Radio România Internațional

Tag: Carpathian Trophy

  • November 26, 2023 UPDATE

    November 26, 2023 UPDATE

    Kyiv. Romania has assumed a role of utmost importance in ensuring the transit of Ukrainian grain to international markets and remains in solidarity with that country, Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu said on Saturday, in an online intervention at the Kyiv Summit on world food security. More than 60% of the total Ukrainian exports of agricultural products were made through the transport corridors in Romania, the head of the Bucharest government also said, and in the next period an increase in the transport capacity would follow, with the direct support of the international partners and the European Union. Ciolacu condemned in the strongest terms the illegal and unjustified attacks by Russia in Ukraine, which constitute war crimes, as well as the Russian bombings near the border with Romania, which affect the infrastructure necessary for the transport of grain to international markets.



    Abuse of office. The legal Committee of the Romanian Senate must react by Wednesday to the National Anticorruption Directorates request for the prosecution of the former Prime Minister, Liberal Senator Florin Cîțu. Former Health Ministers Vlad Voiculescu and Ioana Mihăilă, members of the Save Romania Union, are also accused of abuse of office, and president Klaus Iohannis would have to green-light the lifting of their immunity. Prosecutors say the three purchased 52 million doses more than necessary, causing a prejudice of 1 billion EUR. The vaccines were purchased at a very difficult time during the pandemic, dominated by uncertainty regarding the evolution of the virus, the availability of mass-production of vaccines and the need for re-vaccination, Vlad Voiculescu explained. The former Health Minister blamed Florin Cîțu for taking the final decision, and in turn the former Liberal Prime Minister said that every decision made during his mandate was in good faith and in compliance with the law. The President of the Save Romania Union, Catalin Drula, claims that the case against Vlad Voiculescu is an alarming evidence of how state institutions are used against the political opposition, given that elections are due next year. In turn, the Liberal Justice Minister Alina Gorghiu has criticized the accusations brought by the leader of SRU.



    Gaza. Two hostages with dual citizenship, Israeli and Romanian, residing in Israel, are among those released from the Gaza Strip, the Romanian MFA announced on Sunday. Thus, currently, four people with dual citizenship, Israeli and Romanian, are still hostages in the Gaza Strip, a context in which the ministry reiterates the need to release all hostages from Gaza. At the same time, the MFA welcomes the diplomatic efforts of the USA, the State of Qatar and the Arab Republic of Egypt for the release of the hostages from the Gaza Strip. The Embassy of Romania in Tel Aviv and the Consulate General of Romania in Haifa stay in contact with the Israeli authorities.



    Vehicles. The Romanian state offers the biggest subsidies in the European Union for the purchase of electric and hybrid cars, the state secretary in the Ministry of Environment, Water and Forests, Bogdan Balanişcu, said on Friday. These are vouchers that can reach over 10,000 euros, benefiting those Romanian citizens who want to buy an electric car. It is a way to remove 250 thousand cars from the streets and to stop the pollution that these old cars create, the official explained. According to the latest data provided by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, approximately 8,000 vehicles with zero CO2 emissions were registered in Romania in the first semester of 2023. This past summer, there were some 33 thousand electric vehicles and 154 thousand hybrid vehicles registered in Romania.



    Counterfeit. The Romanian Customs Authority will carry out, next month, the “Pinocchio” operation, consisting of extensive controls on the traffic of counterfeit toys. Statistics show that at the end of the year, more than a third of the counterfeit goods that enter Romania are imported to be sold around Christmas. The authorities draw attention to the fact that these products, although they are often valued below the price of the original products, disappoint primarily due to their lower quality and non-compliance with standards.



    Gaudeamus. The Gaudeamus Radio Romania book fair, the longest-running event of its kind in the country, closed its doors on Sunday in Bucharest. The Gaudeamus trophies, by public vote, went, in order, to the publishing houses Humanitas, Litera and Polirom. The most coveted book, also determined by the publics vote, was More like the past, by Ana Blandiana, and the Education Award went to the Publishing House of the Academy of Economic Studies in Bucharest. The Excellence Award, awarded by a jury, went to Vellant Publishing for the quality of its presence at the fair and for the long line of literature and arts books, published in refined graphic conditions and for its always attractive stand at the fair. Tens of thousands of people visited the Gaudeamus Book Fair over the course of a week.



