Radio România Internațional

Tag: agreement

Reactions as three Gaza hostages freed

Three Israeli hostages were released on Sunday by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas, more than 15 months after they were kidnapped in a terrorist attack on October 7, 2023, which triggered the war in the Gaza Strip. Israel, in turn, freed 90 Palestinian prisoners, teenagers and women, from its prisons.

It was the first exchange of prisoners after the ceasefire agreement in the Palestinian enclave. Radio Romania’s correspondent in Israel reports that Romi Gonen, Doron Steinbrecher and Emily Damari, aged between 24 and 31, were released after 471 days of captivity, and adds that, after an initial checkup, the three were taken to a hospital in the center of the country, where they will remain for several days, for full examinations. They seem to have returned to the country in good health.

Doron Steinbrecher, a veterinary assistant, also has Romanian citizenship. Romi Gonen, a dancer, has Romanian roots, as do several hundred thousand other Israelis.

Through its ministry of foreign affairs, Romania welcomes the release of the first Israeli hostages after 15 months in captivity. In a statement, Bucharest thanks all the national stakeholders, including top-level institutions, for their excellent and permanent cooperation.

“The release of the first hostages after the agreement was signed is a time of joy and relief for the families. The ceasefire agreement must be fully implemented in order to ensure the safe return of those still detained and to end the suffering of their families and loved ones, as well as of the civilian population in Gaza. At the same time, the implementation of the agreement paves the way for a lasting peace, which would ensure the security of the region as well as the reconstruction and humanitarian assistance in Gaza,” the statement reads.

Romania also praises what it calls the substantial efforts of the United States, Egypt and Qatar in brokering the deal between Israel and Hamas.

Under the agreement, a total of 33 hostages and over a thousand Palestinian prisoners should be released in a first stage. The deal would also increase the volume of humanitarian aid for the population of Gaza, where, since the start of the Israeli military intervention, almost 47,000 people have been killed.

In a second stage, Hamas is to release the last 65 hostages, while Israel is to pull out its troops from the enclave.

According to Romanian mass media, Romania’s Ambassador to Israel Radu Ioanid calls for moderate optimism, because the situation in the Middle East is very fluid, and “what is gray today is pink tomorrow and black the day after.” (AMP)

20 January 2025
February 17, 2024

Navalny – On Friday evening, hundreds of people gathered in Europe and the USA, in front of the Russian embassies, to pay tribute to Alexei Navalny, the number one opponent of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Moscow announced, on the same day, the death of Navalny, at the age of 47, in a penitentiary colony in the Arctic, where he was serving a 19-year prison sentence. In Russia, a human rights organization said that more than 100 people were detained at rallies in memory of the Russian dissident. Most of those arrested are from St. Petersburg, Putin’s hometown. At political level, dignitaries from all over the world, including Romania, expressed their sadness and concern over the death of Alexei Navalny. The international community has lost a brave fighter for freedom and rights, said the Romanian president, Klaus Iohannis, who asked Russia for a transparent and comprehensive investigation. The Romanian Foreign Ministry condemned the repeated violations of international law by the Russian regime and reiterated the importance of observing fundamental human rights and freedoms without delay.

Munich – The G7 countries’ foreign ministers are discussing today, under the Italian presidency, the international crises: the conflict between Israel and Hamas, the situation in the Red Sea and Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and the continuation of the support given by the G7 countries to Kyiv. The meeting is organized as part of the Munich Security Conference (February 16-18). The Romanian Defense Minister, Angel Tîlvăr, is also attending the conference in southern Germany. Romania and Estonia share common values and similar concerns regarding regional security, said Minister Tîlvăr, who met, on the sidelines of the Conference, with his Estonian counterpart, Hanno Pevkur. He also had a meeting with James Mattis, former American Secretary of Defense, an opportunity for the two to reiterate the need to continue bilateral efforts in order to strengthen Euro-Atlantic security and deepen the Romania-US Strategic Partnership. In Munich, on Friday, the Romanian Foreign Minister, Ms. Luminiţa Odobescu, pleaded, in turn, for maintaining the multidimensional international support granted to Ukraine.

Paris – The Ukrainian and French presidents Volodymyr Zelensky and Emmanuel Macron signed, on Friday evening, a security agreement between their countries, which also provides for the supply of ammunition. According to Radio Romania’s correspondent in Paris, France will support Ukraine not only to defend itself, but also in the fight against external interference, in the protection of civil infrastructures, in counterintelligence and espionage, in cyber security and in the fight against organized crime. In the press conference held after the signing of the agreement, President Macron stated that the future accession of Ukraine to the European Union and NATO will mean a useful contribution to the peace and security of the continent. For his part, President Zelensky expressed hope that the security agreements signed with France and, earlier on the same day, with Germany, after the one with Great Britain last month, will also give an impetus to the United States to continue providing aid to Ukraine.

Rugby – Romania’s national rugby team meets, today, in Bucharest, the team of Portugal, in Group B of the Rugby Europe Championship 2024. In its first games, Romania defeated Poland 20-8 (away from home) and Belgium 33-18 (at home). With two victories from as many matches played, the Romanians are on first place in the group, having the chance, depending on the results of the last round, to play the semi-final on home ground. After the group matches, the semi-finals are scheduled for the weekend of March 2-3, and the finals will take place on March 17, in Paris.

Customs – Special lanes dedicated to trucks registered in the European Union were opened at the Nădlac II and Borş II customs offices, in western Romania, after a similar lane had become functional in the Calafat customs office, in the south. Thus, Romanian trucks will have priority over those from Ukraine or Turkey, said the Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu, on Friday, at the Government meeting. He pointed out that the lane for trucks from the EU will also exist in the Giurgiu customs office (south). The Prime Minister mentioned that this is one of the measures by which the Government responds to the requests of transporters, who have recently protested throughout the country.(LS)

17 February 2024
February 3, 2024 UPDATE

AGREEMENT The PM
of Romania Marcel Ciolacu and the representatives of farmers and carriers
Friday reached an agreement ending the recent protests. On Monday, the PM’s
office will set up an inter-ministry committee tasked with identifying the best
solutions for the protesters’ demands. Farmers and carriers in Romania
protested for 3 weeks against high business costs, low prices for produce, the
import of cheap foodstuffs from Ukraine and the constraints introduced by the
EU as part of its climate change action.

