Speaker Ciolacu: We have signals from the European Commission that payment request number 2 is accepted

The speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, Marcel Ciolacu, declared on Thursday that things regarding payment request number 2 of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan "have passed a critical moment" and the Romanian authorities "received signals" from the European Commission that this request is accepted.

"What can I tell you, from my point of view and that of the Social Democratic Party (PSD), I saw that, regarding payment request number 2, things have already passed a critical moment, I received signals from the Commission that payment request number 2 is accepted and I believe that a 6-month deadline will be given to close what is still under discussion at the moment. There are two or three milestones that the Ministry of European Funds is still negotiating with the Commission. At this moment, for me and for the PSD, the number 1 priority is to close once and for all the discussion regarding special pensions," said Ciolacu at the Parliament Palace.

He added that the World Bank's report on the draft law on special pensions has reached the Government, it will be analyzed and the necessary amendments will be made in the Parliament.

"I repeat, military pensions are occupational pensions, they are not special pensions. All over the world, in all our NATO partners's countries, military pensions are not considered special pensions. It is currently a law in Parliament, it was stopped from the legislative circuit, we all waited to see the World Bank's report. We are going to do an analysis of the (WB, ed. n.) report, it is necessary to discuss in the parliamentary committee to make the necessary amendments," Ciolacu stated.