Radio România Internațional

Tag: Czech

  • January 28, 2023 UPDATE

    January 28, 2023 UPDATE

    COOPERATION
    France and the Netherlands are eagerly waiting
    for Romania’s Schengen accession as soon as possible. This is one of the main
    elements in a joint statement on security cooperation signed in Bucharest on
    Friday by the foreign ministers of the 3 countries. The message was also
    highlighted by the Dutch diplomacy chief, Wopke Hoekstra, in the bilateral
    talks with his Romanian counterpart, Bogdan Aurescu. The 2 officials, together
    with the French foreign minister, Catherine
    Colonna,Friday visited the Getica National Joint Training Centre in
    Cincu, where French and Dutch troops are deployed as part of the NATO Battle
    Group created in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. In fact, after the
    trilateral talks concerning Moscow’s armed aggression, Catherine Colonna said
    Ukraine must be helped to defend itself, to regain its independence and
    sovereignty. In Bucharest, the foreign officials were also received by
    president Klaus Iohannis and PM
    Nicolae Ciucă.


    CINEMA Two
    Romanian films, ‘Metronome’ by Alexandru Belc and ‘M.R.I.’ by Cristian Mungiu, are
    in the competition of the Gothenburg International Film Festival in Sweden, which
    started on Friday. According to the Romanian Cultural Institute in Stockholm,
    the event brings together around 400 works from around the world every year,
    with 160,000 viewers attending. ‘Metronome’, the debut feature of the director Alexandru
    Belc, is a love story in 1972 communist Romania, and critics describe it as a
    social and historical analysis of a generation forced to live in a society
    marred by suspicion and distrust. Cristian Mungiu’s ‘M.R.I.’ is set in a
    Transylvanian village, where a small factory hires new workers, troubling the
    apparent peace of the locals. The over 40-year old
    film festival in Gothenburg is the most important such event in the
    region.


    SURVEY As many as 80% of Romanian consumers allow the use of their
    personal data for advertising purposes, according to a survey conducted on the
    European Data Protection Day. The latest data in the Survey on the usage of IT&C
    in households and by individuals indicate that 1 of 2 Europeans aged between 16
    and 74 do not allow the use of their personal data for advertising purposes
    when using the internet. As many as 46% reported having allowed only restricted
    access to their location or having denied access to their data altogether. The
    countries where the use of personal data for advertising is mostly denied by
    users include the Netherlands (73%), Finland (70%), Denmark and Germany (63%
    each), Spain (62%). At the opposite pole, the lowest rates were reported in
    Bulgaria (10%), Romania (20%), Greece (29%), Slovakia (30%) and Latvia (32%).


    ELECTION
    The president of Romania Klaus Iohannis Saturday
    congratulated the president elect of the Czech Republic, Petr Pavel, and
    pleaded for strengthening the relations between the 2 countries. Petr Pavel, a former
    chairman of the NATO Military Committee and supporter of military support for
    Ukraine, Saturday won the runoff of the presidential elections in the Czech
    Republic, with 57.4% of the votes, according to international news agencies,
    after over 90% of the
    ballots were counted. His opponent, ex-PM Andrej Babis, got around 42% of the
    votes. The turnout was 70%. Petr Pavel, a retired general aged 61, ran as an
    independent candidate with the support of the right-of-centre government. He
    will replace the controversial Milos Zeman, who had had close ties with Moscow
    before changing course during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Petr Pavel vowed to
    be an independent president, without political bias, and to continue to support
    war-torn Ukraine and Kyiv’s bid for EU membership.


    SPORTS The Romanian
    athlete Laura Ilie won the bronze in the 10m air rifle women event of the ISSF
    World Championship on Saturday in Jakarta, Indonesia. The gold went to Eszter
    Meszaros (Hungary), who defeated Poland’s Aneta Stankiewicz in the final. Another
    Romanian, Roxana Sidi, came out 28th in the qualifiers. (AMP)

  • January 28, 2023

    January 28, 2023

    COOPERATION
    France and the Netherlands are eagerly waiting
    for Romania’s Schengen accession as soon as possible. This is one of the main
    elements in a joint statement on security cooperation signed in Bucharest on
    Friday by the foreign ministers of the 3 countries. The message was also
    highlighted by the Dutch diplomacy chief, Wopke Hoekstra, in the bilateral
    talks with his Romanian counterpart, Bogdan Aurescu. The 2 officials, together
    with the French foreign minister, Catherine
    Colonna,Friday visited the Getica National Joint Training Centre in
    Cincu, where French and Dutch troops are deployed as part of the NATO Battle
    Group created in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. In fact, after the
    trilateral talks concerning Moscow’s armed aggression, Catherine Colonna said
    Ukraine must be helped to defend itself, to regain its independence and
    sovereignty. In Bucharest, the foreign officials were also received by
    president Klaus Iohannis and PM
    Nicolae Ciucă.


