Radio România Internațional

Tag: Daea

Aide aux agriculteurs

Aux frontières ouest de l’Ukraine envahie par les troupes russes semble naître ce que les commentateurs appellent « une géopolitique des céréales ». L’UE avait suspendu depuis déjà mai 2022, une année durant, les taxes douanières pour tous les produits importés depuis l’Ukraine. Les pays voisins ont enregistré un flux massif de maïs, de blé et de tournesol, les dépôts sont devenus saturés et les prix ont chuté sur les marchés locaux ce qui a suscité le mécontentement des agriculteurs qui ont commencé à protester. La Roumanie reste en ce moment le seul voisin de l’Ukraine qui permet l’importation de céréales depuis ce pays. Pour leur part, la Pologne et la Slovaquie viennent d’arrêter les importations de céréales ukrainiennes afin de protéger les producteurs locaux, tout en gardant leur appui ferme pour Kiev sous tous les autres aspects. Plus au sud, la Bulgarie a annoncé son intention d’introduire une mesure similaire dans quelques jours. Selon le correspondant de Radio Roumanie à Sofia, le principal motif de cette démarche est le fait que des quantités considérables d’aliments sont restés au pays cette dernière année, perturbant les chaînes de production et de commerce, tout cela malgré l’existence de ce que l’on appelle les « corridors de solidarité » avec l’Ukraine.

Enfin, traditionnellement proche de Moscou et plutôt froide envers les Ukrainiens, la Hongrie a elle aussi interdit les importations de miel et de plusieurs produits à base de viande fabriqués dans le pays en guerre d’ici le 30 juin prochain. Sur cette toile de fond, les agriculteurs roumains ont à leur tour protesté, dénonçant des pertes de plus de 200 millions d’euros à cause des importations de céréales ukrainiennes, dont le prix par tonne est de 100 euros inférieur. Confronté aux mécontentements croissants des citoyens et soucieux de ne pas irriter Bruxelles qui a qualifié d’inacceptables les mesures prises par Varsovie, Bratislava et Budapest, le gouvernement roumain promet désormais de couvrir une partie de ces pertes.

L’Exécutif a donc annoncé que les agriculteurs affectés par les importations de céréales pas chères d’Ukraine recevraient une aide de 10 millions d’euros issus du budget de l’Etat. Cette somme viendra s’ajouter aux 10 millions d’euros déjà accordés par la Commission européenne. Au total, plus de 20 millions d’euros sont destinés à couvrir les dépenses des producteurs agricoles qui se sont vus obligés de laisser dans les dépôts la récolte de l’année dernière. Pour bénéficier de cette aide, il faut déposer les documents nécessaires auprès de l’Agence pour les paiements et l’intervention en agriculture, dans un délai de 15 jours suivant la parution de la décision gouvernementale au Journal Officiel.

A la question si les responsables de Bucarest préparent eux aussi un décret censé suspendre temporairement l’importation de céréales ukrainiennes, le porte-parole de l’Exécutif, Dan Carbunaru, a répondu que la Roumanie avait décidé de respecter les normes européennes, ce qui lui offrirait une position favorable de négociation. Entre temps, la CE a annoncé elle aussi un nouveau paquet de soutien financier pour les agriculteurs : au total 100 millions d’euros à partager entre les 5 pays concernés par cette crise des céréales. (Trad. Valentina Beleavski)

21 April 2023
April 18, 2023 UPDATE

VISIT Romanian president
Klaus Iohannis on Tuesday began an official visit to Brazil as part of a Latin
American tour that will also take him to Chile and Argentina. The aim of the
trip is to relaunch high-level dialogue with these states and to present
Romania’s position, as a member of the European Union and NATO, on the war
begun by Russia in the neighbouring Ukraine. The visit to Brazil is the first
at this level in the last 23 years. Iohannis held talks with his counterpart Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva about the stage
and prospects of bilateral relations and topical issues on the regional and
international agenda. The main purpose of the visit is to instill more dynamism
into the relationship with Brazil, Romania’s biggest trading partner in Latin
America.

DEBATES The Chamber of Deputies in Bucharest debated
the simple motion tabled by the opposition MPs against Agriculture Minister
Petre Daea. They are blaming the minister for the insufficient European funds
received for supporting the Romanian famers affected by the cheap grain imports
from Ukraine. The motion’s signatories are also blaming Daea for the price
hikes in the basic foodstuffs and the mismanagement of the crises caused by the
swine and bird flues. The minister says though that all the allegations aren’t
based on real figures and has given assurances that the Romanian farmers aren’t
running the risk of not getting their subsidies this year.

CUTS The Romanian government is this week analysing the proposals
of ministries to cut budget expenses, at the request of Prime Minister Nicolae
Ciucă as a result of the budget deficit exceeding the forecast level. Cuts are
expected on goods and services, travel and acquisitions, with the prime
minister emphasizing there will be no cuts in salaries and investments.
According to finance minister Adrian Câciu, the finance ministry is also
working on a package of measures that may include a ban on receiving both a
state pension and salary at the same time or on freezing salaries and new
employment in the public sector. He said the collection of budget revenues
should also be improved.