COMMEMORATION A
ceremony commemorating the prominent politician Iuliu Maniu, a former prime
minister of Romania and leader of the National Christian-Democratic Party, was
held on Saturday at the Memorial for the victims of communism in Sighetu
Marmaţiei (north-west). Maniu died on the night of February 4 1953, in the political
prison in Sighet, where he was serving a life sentence for high treason
pronounced by the communist regime. His name was cleared under a Supreme Court
ruling in 1998, and a monument was erected in his honour in the Revolution
Square in Bucharest.

MOLDOVA Chişinău
extended an entry ban against the leader of the Romanian nationalist party AUR,
George Simion, by another 5 years. Under Moldova’s legislation, foreigners may
be declared undesirables if they have or if there are strong reasons to believe
they intend to conduct activities likely to endanger the country’s national
security or public order. According to the R. of Moldova, the Romanian
authorities have been notified in this respect, and George Simion challenged
the decision in court. The AUR leader was expelled from Moldova in 2018, with
an entry ban in place for a period of 5 years.

HEALTHCARE Trade
unions in the healthcare sector have new talks scheduled next week with the
Romanian authorities in the context of the recent protests. The vice-president
of the Ambulanţa Trade Union Federation, Magyary Arpad, had a meeting on
Friday with the healthcare minister, Alexandru Rafila, but failed to reach an
agreement on salaries, equipment and the personnel shortage in the system.
Arpad voiced optimism with respect to a 20% pay raise deal, but said he was not
sure the measure would cover all healthcare personnel and whether it would be
implemented in full or in several instalments. He said the talks also concerned
the procurement of ambulance vehicles, office revamping and changes in the
legislation. Trade unions in healthcare initiated nation-wide protests in
November 2022, but suspended them until after next week’s meeting with PM
Marcel Ciolacu. Talks will also be held in the coming days with the Sanitas trade
union federation, which has its own salary demands for several categories of
healthcare personnel.

ALERT
Healthcare units in Romania are implementing additional measures after a state
of epidemiological alert was declared due to the growing number of respiratory
infections and flu cases. Special attention is given to the health of hospital
personnel and to the protection equipment, and visiting hours have been reduced.
Visitor access is denied in ICUs, neonatology and pediatrics departments,
coronary care units, oncology and hematology units, and in infectious disease
units. In other hospital departments, no more than 2 visitors will be allowed
at the same time in a room, and individual protection equipment will be
compulsory.

MIDDLE EAST The
US conducted scores of air raids against targets operated by Iran-controlled
groups in Iraq and Syria. The Pentagon said the raids were a response to the
recent drone attack by Iran-supported fighters, which killed 3 US troops at a
military base in Jordan, the BBC reports. Taking part in Friday’s raids were B1
long-range bombers, flying out of the US. Iran condemned the strikes, claiming
they violated the sovereignty of Syria and Iraq, AFP reports. In Bagdad, a
government spokesman announced the US strikes in western Iraq killed at least
16 people, including civilians. Meanwhile, the US state secretary Antony
Blinken will travel to Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Qatar, Israel and the West Bank
between February 4 and 8, primarily to reach a deal securing the freeing of all
the Israeli hostages kept in Gaza following the Hamas terror attack of October
7. (AMP)

3 February 2024
February 3, 2024

AGREEMENT The PM
of Romania Marcel Ciolacu and the representatives of farmers and carriers
Friday reached an agreement ending the recent protests. On Monday, the PM’s
office will set up an inter-ministry committee tasked with identifying the best
solutions for the protesters’ demands. Farmers and carriers in Romania
protested for 3 weeks against high business costs, low prices for produce, the
import of cheap foodstuffs from Ukraine and the constraints introduced by the
EU as part of its climate change action.

COMMEMORATION A
ceremony commemorating the prominent politician Iuliu Maniu, a former prime
minister of Romania and leader of the National Christian-Democratic Party, was
held on Saturday at the Memorial for the victims of communism in Sighetu
Marmaţiei (north-west). Maniu died on the night of February 4 1953, in the political
prison in Sighet, where he was serving a life sentence for high treason
pronounced by the communist regime. His name was cleared under a Supreme Court
ruling in 1998, and a monument was erected in his honour in the Revolution
Square in Bucharest.

MOLDOVA Chişinău
extended an entry ban against the leader of the Romanian nationalist party AUR,
George Simion, by another 5 years. Under Moldova’s legislation, foreigners may
be declared undesirables if they have or if there are strong reasons to believe
they intend to conduct activities likely to endanger the country’s national
security or public order. According to the R. of Moldova, the Romanian
authorities have been notified in this respect, and George Simion challenged
the decision in court. The AUR leader was expelled from Moldova in 2018, with
an entry ban in place for a period of 5 years.

MIDDLE EAST The
US conducted scores of air raids against targets operated by Iran-controlled
groups in Iraq and Syria. The Pentagon said the raids were a response to the recent
drone attack by Iran-supported fighters, which killed 3 US troops at a military
base in Jordan, the BBC reports. Taking part in Friday’s raids were B1
long-range bombers, flying out of the US. Iran condemned the strikes, claiming
they violated the sovereignty of Syria and Iraq, AFP reports. In Bagdad, a
government spokesman announced the US strikes in western Iraq killed at least
16 people, including civilians. Meanwhile, the US state secretary Antony
Blinken will travel to Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Qatar, Israel and the West Bank
between February 4-8, primarily to reach a deal securing the freeing of all the
Israeli hostages kept in Gaza following the Hamas terror attack of October 7.

