Radio România Internațional

Tag: Brussles

  • September 1, 2023 UPDATE

    September 1, 2023 UPDATE

    Visit – Romania is a credible and responsible partner, the Romanian PM Marcel Ciolacu said on Friday fresh from the meetings with the heads of the European institutions. In his first official visit to Brussels as head of government, he was received by the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, by the president of the European Council, Charles Michel, and by the president of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola. The Romanian Prime Minister discussed with the European officials about the budget deficit, saying that he does not agree with an increase in the VAT rate which would also lead to an increase in inflation. Romania, without any exception, will apply the provisions of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan, the PM said. The head of the Romanian government went to Brussels to negotiate with the representatives of the European Commission the increase in the budget deficit, without losing European money. Romania had assumed a deficit target of 4.4%, but now wants to increase it to over 5%. Also, the prime minister wanted the expenses for supporting Ukraine and the defense investments to be deducted from the deficit. In this context, Marcel Ciolacu received thanks from the European officials for the strong support offered to Ukraine and the neighboring Republic of Moldova. On the other hand, they reconfirmed their support for Bucharests accession to the Schengen free travel area.




    Schengen — ‘Hungarys national interest is for Romania to accede to Schengen as soon as possible’ says the Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto, who firmly asked Austria not to block Romanias accession to the free travel area this autumn. According to the Hungarian MTI news agency, the Hungarian official pointed out that the accession decision must be made based on facts. Romania is Hungarys third export market and a popular investment place for Hungarian capital, said Peter Szijjarto, recalling, at the same time, that a Romanian minority lives on the territory of Hungary, and a minority of Hungarians lives on the territory of Romania. Last December, Austria blocked the accession of Romania and Bulgaria to the Schengen Area, claiming that it could not support the expansion of the free travel area as long as it is not functional.



    Cereals – A European Commission team is visiting Romania on Friday and Saturday to discuss about facilitating the export of Ukrainian grains on the Danube, after Russia left the Initiative on grain shipment through the Black Sea and threatens civil maritime transport. The team of experts will visit the Danube port of Galati (south-east) and will meet with representatives of the Lower Danube River Administration, of the port authorities and of ship pilots. The team of experts will also go to the Black Sea port of Constanta to meet with representatives of the Romanian Government, the port authority and the customs authority. Also, the delegation will meet with representatives of the operators, transporters and grain traders from the port of Constanţa, the European Commission announced.



    Diplomacy — The Romanian diplomacy will continue to support and promote solid partnerships and relations, based on democratic values, respect for fundamental rights and freedoms, international law and the rules-based international order, Romania’s Foreign Minister, Luminiţa Odobescu, said on Friday. In her message conveyed on the occasion of the Romanian Diplomacy Day, Mrs. Odobescu recalls that the day is celebrated in a difficult and complex regional context, which, together with accelerated global developments, requires, more than ever, a predictable, coherent, adapted, dynamic and anticipatory foreign policy. Referring to the priorities of the Romanian diplomacy, Luminiţa Odobescu mentioned the growth of Romanias role and influence in the European Union and NATO, as well as the development and deepening of the Strategic Partnership with the USA. The development of consular services for Romanian citizens outside the countrys borders will not be neglected either, the head of the Romanian diplomacy added.



    Volleyball — Romania’s national team won its first victory at the European Mens Volleyball Championship – CEV EuroVolley 2023, 3-2 against Turkey, on Friday, in Tel Avi-Yafo, in Group D of the competition. In the first two stages, the Romanian national team lost to Portugal, 0-3, and to Israel, 2-3. They will next play against Greece (on September 3) and France (on September 4). The first four teams qualify for the round of 16. The European Championship takes place in Israel, Italy, Bulgaria, North Macedonia, from August 28 to September 16. Romania ranked 21st in the previous edition of the European Championship in which it participated, in 2019. The record of the Romanian players includes a European title in 1963, two silver medals (1955, 1958) and two bronze medals (1971, 1977). (LS)