    Handball. Romanian womens national handball team won, on Saturday, in Bistrita (north), the Carpathian Trophy, after defeating Austria with a score of 41-35, in the last match of the competition. Previously, Romania won against Switzerland 33-28 and Portugal with 32-22. The tournament in Bistrita was a final check before participating in the World Championship in Denmark, Norway and Sweden (November 29-December 17), where Romania will play in Group E. The Romanians will face Chile on December 1, Serbia on December 3 and Denmark on December 5. The top 3 will qualify for the main groups and then, from those, the top two are bound for the quarter-finals. The national team aims to rank among the first 7 places, in order to be able to participate in the pre-Olympic tournament. Romania is the only team that has participated in all 26 editions of the Womens Handball World Championship. (MI)



    Tennis. The Romanian womens tennis team will face the Ukrainian team, away from home, in the qualifications for the final tournament of the Billie Jean King Cup competition, according to the draw made on Sunday in London. The match will take place on April 12-13, 2024. This month, Romania beat Serbia 4-0, in Kraljevo, in the play-off to stay in the World Group of the competition, while Ukraine beat Lithuania 3-1, in Vilnius. Romania and Ukraine have met four times so far, and the Romanians lead 3-1. (MI)


  • November 26, 2023

    November 26, 2023

    Kyiv. Romania has assumed a role of utmost importance in ensuring the transit of Ukrainian grain to international markets and remains in solidarity with that country, Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu said on Saturday, in an online intervention at the Kyiv Summit on world food security. More than 60% of the total Ukrainian exports of agricultural products were made through the transport corridors in Romania, the head of the Bucharest government also said, and in the next period an increase in the transport capacity would follow, with the direct support of the international partners and the European Union. Ciolacu condemned in the strongest terms the illegal and unjustified attacks by Russia in Ukraine, which constitute war crimes, as well as the Russian bombings near the border with Romania, which affect the infrastructure necessary for the transport of grain to international markets.



    Abuse of office. The legal Committee of the Romanian Senate must react by Wednesday to the National Anticorruption Directorates request for the prosecution of the former Prime Minister, Liberal Senator Florin Cîțu. Former Health Ministers Vlad Voiculescu and Ioana Mihăilă, members of the Save Romania Union, are also accused of abuse of office, and president Klaus Iohannis would have to green-light the lifting of their immunity. Prosecutors say the three purchased 52 million doses more than necessary, causing a prejudice of 1 billion EUR. The vaccines were purchased at a very difficult time during the pandemic, dominated by uncertainty regarding the evolution of the virus, the availability of mass-production of vaccines and the need for re-vaccination, Vlad Voiculescu explained. The former Health Minister blamed Florin Cîțu for taking the final decision, and in turn the former Liberal Prime Minister said that every decision made during his mandate was in good faith and in compliance with the law. The President of the Save Romania Union, Catalin Drula, claims that the case against Vlad Voiculescu is an alarming evidence of how state institutions are used against the political opposition, given that elections are due next year. In turn, the Liberal Justice Minister Alina Gorghiu has criticized the accusations brought by the leader of SRU.



    Gaza. Two hostages with dual citizenship, Israeli and Romanian, residing in Israel, are among those released from the Gaza Strip, the Romanian MFA announced today. Thus, currently, four people with dual citizenship, Israeli and Romanian, are still hostages in the Gaza Strip, a context in which the ministry reiterates the need to release all hostages from Gaza. At the same time, the MFA welcomes the diplomatic efforts of the USA, the State of Qatar and the Arab Republic of Egypt for the release of the hostages from the Gaza Strip. The Embassy of Romania in Tel Aviv and the Consulate General of Romania in Haifa stay in contact with the Israeli authorities.



    Hostages. A new exchange of Israeli hostages with Palestinian prisoners is planned for today, on the third day of the truce between Israel and the Islamist movement Hamas. Saturdays group of hostages was belatedly released, to the dismay of desperate families, following a dispute between Israelis and Palestinian Islamists over the implementation of the four-day ceasefire. It came into force on Friday, when Hamas released a first group of 24 hostages – 13 Israelis, 10 Thais and a Filipino. In return, Israel released 39 Palestinian prisoners. On Saturday evening, the Islamist group released a second group – 13 Israeli hostages and 4 Thai citizens. In turn, the Israeli authorities released another 39 Palestinian people from prisons. The ceasefire agreement should lead to the release of a total of 50 Hamas hostages and 150 Palestinians held in Israeli prisons. In addition, every day of the truce, trucks with food, medicine and fuel will enter Gaza. The war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip was triggered by an attack of unprecedented scale and violence committed by Hamas, on October 7, in southern Israel. According to the authorities, 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed and about 240 people kidnapped on the day of the attack. In retaliation, Israel has bombed the Gaza Strip ever since, and almost 15,000 people were killed, including over 6,000 children, according to Hamas. At the same time, Israel started a ground operation, in the north of the Gaza Strip, for the total destruction of Hamas.