TENNIS The
Romanian player Marius Copil takes on Stefanos Tsitsipas, no. 10 in the world,
in Athens today, in the first match between Romania and Greece in the playoffs
for the Davis Cup World Group I. The second singles match will be pitting Nicholas
David Ionel against Aristotelis Thanos. The doubles match and 2 other singles
games are scheduled for Sunday. Romania and Greece played twice against each
other in the Davis Cup before, with one win each. Previously in this year’s competition,
in the first round of the World Group I, Romania lost to Taiwan and Greece was
defeated by Slovakia. (AMP)

3 February 2024
July 18, 2023 UPDATE

SUMMIT Romania’s efforts to mitigate the effects of the humanitarian and
food crisis caused by Russia’s war against Ukraine was one of the topics
discussed by president Klaus Iohannis at the the EU – Latin America summit held
in Brussels on Monday and Tuesday. In his addresses during the meeting, the
Romanian official praised the organisation of this summit as a necessary
moment of reconnection of regional communities with largely converging
interests and approaches, the Romanian Presidency says. Klaus Iohannis stated
that Romania firmly supported dialogue and constructive cooperation with the
partners in the region, as well as regular top-level meetings between
representatives of the 2 blocs. President Iohannis also presented Bucharest’s views on the most
efficient measures to fight climate change. He pleaded for the concentration
of bilateral cooperation both on the more efficient combating of the risks
entailed by climate change, and on capitalising on the clean energy transition
as a new shared opportunity. The Romanian president also presented Romania’s
outlook on the consequences of Russia’s war against Ukraine, the
multidimensional support provided by Romania and the importance of joint action
in order to defend a rule-based international order. On the sidelines of the
summit, the Romanian official had a meeting with the head of the Community of
Latin-American and Caribbean States, Ralph Gonsalves, to discuss strengthening
the relations between Romania and the countries in that region.

ROMANIA – MEXICO Romanian foreign minister Luminiţa Odobescu had talks
with her Mexican counterpart Alicia Barcena Ibarra on Monday on the sidelines
of the EU-CELAC summit. Talks focused on giving a new impetus to bilateral
relations, including by top level contact, identifying new areas of sectoral
cooperation, the presentation of Romania’s position on Russia’s military
aggression against Ukraine and an exchange of views on the future of EU-Mexico
relations. The areas in which Romania is seeking to improve cooperation with
Mexico include civil protection, cyber security and boosting economic ties with
emphasis on enhancing investments. The talks also highlighted the importance of
the Romanian community in Mexico and the support given by Romania in the
evacuation of Mexican nationals from Ukraine.

GRAIN NATO’s
deputy secretary general Mircea Geoană condemned, in a Facebook post, Russia’s
unilateral decision to pull out of the agreement that had guaranteed Ukraine’s
grain exports via the Black Sea for the past year. In spite of the efforts of
the UN and Turkey, the 4-party agreement signed by Ukraine, Russia, Turkey and
the UN expired at midnight on Monday, after it was last extended for 2 months
in May. Russia declined a new extension of the deal signed on July 22 last year,
on grounds of the obstacles faced by the trade in Russian agricultural
products. The last shipment of agricultural products from Ukraine via the Black
Sea was inspected on Monday night in Istanbul, a few hours before the expiry of
the international agreement. The EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borell also
condemned Russia’s decision to withdraw from the agreement which, in spite of
the war, allowed the export of over 3 million tonnes of Ukrainian grain and
agricultural products.

MONEY LAUNDERING Moneyval calls on Romanian authorities to
strengthen its measures to counter money laundering and terrorism financing, reads
a report released on Tuesday by the Council of Europe’s monitoring body on
money laundering. Since 2014, when MONEYVAL last evaluated Romania, the country
has taken a number of actions to strengthen its legal and institutional
framework to tackle money laundering and the financing of terrorism. According
to Moneyval, Bucharest has achieved moderate levels of effectiveness in all
areas assessed except for international cooperation, where it has achieved a
substantial level of effectiveness and has been commended by other countries
for its constructive assistance. Romania has improved its ability to freeze,
seize and confiscate the proceeds and instrumentalities of domestic crime, the
report also says.

FOOTBALL The
Romanian Football Federation Tuesday announced submitting its candidacy for
organising the 2026 or 2027 Europa League final on the National Arena in
Bucharest. After having successfully organised the EURO 2020 and this year’s
Under-21 European Championship matches, the Federation seeks to continue
promoting Romania as a destination for major sports events, reads a news
release posted on the Federation’s official website. EURO 2020 brought us the
largest public investments in infrastructure, a solid heritage that influences
the development of Romanian football. Also, the Romanian Football Federation
has proved that it has developed its organisational capacity and it is a
competitive partner for UEFA in the European football circuit, and now we aim
to move to a new stage, one fostering further development for Romanian
football, the RFF president Răzvan Burleanu said. The National Arena has
already hosted a Europa League final in 2012, when Atletico Madrid defeated
Athletic Bilbao 3-0. For the next 2 years, the hosts of the Europa League final
are already known: Dublin (Irland), in 2024, and Bilbao (Spain), in 2025. (AMP)

18 July 2023
Romanian support for Ukraine

As a neighbouring state, Romania continues to support Ukraine, in the context of the war launched by the Russian Federation against it. Attending in Brussels summit of the European Union and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, the Romanian head of state, Klaus Iohannis, confirmed that Romania will start trainings next month for the Ukrainian pilots who will learn how to fly F-16 fighters. Bucharest thus joins other NATO allies, which have already started this type of training. According to the president, this process will be a long one.

