Romanian governing coalition in crisis

The Romanian Prime Minister, Victor Ciorbea, says his four-party coalition is in crisis, following a threat from one of the junior partners, the Democratic Party, to withdraw from the government.

Mr Ciorbea says the crisis is entirely the creation of the Democratic Party.

The party said it might leave the centre-right coalition after it failed to persuade Mr Ciorbea to reinstate a minister Traian Basescuwho was sacked last week for criticising the government.

The coalition has been in power for just over a year.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service