Bucharest approval

The new cabinet of Romanian Prime Minister Emil Boc has been given parliamentary approval, ending a political crisis in the country and reaffirming Boc's leadership two months after parliament rejected his previous cabinet.

Boc named his 15 cabinet members on Sunday with many former ministers retaining their positions in the new coalition government.

As one of its first acts, the new government approved an austerity budget for 2010, which Romania hopes will lead to an International Monetary Fund (IMF) economic rescue package to aid the country's recovery from the financial crisis.

The IMF has frozen parts of a 20 billion euro ($28.7 billion) aid package to Romania which are vital to the country's efforts to drag itself out of recession.

Boc said his main priority was to push the budget through the assembly by mid January, with the aim to cut Romania's deficit to 5.9 percent from 7.3 percent as it stands.

"We aim to ensure a re-launch of the national economy next year. The budget is based on indicators agreed with the IMF," Boc told reporters shortly after his cabinet was given parliamentary approval.

"2010 will be also a difficult year ... we must be aware that before we reach a bit of wellness we have to undergo a bit of hardship ... so I will need to take responsibility for measures which are not necessarily popular but badly-needed," Boc told parliament.

Earlier in December, Romanian President Traian Basescu won re-election in a neck-and-neck runoff against challenger Mircea Geoana, who levelled allegations of vote rigging against his opponent.

dfm/Reuters/dpa

Editor: Jennifer Abramsohn