LAW Romania’s
president Klaus Iohannis Friday signed into law a bill banning convicted offenders
from running for public offices such as senators, deputies, mayors, chairs or
members of county councils and others. Under the said law, the ban does not
apply in cases involving rehabilitation, amnesty or decriminalisation.
AIRCRAFT Romania has signed an agreement to purchase 32 F-16
fighters from Norway. According to the Defence Ministry, the first aircraft
will be delivered towards the end of next year, and total costs amount to EUR 388
mln. The ministry also explains that the aircraft will be operational and fit
for use for another at least 10 years. The agreement is supported by the US
Government and is a capability transfer between 2 NATO member states, aimed at
enhancing Romania’s defence capacity and at ensuring the country’s contribution
to the collective defence as part of the Alliance. At present the Romanian Air
Forces operate 17 F-16 fighters.
TRADE The volume
of trade exchanges between Romania and Germany in the first 9 months of the
year exceeded EUR 28 bln, 18% higher than in the same period last year, says
the Federal Statistics Office quoted by the Romanian-German Chamber of Commerce.
According to the same sources, German exports to Romania stood at roughly EUR 15
bln, while imports exceeded EUR 13 bln, placing Romania on the 19th position in
a ranking by exports and on the 21st position in terms of imports. Federal
authorities have voiced hope that Romania will join the Schengen zone as soon
as possible in what is seen as a strong political signal acknowledging the
country’s positive achievements in terms of European integration.
EXTREMISM The Romanian Radio Broadcasting Corporation condemns the
xenophobic statements made by a Hungarian politician on a visit to Sfântu
Gheorghe (central Romania). Barna Bartha, a Deputy affiliated with the
extremist party Mi Hazánk (Our Motherland) made racist statements concerning
Roma and Jewish people, and threatened Boróka Parászka, a Hungarian ethnic
employed as a journalist with Radio România Tîrgu Mureş. The management of the
Radio Broadcasting Corporation sees these statements as unacceptable and a
serious attack against basic rules of democracy and against the rule of law. PM
Nicolae Ciuca also described the threats against journalist Paraszka Boroka as
a serious attack on democratic values and urged the relevant authorities to
use their legal powers to protect the members of mass media. Mi Hazánk is a
far-right party in Hungary, set up 4 years ago by dissidents from Jobbik party
after its leaders moved away from the organisation’s radical roots.
UKRAINE Some 4.5
million Ukrainians, accounting for one-tenth of the country’s population, were
left without electricity on Thursday night, after Russian attacks on the
country’s energy network. Power went out both in the capital Kyiv and in 10
other regions. The Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the Russians
cannot beat Ukraine on the battlefield, so they try to break our people by
resorting to energy terrorism. Meanwhile, Ukraine firmly condemned the
massive displacement of civilians in Russian-controlled Kherson region (south)
for fear of a massive Ukrainian counteroffensive. Civilians were reportedly
also moved in the neighbouring region of Zaporizhzhia and in Crimea, the
peninsula annexed by Russia in 2014, as well as in the eastern provinces of Luhansk
and Donetsk, partly controlled by pro-Moscow secessionists. (AMP)