Bucharest is interested not only in the start of training, but also in a good result in the training of Ukrainian pilots, Klaus Iohannis also said:

It is a process that is important to us and is important to maintain it. We do not train pilots from August to September. It starts at the end of this summer and it’s going to be a long-term project. My interest is to have a well-prepared, solid project with very efficient instructors and to run, here, a successful project for the Romanian Army.

On the other hand, Klaus Iohannis has announced that half of the Ukrainian grains have been exported through Romania, and this process will continue. He made these clarifications against the background of the Russian Federation announcing its exit from the Agreement on the export of grain from Ukraine through the Black Sea.It is regrettable that the initiative, for which many politicians from all over the world were involved, does not seem to have a bright future, said the Romanian president. We believe that it is important and good to be on the side of Ukraine and to support these exports. We will keep doing it in order to prevent discontinuity, the head of state pointed out. The agreement that had guaranteed the export for the pst year expired on Monday at midnight, the deadline set when it was last renewed for two months, in May. Moscow refused to extend the agreement, signed last year, in July, with Ukraine under the auspices of the United Nations and Turkey, denouncing the obstacles in the trade with Russian agricultural products. The last ship carrying grain was inspected on Monday evening in Istanbul.

Despite the war, the agreement allowed the export of millions of tons of Ukrainian grain and agricultural products, which are important for ensuring world food security. A consequence of the expiration of this agreement is the significant increase in the price of wheat. Analysts are of the opinion that this will force Ukraine to export the 2023 crop on alternative routes to river ports and towards the European Union borders, given the high logistics costs. (MI)

18 July 2023
May 18, 2023 UPDATE

FORUM The world has changed and everything in the area of security
has been rewritten and must be revised in our Black Sea region, where a large
part of the components of Russia’s large scale war of aggression in Ukraine are
taking place, said Romanian prime minister Nicolae Ciucă in Bucharest at the
7th edition of the Black Sea and Balkans Security Forum. Ciucă went on to say
that the region must cope with a long and high-intensity war that is exhausting
the resources of both the country in conflict and those of the countries of
Europe. The two-day forum hosts over 40 sessions. Attending are top civilian
and military officials, diplomats and experts from the European Union and NATO,
as well as partner states. The themes discussed include support for the
European integration of the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine, the reconstruction
of Ukraine and the European security architecture after the war, as well as the
food crisis caused by Russia’s invasion, security energy in Europe, the
security of the Western Balkans and cyber resilience.

FLOODING Prime minister Nicolae Ciucă said the Romanian authorities
are ready to provide assistance with rescue operations following the floods in
Italy. The region of Emilia Romagna in the north of Italy is on high alert as a
result of heavy rain that caused massive floods and left victims. According to
Radio Romania’s correspondent, thousands of people have already been evacuated,
but several tens of thousands are still stranded in areas that have been left
without electricity. Some trains are still stationary, traffic is disrupted and
sections of the motorway are closed.

AGREEMENT The government of Romania and of the UK Thursday
signed a joint action plan in Bucharest on fighting human trafficking. The
document is part of the vision and strategy that Bucharest has embraced for the
past 2 years to turn Romania into a country hostile to people traffickers but
safe and friendly to the victims of this phenomenon, reads a news release
issued by the Romanian government. Signing the document also proves our
government’s concern and care for its more vulnerable citizens, those more
exposed to the risks of human trafficking, who live either in Romania or in one
of the largest Romanian diaspora communities, namely in the UK. It is absolutely vital for us to keep our
firm commitment of fighting this scourge and our capacity and willingness to
tackle this issue on all three key levels-prevention, combating and victim
protection. (…) My message is quite clear: trafficking in human beings is a
form of crime for which the government of Romania has zero tolerance, PM
Nicolae Ciucă said.

WB In order to solve external imbalances, Romania
needs a mix of fiscal consolidation and structural reforms, reads a World Bank
analysis. Political measures aimed at improving its fiscal situation include
broadening taxable revenues, improving tax compliance, introducing critical
reforms in public pensions and salaries and cutting inefficient expenditure. A
consolidation of public investment management would help release significant EU
funding and would improve critical sectors lagging behind in Romania, such as
the public education and healthcare, reforming state-owned enterprises, or
infrastructure. In turn, the latter would contribute to improved productivity
and competitiveness, with a positive impact on Romania’s foreign position. Romania’s
external imbalances have deepened lately. Since 2018, the country has seen
deepening fiscal and current account deficits, jointly with an expansionary
fiscal policy. The two major external shocks, the Covid-19 pandemic and the war
in Ukraine, have strengthened these imbalances. (AMP)

18 May 2023
Extended NATO – EU cooperation

To continue to develop their cooperation in the context of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, the European Union and NATO signed, at the NATO headquarters in Brussels, a new Joint Declaration, the third one, after those of 2016 and 2018. Cooperation is more important as ever, said the NATO Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg, after signing the document, and stated that the partnership between the North Atlantic Alliance and the European Union must continue to be strengthened. “The regime in Moscow wants a different Europe. It wants to control its neighbors. And it sees democracy and freedom as a threat. This will have long-lasting consequences for our security. So, we must continue to strengthen the vital transatlantic bond in NATO. We must continue to strengthen the partnership between NATO and the European Union. And we must further strengthen our support to Ukraine. said the NATO official.

In turn, the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, emphasized that Ukraine must receive all the military equipment it needs to defend its territory, including advanced anti-aircraft defense systems, as long as necessary.

And the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, recalled that the Europeans were the first to supply military equipment to Kyiv, shortly after the outbreak of the conflict, and spoke about the unity of the North Atlantic Alliance. According to him, the European Union and NATO share the same values. They have the same goals in terms of democracy and economic strategy. The war started by Russia has many consequences, it affects both the EU and NATO, so they must be together, stand united and strong against Russia, said the European official.