  • October 20, 2022

    October 20, 2022

    Brussels— Romania’s President Klaus Iohannis is participating, Thursday and Friday, in Brussels, in the European Council meeting whose main theme is “The energy crisis and the proposals to combat it”. European leaders are meeting to reach a consensus regarding the reduction of energy prices. The head of the EC, Ursula von der Leyen, argued, on Wednesday, in front of the MEPs that the manipulation of energy prices by Russia must be fought against. She proposes the joint purchase of natural gas by the member states, a possible capping of gas prices, the setting up of gas companies consortiums and the conclusion of so-called energy solidarity agreements between neighboring countries. The agenda of the meeting includes the analysis of the evolution of Russias war of aggression against Ukraine and the EUs commitment to continuing the support given to Kyiv on the political, financial, humanitarian and military levels. The European leaders will also address ways to strengthen the resilience of critical infrastructure in the context of the recent acts of sabotage against the Nord Stream pipelines. At the same time, the heads of state and government from the EU member states will have a debate on the EU-China relations.



    Protest – Romanian trade unionists from the CNS Cartel Alfa Confederation are protesting, today, in Bucharest, asking the authorities to “stop the impoverishment of the population”. They are asking, in particular, for the control of prices and the taxation of extra-profits, for salary and pension increases, and for unblocking the collective bargaining by amending the Social Dialogue Law. The representatives of the CNS Cartel Alfa decided earlier this month to organize nationwide protest actions because, they say, “aberrant energy costs and the rising costs of food and other essential goods are forcing millions of workers to make painful choices and are pushing many into poverty”. The protest began on October 17 in the form of two caravans that set off from Romania’s northern cities towards Bucharest, with rallies being organized along the route in those towns where there are major risks of blocking some production activities and of job losses.



    Ukraine – The martial law decreed by the Russian President Vladimir Putin entered into force today in the four Ukrainian territories illegally annexed by Moscow: Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, EFE reports. The Kremlin leader has granted increased powers to the heads of certain Russian regions to adopt security measures targeting the population and the critical infrastructure. Starting today, the leaders of the occupied Ukrainian regions which are under martial law can evacuate residents to other areas, introduce a special regime for entering and leaving the territories and restrict the residents’ freedom of movement. The Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, Oleksii Danilov, wrote on Twitter that Putins martial law is a preparation for the mass deportation of the Ukrainian population to disadvantaged regions of Russia, in order to change the ethnic makeup of the occupied territory.



    Football – The Romanian youth football team will play in Group B, along with Spain, Ukraine and Croatia, at the final tournament of the U21 European Football Championship in 2023. The competition will be hosted by Romania and Georgia, between June 21 and July 8. The matches in Romanias group will take place in Bucharest, while Cluj (north-west) will host the games in Group D, between the representative teams of Norway, Switzerland, France and Italy. Romania will also host two quarterfinals. The first-ranked three teams in next years final tournament will qualify for the Olympic Games due in Paris in 2024. Romania will, for the first time in history, mark three consecutive participations in the final tournaments of the European Championships, after those in 2019 and 2021.



    NATO – The first two of the ten French military convoys intended to reinforce NATOs Eastern Flank are on their way to Romania. Their final destination is the Cincu military base in Sibiu county (central Romania) where the NATO multinational battlegroup has been installed, which is expected to shelter about one thousand European soldiers until the beginning of next year. The French will bring approximately 20 armored vehicles and 10 new generation Leclerc tanks, highly efficient combat equipment. In parallel, special transports of ammunition, food and troop maintenance materials will be sent to Romania by special trains.



    Radio – The Bulgarian National Radio (BNR) provides, as of today, news and current affairs information from and about Bulgaria also in the Romanian language, following the launch of the “Radio Bulgaria in Romanian” website. The new website in Romanian appears at a time when the two neighboring countries, Bulgaria and Romania, are together in fulfilling the common objectives of accession to Schengen, says the BNR. Sofia and Bucharest maintain an active cooperation in the commercial and economic fields, they are partners within NATO and the EU, at the level of South-Eastern Europe, of the Danube and the Black Sea region. The two neighboring countries have joint projects in the fields of infrastructure, energy, and transport. According to the BNR, in the three years prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, over 1.2 million Romanian citizens, on average, have traveled annually to Bulgaria for tourist purposes. At the same time, a lot of Romanian passengers transit Bulgaria, heading for Greece, Turkey or countries in Central and Western Europe. (LS)