CONFERENCE Bucharest is today playing venue for a
ministerial meeting on the common maritime agenda for the Black Sea an event
jointly staged by the Romanian Foreign Ministry and the European Commission.
The conference is aimed at bringing together representatives of the riparian
countries, Bulgaria, Georgia, Romania, the Russian Federation, Turkey, Ukraine
and the Republic of Moldova who are to endorse Black Sea common maritime
agenda. The document that has been negotiated with support from the European Commission,
is focusing on activity sectors, which could contribute to the region’s sustainable
economic development with emphasis on the coastal areas in several domains such
as fishing and aquaculture, research and innovation, connectivity,
environmental protection, tourism, education, the creation and development of
competences specific to a maritime economy.
WEATHER A yellow weather warning has been issued for 24 counties in
Romania, which is mostly seeing rain showers, thunderstorms, gale-force winds
and even hail. Maximum temperatures are ranging between 16 and 25 degrees
Celsius. 25 towns and villages in the country’s south, center and north-east,
including the capital Bucharest have been affected by the heavy rainfalls and
strong wind on Monday night. Firefighters with the Emergency Situation
Inspectorates have been deployed to the affected areas to pump the water out of
the flooded areas and remove the fallen trees. Road traffic has been disrupted
in the past 24 hours by the broken trees and landslides.
MEETING With Romania holding the EU rotating presidency, Bucharest is
today playing venue for the informal meeting of the EU environment ministers.
Monday saw two debates, on climate change and biodiversity. Talks focused on the
citizens’ role in a future of low-carbon emissions. In a joint news conference
with Romania’s environment minister, the EU commissioner for Climate Action and
Energy, Miguel Arias Canete pleaded for effective methods to maintain
biodiversity, which would lead to increased food safety.
DRILL Over 12 hundred Romanian and foreign troops are today
participating in Steadfast Cobalt 2019, the largest NATO communication units exercise
underway in Otopeni, close to capital Bucharest. The drill is aimed at the
troops’ joint training in order to be able to provide multi-national support in
NATO operations as well as in practicing standard procedures needed for
interoperability of human and technical resources. The exercise is due to end
on June 2nd.
(translated by bill)