From Bucharest, President Klaus Iohannis welcomed the signing of the third joint declaration of cooperation between NATO and the European Union and reiterated Romanias strong support for the consolidation of the security and prosperity of the Euro-Atlantic area.

Romania reaffirms its conviction that solidarity and cooperation are the key elements for the defense of security and our common values. We are stronger together!’, the Prime Minister Nicolae Ciucă also said.

And the Romanian Foreign Minister, Bogdan Aurescu, stated that Bucharest, one of the regional actors most interested in the success of NATO-EU cooperation, will continue to bring a substantial contribution to the implementation of the new priorities and directions of action that the Declaration put forward. In the current security context, marked by the effects of the war of aggression launched by Russia against Ukraine, the move of the two organizations represents a substantial message regarding the attachment of NATO and the EU to the democratic values and spirit writes a press release from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Bucharest. (LS)

11 January 2023
December 7, 2022 UPDATE

JHA — The Romanian Justice Minister, Cătălin Predoiu, will participate, in Brussels, between December 7-14, in the works of the Justice and Home Affairs Council and of the General Affairs Council (CAG) of the European Union. According to JHAC communique, on the sidelines and in the period between the two councils, the Justice Minister will have a series of bilateral meetings with counterparts from other member states and EU officials, in Brussels and Luxembourg. Within the JAH Council, minister Predoiu will present Romanias position regarding the legal instruments and European policies in the field of Justice on the Councils agenda. We remind you that the Home Affairs section of the JHA Council is to decide on the admission of Romania, Bulgaria and Croatia to the free movement Schengen Area.

Schengen — Prime Minister Nicolae Ciucă welcomed, on Wednesday, the completion by the Parliament in The Hague of the procedure for approving the position of the Government of the Netherlands in favor of Romanias accession to Schengen. ‘We appreciate the recent cooperation with our Dutch partners and we consider that this result is a clear recognition of Romanias preparation,’ the Romanian Prime Minister Ciucă wrote on the Governments Twitter account on Wednesday. In turn, the Romanian Foreign Minister, Bogdan Aurescu, welcomed the favorable result of the vote, as a result of the close and intense political dialogue with the Dutch partners. Austria remains the only EU state that opposes the entry of Romania and Bulgaria.

Statistics — The Gross Domestic Product of the European Union grew by 0.4%, and that of the Eurozone by 0.3%, in the third quarter of 2022, as compared to the previous three months, and Ireland, Cyprus, Malta and Romania had the more significant advance – shows the data published on Wednesday by the European Statistics Office (Eurostat). The economy grew by 2.3% in Ireland and by 1.3% in Cyprus, Malta and Romania. The most significant decline was recorded in Estonia (minus 1.8%), Latvia (minus 1.7%) and Slovenia (minus 1.4%). Among the EU member states, the most significant annual advance of the economy was recorded in Ireland (10.6%), Croatia (5.5%), Cyprus (5.4%), Malta (5.2%), Portugal (4.9%) and Romania (4.7%), the only decreases being in Estonia (minus 2.3%) and Latvia (minus 0.4%).

CAP – The European Commission on Wednesday approved the strategic plans of Romania and Bulgaria within the Common Agricultural Policy. Almost 15 billion Euros will be made available for Romania. Bucharest’s plan aims at improving farmers means of subsistence and their competitiveness. Besides the support for income, over one billion Euros will be allocated to investments in farms and processing units. Romania uses about 40% of its budget for rural development, to encourage ecological practices in areas of high natural value, in order to protect biodiversity. About 11 thousand hectares of land will be subject to such practices. In order to maintain the attractiveness of rural areas in Romania, the plan will support the creation of over 12 thousand jobs, with financing for enterprises and infrastructure.

Gaudeamus — Wednesday saw the opening in Bucharest of the 29th edition of the Gaudeamus Book Fair organized by Radio Romania. Until Sunday, 200 participants will offer the public a varied range of editorial products, on different supports, suitable for all ages and fields of interest, music and educational games. More than 600 editorial events and related projects were announced. For the first time, two spaces dedicated to interactive activities for the youngest visitors have been set up within the fair. All stands will also be found in virtual format on the gaudeamus.ro website. The honorary president of this years edition is the writer Ana Blandiana.

Agreement – The governments of Romania and the State of Kuwait signed an agreement on cooperation in the military field, the Romanian Defense Ministry announced on Wednesday. The agreement will provide the legal framework for cooperation between the two sides in areas of mutual interest such as military training and education, information exchange, military history and geography, and cultural activities. According to the Defense Ministry, during the visit of the delegation from Kuwait, discussions regarding the bilateral political-military dialogue took place. Against this background, the discussions focused on bilateral cooperation, the approach to the security situation in the Black Sea area and the Middle East and the efforts of the two countries to ensure stability at the regional level, the Defense Ministry mentions. (LS)

7 December 2022
Romanian – French agreement on Ukrainian cereals transit

France and Romania, Ukraine’s neighbor, concluded an agreement to facilitate Kyiv’s grain exports. The document was signed in Paris by the French Transport Minister, Clément Beaune, and the Romanian Secretary of State Ionel Scrioşteanu, with the Romanian Transport Ministry, in the presence of the Ukrainian ambassador to France. According to Radio Romanias correspondent in Paris, France hopes that Ukraine will once again reach the level of exports it had before the Russian troops invasion of the country, launched on February 24, upon the order of President Vladimir Putin. At that time, Kyiv could deliver six million tons of grain to international markets every month.

According to the agreement, France will support Romania to increase the flow of Ukrainian grain through the ports of Constanta, on the Black Sea, Galati, on the Danube, and through the Sulina Canal of the Danube Delta. The Romanian authorities will work with the French authorities for better equipping the land border points between Romania and Ukraine and for increasing the number of freight wagons that cross the border. A medium-term strategy targets the transport corridors that connect the two countries, including those that cross the Republic of Moldova, an enclave between Romania and Ukraine.