    CINEMA Two
    Romanian films, ‘Metronome’ by Alexandru Belc and ‘M.R.I.’ by Cristian Mungiu, are
    in the competition of the Gothenburg International Film Festival in Sweden, which
    started on Friday. According to the Romanian Cultural Institute in Stockholm,
    the event brings together around 400 works from around the world every year,
    with 160,000 viewers attending. ‘Metronome’, the debut feature of the director Alexandru
    Belc, is a love story in 1972 communist Romania, and critics describe it as a
    social and historical analysis of a generation forced to live in a society
    marred by suspicion and distrust. Cristian Mungiu’s ‘R.M.N.’ is set in a
    Transylvanian village, where a small factory hires new workers, troubling the
    apparent peace of the locals. The over 40-year old
    film festival in Gothenburg is the most important such event in the
    region.


    SURVEY As many as 80% of Romanian consumers allow the use of their
    personal data for advertising purposes, according to a survey conducted on the
    European Data Protection Day. The latest data in the Survey on the usage of ITC
    in households and by individuals indicate that 1 of 2 Europeans aged between 16
    and 74 do not allow the use of their personal data for advertising purposes
    when using the internet. As many as 46% reported having allowed only restricted
    access to their location or having denied access to their data altogether. The
    countries where the use of personal data for advertising is mostly denied by
    users include the Netherlands (73%), Finland (70%), Denmark and Germany (63%
    each), Spain (62%). At the opposite pole, the lowest rates were reported in
    Bulgaria (10%), Romania (20%), Greece (29%), Slovakia (30%) and Latvia (32%).


    ELECTION
    Petr Pavel looks set
    to win the runoff of the presidential elections in the Czech Republic, ahead of
    ex-PM Andrej Babis, AFP reports. Polling
    stations opened on Friday and close today. Petr
    Pavel, 61, a retired general who held a senior NATO post, is running as an
    independent candidate and has the support of the right-of-centre government. Billionaire
    Andrej Babis, 68, who was the country’s PM between 2017 and 2021, promised to
    force the government to help citizens handle the rising inflation. The winner
    of the vote will replace the controversial Milos Zeman, who had had close ties
    with Moscow before changing course during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.


    WEATHER In Romania, weather experts issued code orange and yellow alerts
    for heavy snowfalls, snowstorms and rainfalls in over 20 counties in the east
    and centre of the country. The bad weather left thousands of households without
    electricity, road, railway and air traffic was disrupted and several national
    and county roads were closed. (AMP)

  • Sports roundup

    Sports roundup

    Our sports programme begins today with tennis with the upcoming Grand Slam tournament in Wimbledon, where Romania is represented only in the womens competition. The competitions main draw has 7 players from Romania, Simona Halep, Sorana Cirstea, Gabriela Ruse, Irina Begu, Ana Bogdan, Irina Bara and Mihaela Buzarnescu.



    Romania ended the ECA Junior & U23 Canoe Sprint European Championship in Belgrade with two bronze medals. Adrian Stepan and Andrei Costache came third in the mens junior C2 1000 m final. In the K2 1000-meter final, George Ţenţa and Darius Zaharia, also from Romania, stepped onto the third step of the podium.



    Romanias handball selection failed to qualify for the main groups of the Womens Junior World Championships in Slovenia. Our handballers came third in group E after beating Angola 26-23, and Lithuania 29-20, but they lost to the Czech Republic 25-32. With a better goal average Angola and the Czech Republic came first and second in the group respectively.



    Romanias football side CFR Cluj secured a 2-0 win against Croatian runner-up Hajduk Splitin their last friendly in Austria. Ciprian Deac converted a penalty shot for Romania in the 39th minute and Cristian Manea added a second three minutes later. CFR ended their training campaign only with victories and no goal received. They defeated Slovenias runner-up FC Koper 2-0, then secured a 3-0 against Serbian side Napredak Krusevac, and 1-0 against Partizan Belgrade. In the first Champions League qualifiers, CFR Cluj will be up against Piunik Yerevan of Armenia. The first match is due in Armenia, on July 5 and the return game in Cluj-Napoca, western Romania, on July 13.


    (bill)

  • Sports roundup

    Sports roundup

    Our sports programme begins today with tennis with the upcoming Grand Slam tournament in Wimbledon, where Romania is represented only in the womens competition. The competitions main draw has 7 players from Romania, Simona Halep, Sorana Cirstea, Gabriela Ruse, Irina Begu, Ana Bogdan, Irina Bara and Mihaela Buzarnescu.



    Romania ended the ECA Junior & U23 Canoe Sprint European Championship in Belgrade with two bronze medals. Adrian Stepan and Andrei Costache came third in the mens junior C2 1000 m final. In the K2 1000-meter final, George Ţenţa and Darius Zaharia, also from Romania, stepped onto the third step of the podium.



    Romanias handball selection failed to qualify for the main groups of the Womens Junior World Championships in Slovenia. Our handballers came third in group E after beating Angola 26-23, and Lithuania 29-20, but they lost to the Czech Republic 25-32. With a better goal average Angola and the Czech Republic came first and second in the group respectively.



