Romania ratifies EU's fiscal pact

(BUCHAREST) - Romania on Monday ratified the European Union's fiscal treaty after the senate gave its green light, the president of the upper chamber Vasile Blaga said.

Senators approved the pact, designed to rein in public debt, by 89 votes in favour, one against and one abstention, according to official results.

The lower House of Representatives had already approved the treaty on May 8.

The new EU fiscal pact, drawn up in response to the eurozone crisis, forces countries to enshrine in national law a so-called "golden rule" to balance budgets or face automatic sanctions.

Any state which fails to ratify the new pact will lose the right to future EU bailouts.

Romania has been a member of the EU since 2007 but does not yet belong to the eurozone.

The country managed to come out of a severe recession last year after receiving a 20-billion-euro aid package from the International Monetary Fund, the European Union and the World Bank.