Here is the French Transport Minister Clément Beaune: The agreement with Romania will allow Ukraine to send more grain to Europe and to developing countries, especially those in the Mediterranean area, which are facing food problems. According to Mr. Putin only 3% of re-exported Ukrainian grain reaches developing countries. However, the amount is much bigger, over a third, which allows some countries like Egypt and others to survive, because their people depend on Ukrainian grain. We are proud that, thanks to a European action, we have almost managed to reach the level of grain export that Ukraine had before the war on land routes. Through the agreement with Romania, France will strengthen its support for the export of cereals by sea, rail and land to the countries that need them.

Ukraine’s ambassador to France, Vadim Omelcenko, thanked for what he called the concrete, useful and efficient support received by his country, support that significantly intensified after the joint visit of presidents Emmanuel Macron and Klaus Iohannis to Kyiv in July. He recalled that after Russia invaded Ukraine, Ukrainian grain exports were almost completely stopped, because the Black Sea ports were closed off by the Russian military fleet. As Vladimir Putin is an unpredictable character, the Europeans now fear that the agreement agreed upon in July, in Istanbul, under the aegis of the UN and with the mediation of Turkey, under which the Russians allowed the transport of wheat and corn through Ukrainian ports, could be in danger. (LS)

13 September 2022
July 22, 2022

RESOURCES
PM Nicolae Ciucă promised that Romania will have the necessary natural gas to
cover demand for the coming winter. The PM said more than 1.6 billion cubic
meters of gas is already stored, and the energy plan stipulates 80% of the
total capacity will be reached by November 1. Meanwhile, he said that in spite
of the drought, there is enough wheat to cover the domestic demand and export
commitments and that there are no reasons to worry about the maize and sunflower
crops.

HEAT WAVE The prime minister of Romania
Nicolae Ciucă has today asked prefects to conduct information and prevention
campaigns so that people are aware of the risks entailed by the high
temperatures and that activities to mitigate the effects of the heat wave may
be coordinated. He added that it was important for all localities to have cooling
shelters and medical teams providing assistance and free water. PM Ciucă also requested the
authorities to take steps to ensure navigability on the River Danube. The low
water flow has made it nearly impossible to navigate the Danube, with several
vessels stranded in sand and scores of cruise ships cancelling their stopovers
in the port of Giurgiu over the past month.

COVID-19 Nearly 7,400 new COVID cases
were reported over the past 24 hours, out of around 24,400 tests, the
authorities announced on Friday. Over 2,600 COVID-19 patients are hospitalised,
171 of them in intensive care. Seven COVID-related deaths have also been reported.
Hospitals are beginning to take measures, including increasing the number of
beds set aside for COVID patients, regular staff and patient testing, and
cancelling visiting hours in order to reduce the risk of infection.

REFUGEES The Romanian
Border Police announced today that 11,511 Ukrainian nationals entered Romania
on Thursday, 4.5% fewer than the
previous day.
According to a news release, border checks are conducted efficiently and in
line with the national and EU legislation, and border police units are working
at full capacity.

UKRAINE Turkey announced an agreement was reached,
which would enable Ukraine to export grains via Black Sea routes. The deal is
to be signed in Istanbul today by officials from Ukraine, Turkey, Russia and
the UN. Three main provisions in the agreement are already known. First, Russia
must guarantee ceasefire during the shipments. Secondly, Ukraine must guide grain
ships in and out through mined port waters. Finally, Turkey, supported by the
United Nations, is to inspect ships in order to dispel Russian fears of weapons
smuggling. This is the first major agreement reached by Russia and Ukraine
since the start of the invasion.

FOOTBALL Romanian football champions CFR Cluj won 3-0 against
Inter Club d’Escaldes, of Andorra, played on Thursday night on home turf in the
first leg of the second round of Europa Conference League’s qualifiers. In the
same competition, the winners of
Romania’s Cup, Sepsi OSK Sfântu Gheorghe defeated 3-1 at home the Slovenian
side Olimpija Ljubljana. Romania’s 2 other representatives in Europa
Conference League played away from home. Universitatea Craiova drew against the
Albanian side Vllaznia Shkoder, 1-1, and vice-champions FCSB were defeated by FC
Saburtalo Tbilisi, of Georgia. (AMP)

22 July 2022
August 6, 2021

COVID-19 In Romania, the number of new SARS-CoV-2 infection cases remains high, over 200 per day. On Friday 230 new cases and 5 deaths were reported. Over 500 patients are hospitalized, 68 of them in intensive care. As regards the vaccine rollout, the number of fully vaccinated people went over 4.9 million on Thursday. According to a report by the National Public Health Institute, over 80% of the people diagnosed with the disease last week were not vaccinated. Data also indicates that over 85% of the COVID-related deaths were reported among unvaccinated or partly vaccinated patients. On Thursday, the government extended the state of alert by another 30 days.

WILDFIRES Several European countries are responding to Greeces call for help under the EU Civil Protection Mechanism. One of them is Romania, which is sending today over 100 fire-fighters and scores of fire engines. The hundreds of fires in Greece and Turkey have affected the air quality in the east of the Mediterranean, as smoke carrying fine particles has spread as far as to northern Africa. Adding to this is the high concentration of African dust over Greece, which also reduces air quality. The Greek PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis said his country was experiencing an unprecedented environmental crisis. He added that if anyone still has the slightest doubt that climate change is real, they should come to Greece to see its severity first hand. Over 150 wildfires have been reported in Greece so far, and one of them is threatening Olympia, the site of the ancient Olympic Games, where the Olympic flame is lit in modern times.