    Vehicles. The Romanian state offers the biggest subsidies in the European Union for the purchase of electric and hybrid cars, the state secretary in the Ministry of Environment, Water and Forests, Bogdan Balanişcu, said on Friday. These are vouchers that can reach over 10,000 euros, benefiting those Romanian citizens who want to buy an electric car. It is a way to remove 250 thousand cars from the streets and to stop the pollution that these old cars create, the official explained. According to the latest data provided by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, approximately 8,000 vehicles with zero CO2 emissions were registered in Romania in the first semester of 2023. This past summer, there were some 33 thousand electric vehicles and 154 thousand hybrid vehicles registered in Romania.



    Gaudeamus. The Gaudeamus Radio Romania fair, the longest-running event of its kind in the country, is coming to an end. Today is the last day of the 30th edition. As usual for the visitors, the organizers prepared over 100 events for all ages: launches, debates or workshops. Despite the bad weather, the visitors came in large numbers to the fair on Saturday as well. In the central pavilion at Romexpo, in Bucharest, the public was attracted by the editorial offer, but also by the significant price reductions. On an area of ​​thousands of square meters, stands and event spaces have accommodated the nearly 200 participants, who have come with an extremely varied range of editorial products, on different supports, suitable for all ages and fields of interest, music and educational games.



    Handball. Romanian womens national handball team won, on Saturday, in Bistrita (north), the Carpathian Trophy, after defeating Austria with a score of 41-35, in the last match of the competition. Previously, Romania won against Switzerland 33-28 and Portugal with 32-22. The tournament in Bistrita was a final check before participating in the World Championship in Denmark, Norway and Sweden (November 29-December 17), where Romania will play in Group E. The Romanians will face Chile on December 1, Serbia on December 3 and Denmark on December 5. The top 3 will qualify for the main groups and then, from those, the top two are bound for the quarter-finals. The national team aims to rank among the first 7 places, in order to be able to participate in the pre-Olympic tournament. Romania is the only team that has participated in all 26 editions of the Womens Handball World Championship. (MI)


  • November 25, 2018 UPDATE

    November 25, 2018 UPDATE

    BREXIT DEAL – The leaders of the EU members states, gathered in Brussels on Sunday, signed off the Brexit withdrawal agreement and the declaration defining the EU-Britain post Brexit-relation. The 27 EU member states have also stood for having as tight a relation as possible with London, after Brexit. The withdrawal agreement provides for the legal conditions under which Great Britain leaves the EU on March 29, 2019. The political declaration accompanying the agreement underlines Londons and Brussels common objectives to define their future relation. Great Britain becomes the first country to leave the EU, 45 years after its accession. The British Parliament is set to vote upon the Brexit agreement before Christmas. Romania was represented at the Brussels summit by President Klaus Johannis. The president gave assurances the agreement protects the Romanian nationals who live and work in the UK.



    NATIONAL CATHEDRAL – The National Cathedral in Bucharest has been consecrated by the Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church, Daniel, and the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, Bartholomew I, with many Romanian and foreign prelates in attendance. Tens of thousands of Romanians from across the country, some of them wearing national costumes have also attended the event. The idea of erecting a Cathedral emblematic for the Romanian space emerged soon after the country gained its independence, following the 1877-1878 war. Back then, the leaders noticed there was not a church in Bucharest large enough to accommodate all those willing to attend a mass. “It is a national event- The National Cathedral, Romanias Cathedral, in the centenary year, said PM Viorica Dăncilă. On December 1, Romania celebrates the centennial anniversary of the Great Union of all Romanian historical principalities in a single state.



    SWINE FEVER – There are over 1,100 swine fever outbreaks in some 300 small towns and villages in 17 Romanian counties, the latest data released by the National Sanitary-Veterinary Authority show. Over 360,000 pigs have been culled so far and some 8,000 farmers have received damages. The Authority also says the disease has been eradicated in the north-eastern county of Satu Mare, where the first case was reported in the summer of 2017. In exchange, a new hotbed was reported in a household in Olt county, in the south-east. Romania has requested EU support to grant financial compensations to the affected farmers. The African swine fever is not transmissible to humans, but it has a significant economic impact.



    RadiRo – The International Festival of Radio Orchestras, RadiRo, organised by Radio Romania, has come to a close. The festival ended with an all Tcaikovsky program concert given by the RTE National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland. On Saturday, performing on the stage of the festival was LOrchestra della Svizzera Italiana, of Lugano, Switzerland. Over 9,000 spectators in eight days of the festival, eight symphonic concerts, and as a premiere 4 jazz concerts – this is in brief, the summary of the most prestigious cultural event, the only in the world devoted to radio orchestras. The concerts broadcast live by Radio Romania have also been recorded and later broadcast by the Romanian Television Company and by other radio broadcasters, that are EBU members.



