57and leave others behind, for example, to implement a capital markets union,
09:02which is something you've just mentioned.
09:03Do you fear that risks leaving countries like Romania left behind?
09:10Romania supports the capital markets package.
09:13Romania supports the savings and investments union.
09:17The entire discussion in Ecofin, we say it, we said it in the council.
09:24In these six months, I always said it.
09:27I always said we need to accelerate this package.
09:31If this format is accelerating some of the files that we already have in Ecofin,
09:36I think that's a good idea.
09:38But, of course, this is very important to, let's say, dynamize the Ecofin a little bit
09:46on some specific topics.
09:48We will find out more about what is the, let's say, agenda, criteria for what the group will do.
10:00But yet we don't know.
10:02It's just one meeting.
10:03It was just the letter announced.
10:06So it's so early to comment on what will happen.
10:08There is this E6 formation that's already been established, it seems, with these six heavyweights.
10:13Do you think it's positive whether they will pull Europe in the right direction or is it creating divisions?
10:18I think we should see what eventually will happen out of the E6.
10:23I'm in very close touch with the German minister we met today.
10:28I'm in also very close touch with the French minister on all of the files.
10:33I don't think they plan to leave anybody behind.
10:36I think they plan to solve some of the critical issues that are on the table.
10:40And if they succeed, it's a very good thing for Europe.
10:42Finally, to close, minister, one of the big areas of opportunity in terms of investment is obviously defense spending.
10:52Romania is a country on Europe's eastern flank.
10:55It has experienced drone incursions and so on very recently.
11:00How important is this scaled up investment in the defense industry for your country?
11:06I think it's very important.
11:08We want our national defense industry, we want to support the national defense industry.
11:14That's why we created also a special scheme for this of 200 million euros.
11:18Of course, SAFE is much bigger.
11:20We negotiate.
11:21I was very much involved in the negotiation of SAFE.
11:24It happened in the Ministry of Finance, and we managed to secure the second biggest allocation, $16.2 billion.
11:32Part of SAFE is also infrastructure for dual use.
11:36There are very important pieces of highways which will be built with SAFE money in Moldova around the Ash.
11:44Those are critical pieces of infrastructure.
11:47So SAFE is very important, and I think it's a very good project for Europe.
11:51Minister, thank you so much for joining us today.
11:53Thank you for the invitation.
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