MOLDOVA In the R. of Moldovas capital city Chişinău, Parliament convenes today in a special session to vote on the new pro-European government. The prime minister designate, Natalia Gavriliţă, and the 13 members of her cabinet, presented a governing programme focused on the reform of the judiciary and the fight against corruption, as well as on improving citizens living standards. The new government also aims to strengthen the strategic partnership with Romania, so as to ensure Moldovas EU accession. The vote is expected to be unproblematic, as the Action and Solidarity Party, which backs the new government, has 64 seats in Parliament, and only 51 votes are required for the cabinet to be endorsed. Natalia Gavrilița was designated for the PM post by president Maia Sandu, under a presidential order issued on July 30, after consultations with the parliamentary parties.

NUCLEAR Romania and Canada Thursday signed a Memorandum of Agreement on strengthening cooperation in the civilian nuclear power field. The document was signed by Romanias minister for energy Virgil Popescu and Canada’s ambassador to Romania Annick Goulet. Attending the event, PM Florin Cîţu said the memorandum would consolidate bilateral cooperation in the field, as the Canadian partners would be involved in the Cernavoda nuclear power plant projects and in other civilian nuclear power ventures in Romania. The Canadian industry has exceptional experience in CANDU projects and has already completed CANDU upgrade and construction projects, the PM added, and voiced his satisfaction that Canadian partners are joining the US ones in developing the nuclear sector in Romania. In turn, Ambassador Annick Goulet emphasised that cooperation in the nuclear power field has been a vital element of the 55-year long relations between the 2 countries.

FESTIVAL One of the most eagerly awaited summer festivals in Romania, Electric Castle, begins today and is scheduled to end on August 15. The opening gigs are taking place at Banffy Castle in Bonţida, and others will follow in the city of Cluj Napoca in the coming days. After a difficult period for festival goers, things are returning to normal. According to the organisers, hundreds of volunteers are helping in this years edition, as they did in previous years as well. Taking part in the 10-day event held in over 20 locations in Bonţida and Cluj are 250 artists from 23 countries.

OLYMPICS The Romanian Cătălin Chirilă has today qualified into the semifinals of the 1,000m canoeing race in the Tokyo Olympics, after winning the first of the 5 qualifying series held at the Sea Forest Waterway base. The semi-finals are scheduled for Saturday. Over the years, kayak and canoeing have brought Romania 34 Olympic medals. The last gold medal was won by Florin Popescu, currently the coach of Romanias Olympic canoeing team, and Mitică Pricop, 21 years ago in Sydney. (tr. A.M. Popescu)

6 August 2021
Aid and projects for Moldova

The validity of the 100 million Euro financial agreement concluded between the Romanian and the Moldovan governments ten years ago has expired. The program consisted in a non-reimbursable financial aid from Bucharest to Chisinau and, for a decade, it was used to fund emblematic projects, such as the refurbishment and modernization of more than 1000 kindergartens and schools in the Republic of Moldova, or for the development of the Iasi-Chisinau gas pipeline, a strategic project aimed to interconnect the two countries from an energy point of view.

The Romanian Foreign Ministry, which has given assurances that Bucharest remains a reliable and involved partner to Moldova, has stressed that it has taken all the necessary steps to extend the agreement signed in 2010. Regretfully, Bucharest has not received in due time Chisinau’s endorsement and documents to extend the agreement, despite a series of diplomatic steps taken in that direction. However, Romania remains open to concluding a new agreement, focused on the same goals and integrating all the necessary additional protocols, with a view to helping the Republic of Moldova keep the European path and implement democratic reforms.

Also, Romania will continue to provide direct, consistent and disinterested support to the Moldovan citizens, including humanitarian aid in the context of the pandemic, and to act towards the development of strategic interconnection projects. According to the Romanian Foreign Ministry, during the bilateral talks held in mid-March, Chisinau’s representatives invoked the fact that Moldova’s acting government did not have the necessary competences to conclude the agreement.

In another move, more than 50 thousand doses of AstraZeneca vaccine were sent by Romania to the Republic of Moldova this weekend. This second shipment is part of the aid package announced by Romania’s president Klaus Iohannis during his visit to Chisinau, in December last year. It’s a humanitarian aid aimed to support the Republic of Moldova curb the dramatic effects of the pandemic, the Romanian Prime Minister Florin Citu has stated. He has also announced that, more batches will be sent to Moldova in the coming period, to reach the 200,000 doses promised. Bucharest will also create a special fund for the sister localities in the Republic of Moldova and will provide support for the development of the Romanian media institutions, TVR Moldova and Radio Romania Chisinau, the Diaspora Senator Viorel Badea has announced recently. (MI)

29 March 2021
November 21, 2020 UPDATE

COVID-19 The total number of COVID-19 cases in Romania since the start of the pandemic passes 412,000. On Saturday, almost 9,700 new cases were reported. Another 160 coronavirus-related deaths were also confirmed, taking the death toll to over 9,900. A further 1,132 patients are currently in intensive care. Almost 70% of the total number of COVID-19 patients in Romania have recovered. Local lockdowns were introduced in several towns and villages with large number of cases, including around the capital Bucharest. Recent reports point to a plateau phase in the epidemic, president Klaus Iohannis said. He announced he would have a meeting on Monday with the health, interior and defence ministers, to clarify aspects related to the anti-COVID vaccination campaign, which he sees as a matter of national security. He added the latest data allows for “moderated optimism and called for strict observance of the containment measures introduced by the authorities.

PANDEMIC The total number of Covid-19 cases worldwide is now over 58 million, with nearly 1.4 million deaths and over 40 million people having recovered from the disease, according to Worldometers.info. The US is the worst hit country, with over 12 million cases and at least 260,000 deaths. The American company Pfizer and their German partner BioNTech announced they have requested emergency authorisation of their COVID-19 vaccine in the US. The US Food and Drug Administration says the goal is to have the vaccine approved in the first half of December. The 2 companies claim to be able to supply the vaccine within hours of its approval. In turn, the EU may approve 2 vaccines by the end of December, the one produced by Pfizer/BioNTech and the one produced by Moderna. Over the last 24 hours, the number of infections has gone up in Ukraine, Russia, North Macedonia, Croatia, Italy and Spain. Madrid is to endorse on Tuesday a large-scale vaccination plan covering a large part of the population by next summer. The Madrid region will be under lockdown in the first half of December. The Italian government also announced plans to ease restrictions prior to the winter holidays, with tougher measures to be introduced between Christmas and New Years Eve.