    CARS – In 2017, only 7% of the EUs population didnt afford to buy a car, but the percentage points were four times higher in Romania, data released by Eurostat show. Bulgaria and Hungary are other EU member states where more than a fifth of the population does not afford to buy a car. The EU member countries with the lowest percentage points of people who do not afford to buy a car are Cyprus and Malta, with only 1.7% of the total population. In Romanias case, the number of people who did not afford to buy a car decreased from 32.9% in 2016, to 29.8% in 2017. Official data show Romanias national car fleet stood at 7.635 million cars, 9% more than in the previous years. Over 1.320 million cars of them are registered in Bucharest alone.



    HANDBALL – Romanias national womens handball team has won the 50th edition of the Carpathian Trophy, after having defeated the Romania B team, 33-24. The defending Olympic champion Russia ranked third, after defeating Serbia 33-32 on Saturday, in the other final. The tournament played in Bucharest is the last test for Romania ahead of the European Handball Championship due in France in December, when it meets the Czech Republic, Germany and Norway. Romania ranked 5th at the 2016 European Championship, and it put up its best performance in 2010, when it grabbed the bronze medal.

  • November 25, 2018

    November 25, 2018

    BREXIT DEAL – The leaders of the EU members states, gathered in Brussels, have today signed off the Brexit withdrawal agreement and the declaration defining the EU-Britain post Brexit-relation. The 27 EU member states have also stood for having as tight a relation as possible with London, after Brexit. The withdrawal agreement provides for the legal conditions under which Great Britain leaves the EU on March 29, 2019. The political declaration accompanying the agreement underlines Londons and Brussels common objectives to define their future relation. Romania is represented at the Brussels summit by President Klaus Johannis. Before the endorsement of the Brexit deal, the Romanian President said the document is very good for Romania, and the rights of the Romanian nationals are perfectly protected.



    NATIONAL CATHEDRAL – The National Cathedral in Bucharest has been consecrated by the Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church, Daniel, and the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, Bartholomew I, with many Romanain and foreign prelates in attendance. Tens of thousands of Romanians from across the country, some of them wearing national costumes have also attended the event. The idea of erecting a Cathedral emblematic for the Romanian space emerged soon after the country gained its independence, following the 1877-1878 war. Back then, the leaders noticed there was not a church in Bucharest large enough to accommodate all those willing to attend a mass. “It is a national event- The National Cathedral, Romanias Cathedral, in the centenary year, said PM Viorica Dăncilă. On December 1, Romania celebrates the centennial anniversary of the Great Union of all Romanian historical principalities in a single state.



    SWINE FEVER – There are over 1,100 swine fever outbreaks in some 300 small towns and villages in 17 Romanian counties, the latest data released by the National Sanitary-Veterinary Authority show. Over 360,000 pigs have been culled so far and some 8,000 farmers have received damages. The Authority also says the disease has been eradicated in the north-eastern county of Satu Mare, where the first case was reported in the summer of 2017. In exchange, a new hotbed was reported in a household in Olt county, in the south-east. Romania has requested EU support to grant financial compensations to the affected farmers. The African swine fever is not transmissible to humans, but it has a significant economic impact.



    RadiRo – The International Festival of Radio Orchestras, RadiRo, organised by Radio Romania, comes to a close later in the day with an all Tcaikovsky program concert, performed by the RTE National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland. On Saturday, performing on the stage of the festival was LOrchestra della Svizzera Italiana, of Lugano, Switzerland. Over 9,000 spectators in eight days of the festival, eight symphonic concerts, and as a premiere 4 jazz concerts – this is in brief, the summary of the most prestigious cultural event, the only in the world devoted to radio orchestras. The concerts broadcast live by Radio Romania have also been recorded and later broadcast by the Romanian Television Company and by other radio broadcasters, that are EBU members.



    CARS – In 2017, only 7% of the EUs population didnt afford to buy a car, but the percentage points were four times higher in Romania, data released by Eurostat show. Bulgaria and Hungary are other EU member states where more than a fifth of the population does not afford to buy a car. The EU member countries with the lowest percentage points of people who do not afford to buy a car are Cyprus and Malta, with only 1.7% of the total population. In Romanias case, the number of people who did not afford to buy a car decreased from 32.9% in 2016, to 29.8% in 2017. Official data show Romania’s national car fleet stood at 7.635 million cars, 9% more than in the previous years. Over 1.320 million cars of them are registered in Bucharest alone.



