“We want to be prepared and competitive when we join the Eurozone. I think 2018 to 2020 is a realistic target. We are following, in a cautious way, Poland, which is much more advanced than Romania in structural reforms,” said Ponta.

PM also has his fingers crossed that the Eurozone’s medicine takes hold by the end of this decade. “We are expecting to see that all the measures have been taken to strengthen the Eurozone and make it strong again, including all the regulation.”

But by box ticking Eurozone requirements, Romania gains the additional benefit of stilling investor fear that surfaced in 2009, when the country took an EU and IMF loan. The precautionary facility remains in place as a lifeline. But now Romania is making progress on growth, inflation, deficits, corruption safeguards, and asset sales targets to cross the bar to entry. (source: nineoclock.ro)