    Romanias football side CFR Cluj secured a 2-0 win against Croatian runner-up Hajduk Splitin their last friendly in Austria. Ciprian Deac converted a penalty shot for Romania in the 39th minute and Cristian Manea added a second three minutes later. CFR ended their training campaign only with victories and no goal received. They defeated Slovenias runner-up FC Koper 2-0, then secured a 3-0 against Serbian side Napredak Krusevac, and 1-0 against Partizan Belgrade. In the first Champions League qualifiers, CFR Cluj will be up against Piunik Yerevan of Armenia. The first match is due in Armenia, on July 5 and the return game in Cluj-Napoca, western Romania, on July 13.


    (bill)

  • April 19, 2021

    April 19, 2021

    COVID-19 Over half a million Pfizer BioNTech vaccine doses reach Romania today, after nearly 4 million other doses received so far from the American-German producer. Since the start of the vaccine rollout in Romania on December 27, over 2.6 million people have been immunised, 1.6 million of them having also received the booster dose. Romania currently uses Pfizer, Moderna and AstraZeneca vaccines. Meanwhile, 2,265 new COVID-19 cases were reported yesterday, out of almost 19,500 tests. This is the lowest number in the last 7 weeks. The authorities also announced 160 COVID-related deaths in 24 hours, and 1,475 patients are currently in intensive care. Again, the largest number of cases were reported in Bucharest, and the highest infection rates are registered in Ilfov County (south-east), followed by the capital and Cluj County in the centre-west, each with over 5 infections per thousand for 14-day periods. Another 7 counties are also in the red zone, with over 3 infections per thousand inhabitants.




    GOVERMENT The right-of-centre coalition in power in Romania, comprising the National Liberal Party, the USR/Plus party and the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians, convene for the first meeting since the health minister Vlad Voiculescu from USR/Plus was dismissed last week. The USR/Plus leaders criticised the Liberal PM Florin Cîţu’s decision to oust Voiculescu, and requested an emergency coalition meeting to discuss withdrawing political support to the PM. In turn, the leaders of the other 2 parties in the coalition have reiterated their support for Florin Cîţu and underscored that USR/Plus must come up with a new nomination for health minister. On Friday, in a press conference after his dismissal, Vlad Voiculescu made serious accusations against the PM and other Liberal leaders. He claimed that he had uncovered vulnerabilities in the system, which prove the central and local authorities’ inability to handle the pandemic, accused PM Cîţu of disinterest and complained of lack of dialogue on the problems in the healthcare system.




    DIPLOMACY The EU foreign ministers are holding an online meeting today to discuss the latest tensions between Russia and the Czech Republic. Prague accused Moscow of being involved in a 2014 blast at a Czech weapon storage facility. The Russian foreign minister dismissed the accusation as ungrounded and absurd. On Saturday the Czech Republic expelled 18 Russian Embassy staff accused of espionage related to the blast. In turn, Moscow announced on Sunday that 20 Czech Embassy staff are personae non-gratae and have to leave Russia. The EU foreign ministers are also to discuss today the case of Russian dissident Aleksei Navalny, currently detained in Russia. Germany and France asked Russian authorities to provide medical care to Kremlin’s leading critic, whose health is deteriorating steadily. The White House warned that Russia would face consequences if Aleksei Navalny died in prison. The situation in Ukraine will also be on the agenda of today’s meeting. The head of Romania’s diplomacy Bogdan Aurescu will highlight Romania’s support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of neighbouring Ukraine, and will voice the country’s concern with Russia’s deploying troops and military equipment in Crimea, at Ukraine’s eastern border and in the Black Sea region.




    NASA The American space agency NASA today makes the first attempt at powered, controlled flight of an aircraft on another planet. The nearly 2-kilo Ingenuity helicopter will attempt to rise 3 m above the surface of Mars, and to stay there for 30 seconds before returning. The main challenge is that the Martian atmosphere is just 1% as dense as Earth’s at the surface, which gives the drone’s rotors little to lift on. This is why the vehicle had to be very light and compact. The rover Perseverance will send confirmation photos to Earth.




    PANDEMIC The total number of COVID-19 infections worldwide is now over 142 million, with 120 million patients recovered and 3 million dead, according to the latest worldometers.info updates. As of today, in Italy, only 3 out of 20 provinces remain in the red zone, with the toughest restrictions. The others are included in the orange zone, but many will be rated as yellow zone as of next week, allowing the reopening of restaurants and resuming travels from one region to another. As of today, 7 million children in Italy return to schools after over a year of absence. Meanwhile, UK reports decreases both in terms of COVID-related deaths and in terms of infections, and the number of people getting vaccines every 24 hours has reached 600,000. In Israel, mass vaccination led to the almost complete reopening of the economy. The infection rate has been staying very low for over a week. Israeli citizens are no longer bound to wear face covering outdoor, and school activities are back to normal. Across the ocean, over half of the total number of adults in the US have received at least a first dose of anti-COVID vaccine. (tr. A.M. Popescu)