    HANDBALL – Romanias national womens handball team has won the 50th edition of the Carpathian Trophy, after having defeated the Romania B team, 33-24. The defending Olympic champion Russia ranked third, after defeating Serbia 33-32 on Saturday, in the other final. The tournament played in Bucharest is the last test for Romania ahead of the European Handball Championship due in France in December, when it meets the Czech Republic, Germany and Norway. Romania ranked 5th at the 2016 European Championship, and it put up its best performance in 2010, when it grabbed the bronze medal.

  • December 30, 2017

    December 30, 2017

    HANDBALL In the Swiss city of Winterthur, Romania’s national handball side is today taking on Serbia in a match counting towards the third and fourth positions of the Yellow Cup tournament. Switzerland will be playing Russia in the finals. On Friday, the Romanians conceded defeat to Russia 25 — 18, while Switzerland outperformed Serbia 32 — 28. At home our handballers are to go on a training camp for the upcoming Carpathian Trophy, a competition that is to bring together on January 5th the teams of Portugal, Tunisia and Bahrain. Under the guidance of Spanish headcoach, Xavi Pascual, Romania is preparing for the first round of the World Cup qualifiers in 2019; our handballers will travel to Bolzano in Italy and over January 11th and 13th they will play matches against the host country, Ukraine and the Feroe Islands. Only the winners in the six preliminary groups are allowed to join the play-offs in June for the final tournament in Germany and Denmark.




    TENNIS Several tennis players from Romania are participating in the Shenzhen tournament in China with 700 thousand dollars in prize money. During the competition, which is due to kick off on December 31st, Romania’s Simona Halep will be taking on Nicole Gibbs of the USA in their first match so far. Irina Begu from Romania will be up against Chinese Fangzhou Liu, also in their first game. Mihaela Buzarnescu, who had an excellent season in 2017 climbing up 500 positions in the WTA standings, will be up against a redoubtable opponent, Maria Sharapova. This will also be their first game so far. Monica Niculescu, also from the Romanian delegation will play Aryna Sabalenka of Byelorussia. Another Romanian challenger, Ana Bogdan, is up against Camila Giorgi of Italy. The two met in 2017 also in Shenzhen in a match that went to the Italian player. In the first qualification round on Saturday, Irina Bara of Romania conceded defeat to Stefanie Voegele of Switzerland. Halep is the odds-on favourite of the tournament, which she also won in 2015. The Romanian needs this title if she wants to remain number 1 in the world rankings.




    RESHUFFLE Liviu Dragnea, the head of the Social Democratic Party (PSD), the main party of the leftist ruling coalition, has announced that next month he will discuss with their partners, the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats (ALDE) about a possible government reshuffle. Dragnea has pointed out that personally, he is satisfied with the activity of the ministers and of PM Mihai Tudose. The Social Democratic leader has also said that he is against an extraordinary parliament session summoned to discuss amendments to the Criminal Codes, and he also opposes the issuing of an emergency decree on this matter. He believes that these bills must also be passed following debates, but emphasises the fact that by April 2018 the EU directive regarding the presumption of innocence and the right to fair trial must be included into the Romanian law. Other amendments to the Criminal Codes are generated by rulings of the Romanian Constitutional Court and European Court of Human Rights. The right-of-center opposition, civil society and the media are harshly criticising the government coalition’s plan to amend the justice laws, and accuse them of trying to subordinate magistrates and put an end to the battle against corruption. Last week, embassies of seven EU member states called on all parties involved in the reform process of the Romanian justice system to avoid any action that might compromise the independence of the judicial system.




    OPINION POLL 75% of Romanians believe that things are going the wrong way, according to an opinion poll run by the Romanian Institute for Evaluation and Strategy. Only 17% of respondents are content with the way in which the country is going. 7% believe that things are going neither in the right, nor the wrong way, 2% said they do not know. 40% of Romanians said they were not quite content with the way things are going, 36% said they were quite content, 19% said they were unhappy with the way things are going, 4% said they were very happy, with 1% saying they could not tell or not answering at all. 45% are of the opinion that 2017 was worse than 2016, 30% said it was the same, 24% said it was better, with a 1% undecided option. The most important events of the year are considered the death of King Michael I, on 5 December, the anti-government protests of January and February, with 8 percentage points each. In terms of confidence, Romanians trust the EU the most, 38%, their mayor, 31%, and the media, 31%, with the lowest confidence figures going towards Parliament, 11%, and political parties, 8%. They also believe that Romania should have a better relationship with Germany, 64%, and with the US 57%. The poll ran between December 6 and 8, and has a margin of error of 2.5%.