Radio România Internațional

Tag: attacks in Afghanistan

  • August 28, 2021

    August 28, 2021

    COVID-19 – 1,015 new cases of
    COVID-19 infection were reported on Saturday out of some 43,000 tests, the
    Group for Strategic Communication reports. 19 related fatalities have also been
    reported, while 243 people are in intensive care. 57,000 people are in home
    isolation and 63 in institutionalized quarantine. Most new cases were reported
    in Bucharest and Ilfov, Timiş,
    Bacău, Constanţa and Cluj counties. While Romania remains in the green zone,
    the overall incidence rate has been going up.




    MOLDOVA – Romania
    supports the modernization of the Army of the Republic of Moldova, Romania’s
    Defense Minister, Nicolae Ciucă said during a meeting with his Moldovan
    counterpart, Anatolie Nosaty. The two officials tackled topics pertaining to
    bilateral military cooperation. Minister Nosaty said Romania is a trusted and
    strategic partner of the Republic of Moldova, expressing gratitude for the
    constant assistance coming from Bucharest in the field of defense. He also
    referred to the training of Moldovan Army personnel in relevant Romanian
    institutions, the expertise offered in drafting strategic documents as part of
    the Initiative for Consolidating Defense Capabilities, as well as assistance
    aimed at combating the COVID-19 pandemic. General Ciucă on Friday attended, alongside
    President Klaus Iohannis, the military parade marking 30 years since the
    proclamation of independence of neighboring Moldova. Created on a part of
    Romania’s eastern territories, annexed by the Soviet Union through an ultimatum
    in 1940, the Republic of Moldova won its independence after the abortive coup
    in Moscow against the then Soviet leader, Mikhail Gorbachev. Adopted on August
    27, 1991 by Parliament in Chisinau, the declaration of independence was
    recognized by Romania on the same day. The Republic of Moldova got
    international recognition on March 2, 1992 upon its accession to the United
    Nations Organization.




    AFGHANISTAN – The
    crisis task force set up by Romanian authorities managed to evacuate 5 Afghan
    nationals from Kabul, who were admitted on Kabul airport and subsequently
    evacuated with support from Romania’s international partners, the Foreign
    Ministry in Bucharest has announced. The Afghan citizens – an exchange student
    studying in Romania and two journalists together with their families, are now
    safe outside Afghan territory. The task force has issued and submitted
    documents to the five Afghan citizens, conforming they are under the protection
    of the Romanian state. The Ministry says Romania will continue to take steps to
    evacuate Afghan nationals who worked together with Romanian troops and
    international organizations, students in Romania, vulnerable categories such as
    journalists, human rights activists, magistrates and members of their families.
    All 49 Romanian citizens who wanted to leave Afghanistan have been evacuated.
    At the same time, the task force maintains contact with the nine Romanian
    citizens who are still in Afghanistan and who have notified Romanian
    authorities they do not wish to be evacuated.




    BORDER POLICE – The
    Romanian Border Police have seized eight Indian nationals trying to illegally
    cross into Romania on the northeastern border, their aim being to reach the
    Schengen Area, the Border Police Territorial Inspectorate announced on
    Saturday. The eight men are aged 19 to 48 and are now being investigated by
    Romanian and Ukrainian authorities. Based on the agreement signed by the
    European Union and Ukraine, the eight citizens have been taken into custody by
    authorities of the neighboring state.




    MEDALS – Romania obtained its first two medals in Tokyo Paralympics. Romanian
    cyclist Eduard Novak, who is also Romania’s incumbent Minister of Youth and
    Sports, won silver in the 4,000-meter individual pursuit. Novak has thus won
    Romania’s first medal in the present edition of the Paralympic Games and his
    fourth. Eduard Novak, 44, obtained gold and silver medals at the 2012 edition
    of these games held in London and silver in Beijing in 2008. Another Romanian,
    judoka Alex Bologa, won bronze in the 60-kg category of the aforementioned
    competition. Romania is being represented by 7 athletes at the present edition
    of the Tokyo Paralympics who participate in judo, athletics, table tennis,
    cycling and archery. (VP)

