Romania's ruling PNL merges with PAP

20/04/2008

BUCHAREST, Romania -- Leaders of the ruling National Liberal Party (NLP) and the People's Action Party (PAP), a group not represented in parliament, signed a merger agreement Friday (April 18th) ahead of the local and parliamentary elections. Local elections are scheduled for June, while parliamentary elections will be held at the end of the year. Prime Minister Calin Popescu Tariceanu of the NLP suggested the merger will bring a series of liberal values to politics. PAP leader Emil Constantinescu, for his part, described the merger as the first concrete step in unifying right-centrist forces. (Rompres, Mediafax - 18/04/08)