NUCLEAR The European Commission approved the cooperation agreement signed by Romania with the USA in the field of nuclear energy, the Romanian Economy Minister Virgil Popescu said in a Facebook post. He added that 7 billion USD worth of funding has been obtained from the US for the revamping of Cernavoda Unit 1, the building of Units 3 and 4 and for putting together projects in the field of energy. Virgil Popescu says the agreement will ensure Romanias energy security, investments and jobs in many sectors. A consortium will be set up to this aim, comprising companies from the US, Romania, Canada and France.

FILM The 5th BUZZ International Film Festival, based in Buzau and devoted to European cinema, is held exclusively online as of today. Until November 26, film lovers are invited to enjoy Romanian and European films free of charge. According to the organisers, the Festival has 4 competition sections: fiction features, documentaries, short films and student films. Most of the works in the competition are screened for the first time in Romania. This years surprises include Radu Ciorniciucs documentary, “Home, awarded in major international festivals. In the BUZZ Women section, the highlights include ‘Creativ’, a documentary by Ioana Grigore, and Nora Fingscheidts ‘System Crasher,’ winner of the Silver Bear – “Alfred Bauer Award in Berlin in 2019.

G20 The online summit of the worlds 20 biggest economies, G20, hosted for the first time by Saudi Arabia, started on Saturday. The main topic on the agenda is the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic. Saudi King Salman told G20 leaders that they must work towards affordable and equitable access to vaccines and other tools to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, including for poorer nations. On Friday, the president of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen voiced hopes that the G20 summit due this weekend will be “a new beginning for multilateralism. Ursula von der Leyen said she would call on the Unions G20 partners to step up economic efforts to provide access to COVID-19 vaccine and treatment for poorer countries as well. The goal is to purchase 2 billion vaccine doses for countries with below-average revenues, the EC president said. (translated by: A.M. Popescu)

21 November 2020
November 21, 2020

COVID-19 The total number of COVID-19 cases in Romania since the start of the pandemic passes 412,000. On Saturday, 9,700 new cases were reported. Most of them were in the capital Bucharest and in Cluj County (north-west). Another 160 coronavirus-related deaths were also confirmed, taking the death toll up to 9,900. A further 1,132 patients are currently in intensive care. Almost 70% of the total number of COVID-19 patients in Romania have recovered. Recent reports point to a plateau phase in the epidemic, president Klaus Iohannis said. He announced he would have a meeting on Monday with the health, interior and defence ministers, to clarify aspects related to the anti-COVID vaccination campaign, which he sees as a matter of national security. He added the latest data allows for “moderated optimism and called for strict observance of the containment measures introduced by the authorities.

PANDEMIC The total number of Covid-19 cases worldwide is now over 57.9 million, with 1.3 million deaths and over 40 million people having recovered from the disease, according to Worldometers.info. The US is the worst hit country, with over 12 million cases and at least 260,000 deaths. The American company Pfizer and their German partner BioNTech announced they have requested emergency authorisation of their COVID-19 vaccine in the US. The US Food and Drug Administration says the goal is to have the vaccine approved in the first half of December. The 2 companies claim to be able to supply the vaccine within hours of its approval. In turn, the EU may approve 2 vaccines by the end of December, the one produced by Pfizer/BioNTech and the one produced by Moderna. Over the last 24 hours, the number of infections has gone up in Ukraine, Russia, North Macedonia, Croatia, Italy and Spain. Madrid is to endorse on Tuesday a large-scale vaccination plan covering a large part of the population by next summer. The Madrid region will be under lockdown in the first half of December. The Italian government also announced plans to ease restrictions prior to the winter holidays, with tougher measures to be introduced between Christmas and New Years Eve.

NUCLEAR The European Commission approved the cooperation agreement signed by Romania with the USA in the field of nuclear energy, the Romanian Economy Minister Virgil Popescu said in a Facebook post. He added that 7 billion USD worth of funding has been obtained from the US for the revamping of Cernavoda Unit 1, the building of Units 3 and 4 and for putting together projects in the field of energy. Virgil Popescu says the agreement will ensure Romanias energy security, investments and jobs in many sectors. A consortium will be set up to this aim, comprising companies from the US, Romania, Canada and France.

GAUDEAMUS The Gaudeamus Radio România book fair continues online today. the 6th day of the fair comes with new online book releases in addition to the 160 that have taken place so far, and events targeting children, teenagers and teachers. The Gaudeamus Radio România book fair, a cultural project with a tradition of more than 2 decades, is held exclusively online this year. Over 100 companies are taking part, including some of the biggest publishing houses in Romania and distributors of Romanian and foreign books, music and games. The fair is coming to an end on Sunday.

FILM The 5th BUZZ International Film Festival, based in Buzau and devoted to European cinema, is held exclusively online as of today. Until November 26, film lovers are invited to enjoy Romanian and European films free of charge. According to the organisers, the Festival has 4 competition sections: fiction features, documentaries, short films and student films. Most of the works in the competition are screened for the first time in Romania. This years surprises include Radu Ciorniciucs documentary, “Home, awarded in major international festivals. In the BUZZ Women section, the highlights include ‘Creativ’, a documentary by Ioana Grigore, and Nora Fingscheidts ‘System Crasher,’ winner of the Silver Bear – “Alfred Bauer Award in Berlin in 2019. (translated by: A.M. Popescu)

21 November 2020