  • August 27, 2021 UPDATE

    August 27, 2021 UPDATE

    MOLDOVA – Romania reiterates its firm and wide support for
    the processes of reformand European integration in the Republic of Moldova,
    Romania’s president Klaus Iohannis said during his visit to Chişinău on Friday. The Romanian official pointed out
    Romania and Moldova are bound by a solid relationship: a communion of language,
    culture and history. The president said the people of Moldova have expressed
    their firm option in the latest election for the pro-reform trajectory and
    irreversible European accession of their country, offering a worthy example to
    follow by other states in the region. The president gave assurances Romania
    will remain Moldova’s trusted partner in the future as well. President Klaus
    Iohannis and his Ukrainian and Polish counterparts, Volodymyr Zelensky and
    Andrzej Duda, attended festivities held in Chişinău marking 30 years since
    the Republic of Moldova proclaimed its independence. Moldova’s president, Maia
    Sandu, said her country wants to become a vector of stability in an area
    constantly facing complex challenges. In turn, Polish president Andrzej Duda
    expressed support for Moldova’s European integration ambitions, while his
    Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelensky, underscored that his country is also
    celebrating 30 years of independence in very delicate security context. Created on a part of Romania’s eastern territories,
    annexed by the Soviet Union through an ultimatum in 1940, the Republic of
    Moldova won its independence after the abortive coup in Moscow against the then
    Soviet leader, Mikhail Gorbachev. Adopted on August 27, 1991 by Parliament in
    Chisinau, the declaration of independence was recognized by Romania on the same
    day. The Republic of Moldova got international recognition on March 2, 1992
    upon its accession to the United Nations Organization.


    ATTACKS – Romanian Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu has
    firmly condemned the terror attacks in Kabul on Thursday, which made numerous
    victims. In a Twitter message, Aurescu has conveyed condolences to the families
    of the victims. He mentioned that the institutional crisis cell is keeping in
    touch with the 9 Romanian citizens in Afghanistan, who were not wounded in the
    attacks. In another development, US president Joe Biden has pledged to hunt
    down all responsible for the attacks claimed by ISIS, which killed and wounded
    many people, including 13 US troops. The White House leader says the
    evacuations will carry on whereas France, Canada, Poland, the Netherlands and
    Norway have announced the cessation of their evacuation efforts. Over 100
    thousand people have been evacuated from Afghanistan since the Taliban
    takeover. The US and its allies have warned that more terror attacks are likely
    in the Afghan capital as the deadline for military withdrawal from Afghanistan
    draws near.


    MEDALS – On Friday Romania obtained its first two medals
    in Tokyo Paralympics. Romanian cyclist Eduard Novak, who is also Romania’s
    incumbent Minister of Youth and Sports, won silver in the 4,000-meter
    individual pursuit. Novak has thus won Romania’s first medal in the present
    edition of the Paralympic Games and his fourth. Eduard Novak, 44, obtained gold
    and silver medals at the 2012 edition of these games held in London and silver
    in Beijing in 2008. Another Romanian, judoka Alex Bologa, won bronze in the 60-kg
    category of the aforementioned competition. Romania is being represented by 7
    athletes at the present edition of the Tokyo Paralympics who participate in
    judo, athletics, table tennis, cycling and archery.




    FOOTBALL – Romania’s football champions CFR Cluj have been
    drawn in Group D in Conference League alongside AZ Alkmaar of the Netherlands,
    FK Jablonec of the Czech Republic and Randers FC of Denmark, following Friday’s
    draw hosted by Istanbul. The winners of each group will qualify to the round of
    16. Teams in second place in each group will play matches against teams in
    third position in Europa League groups for a place in the round of 16. The
    final will take place on May 25, 2022 on National Arena Stadium in Tirana. On
    Thursday, CFR lost 1-2 on home turf to Red Star Belgrade of Serbia after losing
    the first leg as well 4-0. (DB &VP)



  • July 25, 2016 UPDATE

    July 25, 2016 UPDATE

    MEETING — Romania’s Supreme Defence Council meet on Tuesday in Bucharest to analyse the way in which Romania’s concerns are reflected in the final documents of the NATO summit of the 8th and 9th of July in Warsaw. The Council will also establish the measures and actions that need to be taken to implement the decisions adopted, the president’s office has said. President Klaus Iohannis said the NATO summit in Warsaw was a success, with all of Romania’s concerns being included in the final documents. These refer to a balancing of the measures taken as part of the country’s new defence and deterrence roles on the eastern flank, the president explained.



    ATTACKS — The death toll following the attacks in Afghanistan has reached a record level this year, according to a UN report. More than 1,600 civilians have been killed and 3,565 wounded in the first half of 2016, the highest number of victims since 2009. According to the report, a third of the victims are children, most of whom were killed in the explosion of makeshift bombs. The United Nations has described the situation as “alarming and shameful”, with the anti-governmental forces being responsible for the death of the highest number of civilians.



    MISSION — The Romanian White Sharks 341st infantry battalion left on Monday for the theatre of operations in Afghanistan. According to the defence ministry in Bucharest, the Romanian military are ready to act as part of the NATO Resolute Support mission to ensure the protection of the military basis in Kandahar and provide counselling to the Afghan security forces. The 341st infantry battalion is an elite unit of the Romanian Army and has so far carried out international missions in Kosovo, Iraq and Afghanistan.



    ELECTIONS — The National Liberal Party in Romania has called on the Government to pass an emergency ordinance providing for the setup of a number of polling stations equal to that used in the second round of the 2014 presidential elections, apart from polling stations in embassies and consular offices at the upcoming parliamentary elections in autumn. The Liberals also want for citizens to be able to register by e-mail for the vote. The interest of Romanians in the Diaspora in the legislative elections remains low. Less than three thousand Romanian citizens living abroad have signed up with the Election Registry. 2,000 applications have been sent from Spain and Italy, home to large numbers of Romanians.




    TURKEY – The association of European Magistrates for Democracy and Liberty (MEDEL) urged the NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg to demand Turkey to free the thousands of judges and prosecutors who were arrested a week ago after the failed coup. The appeal comes as Turkish president Recep Tyyip Erdogan reiterated his support for reintroducing the death penalty if the Turkish people so wish. Erdogan also said he would disregard the position of the European Union in this matter. In another move, Bratislava on Monday played host to an informal meeting of ministers and secretaries of state responsible for European affairs to discuss the situation in Turkey. Romanian State Secretary for European Affairs Cristian Badescu expressed Bucharest’s support for a concerted and effective European response to the challenges of migration, based on a thorough approach, focusing on the enactments of commitments, cooperation with third countries and consolidating the EU’s external borders.



    GERMANY — 12 people were wounded on Sunday night in the German town of Ansbach in a suicide bombing. According to the Bavarian authorities, a 27-year-old Syrian refugee exploded the bomb in front of a building hosting a music festival. Also on Sunday, a Syrian national killed one person and injured two in a machete attack in Baden-Wurttemberg, in south-western Germany. The two incidents occurred against the backdrop of a tense security climate after Friday’s attack in Munich when an 18-year-old Iranian-German national killed 9 people and injured 35. In the fourth attack last week, several passengers were wounded on a train by a young Afghan refugee who used a knife and a hatchet.



    TENNIS – Two Romanian tennis players, world no. 5 Simona Halep, and world no. 61 Monica Niculescu are competing in a tournament in Montreal worth 2.4 million dollars. In the first round, Niculescu faces the Latvian player Jelena Ostapenko. If she qualifies to the next round, she will meet world no. 4 Agnieszka Radwanska. Halep, who goes straight into the second round, will face the winner between Australia’s Daria Gavrilova and Germany’s Annika Beck. Last year, Halep made it to the final in Montreal, from which she pulled out with an injury, reliquinshing the title to the Swiss player Belinda Bencic.



    FOOTBALL — Romania’s football vice-champions Steaua Bucharest on Tuesday take on the Czech side Sparta Prague in an away game, as part of the first leg of the Champions League third preliminary round. As part of the same stage, Romanian champions Astra Giurgiu face the Danish side FC Copenhagen on Wednesday at home. On Thursday, in the first leg of the Europa League third preliminary round, Viitorul Constanta face the Belgian side Gent away, while Pandurii Targu Jiu play at home against the Israeli side Maccabi Tel Aviv. The third Romanian side playing in the Europa League, CSMS Iasi, were eliminated in the previous round by the Croatian side Hajduk Split.


    (Translated by V. Palcu and C. Mateescu)