PLAN The European Parliament on Tuesday endorsed, with a large majority, the essential elements of the Union’s ambitious climate plan. Among them: the reform of the trading system of emissions certificates, including for the air and maritime sectors, a new instrument for the border adjustment of carbon dioxide emissions and a fund to mitigate the social impact of climate actions. Thus, the free certificates for companies will be gradually eliminated and a new scheme will be created for fuels from road transport and for buildings. For imports of iron, steel, cement, aluminum, fertilizers, electricity and hydrogen, the difference between the price of carbon paid in the country of production and that of carbon emission certificates must be paid. The measures must be formally approved by the European Council.

(bill&CM)

18 April 2023
April 7, 2023 UPDATE

PROTESTS Farmers from 18 Romanian counties took to the streets on Friday,
dissatisfied with the compensation proposed by the European Commission for the
damage caused by the tax-free import of cheap cereals from Ukraine. Farmers
demand that the European Union abandon the special regime applied to imports
from Ukraine, which – in their opinion – seriously disrupts the Romanian
market. Romania’s agriculture minister Petre Daea has pledged compensations for
the affected farmers as soon as possible. The Romanian official also met some
of the farmers who protested in Bucharest. Poland has temporarily ceased its
imports of Ukrainian grains in order to offset their impact upon the local prices
but the transit will continue. The announcement was made on Friday by the new
Polish Agriculture Minister, Robert Telus, who took over after his predecessor had
stepped down amid the farmers’ protests sparked off by the plummeting prices in
cereals. Farmers have also staged protests in Romania’s neighbour country, Bulgaria.

BUDGET The Romanian government is looking for solutions to cover a hole
in the budget of 20 billion lei, so that the deficit does not exceed the target
of 4.4% of the GDP. The leaders of the ruling coalition claim that there are
unjustified expenses in many ministries and state institutions, and the
Ministry of Finance must reduce the waste of public funds. Liberal Prime Minister
Nicolae Ciucă has stressed that salaries or other types of income will not be
cut, but he asked the Minister of Finance, Adrian Câciu, to propose concrete
measures to reduce expenses in the next nine months. The Social Democrat leader
Marcel Ciolacu also spoke about a reform in spending public money, in parallel
with measures to reduce tax evasion. In his opinion, the system of increments
should be eliminated, and the bonuses already earned introduced into the
salary. Adrian Câciu said that the adjustment of budget expenses will not
affect the social and economic packages developed by the coalition, nor the
investments. National Bank specialists consider, on the other hand, that
against the background of the high values of the current account deficit and
the budget deficit, the money from the National Recovery and Resilience Plan
represents an extraordinary opportunity for the economy.

HEALTH Romania’s Minister of Health, Alexandru Rafila, says that the
medical system in this country needs sufficient, well-trained staff who can
respond professionally and empathetically to the needs of patients. At the same
time, in his message on the occasion of the World Health Day, on April 7, the
minister said that investments are needed in health – in hospitals, in
specialist clinics or in family doctors’ offices. This year, the motto of the
World Health Day is Health for all! In another move, the Minister
of Health said the number of respiratory illnesses and SARS-COV-2 infections
has started to decrease, and Romania has sufficient stocks of medicines for the
necessary treatments. According to Alexandru Rafila, there were 6,900 cases of
COVID last week, the positivity rate being 10% lower than the previous week.
However, the number of deaths is still quite high, 59.

(bill&MI)

7 April 2023
January 30, 2023

Parliament – The Romanian senators and deputies return, this week, to Parliament, for the first parliamentary session of the year. Among the priorities on the agenda are sensitive bills, such as the one on public service pensions, which should no longer exceed the salary from the active period, or the proposals to amend the education laws, on which the parties in the government coalition have so far failed to reach consensus.

Brussels — The Romanian Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Petre Daea, participated, today, in Brussels, in the meeting of the Agriculture and Fisheries Council. The agenda of talks includes important topics for agricultural producers in Romania, such as: the market situation, the bio-economy, honey labeling, the directive on industrial emissions and animal transport. In the opening of the meeting, the Swedish Presidency will make a presentation of its work program for the current semester in the field of agriculture and fisheries. European officials will receive information from the German delegation regarding the Global Forum on Food and Agriculture, which was held in Berlin on January 21.

Health — The Health Minister Alexandru Rafila said Sunday evening on a private television station that the number of flu and viral infection cases is decreasing in Romania. According to the minister, the flu epidemic will end in approximately two to three weeks. Alexandru Rafila stated that only in the last week, the number of cases reported was smaller by 25%, about 100,000 new cases of viral respiratory infections and cases of flu, compared to 140,000 a week ago. He also stressed that there were no problems with the stocks of medicines used in viral respiratory infections, even if their consumption has increased more than usual.

ICR – The Romanian Cultural Institute – ICR announced the relaunch of the Cantemir Cultural Partnerships and Financing Program, intended for international projects. The main aim of the program is to connect culture operators from Romania with partners from abroad. Through the Cantemir Program, previously run between 2006 – 2012 and resumed in 2023 with some changes, ICR will grant non-refundable funding for cultural initiatives in the fields of visual arts – fine arts, decorative arts, science/research and architecture, design, new media, photography, performance and performing arts – theater, music and dance.

Ukraine — The NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg requested South Korea today to increase its military aid to Ukraine. The NATO leader is in Seoul, as part of a visit that will also include Japan. According to the BBC, Stoltenberg intends to strengthen NATO ties with the Asian allies of the United States. He mentioned the war in Ukraine alongside North Koreas nuclear and missile programs and Chinas growing assertiveness as reasons of concern for both East and West. In another development, on Sunday, in Berlin, Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that Germany would not send fighter planes to Ukraine, while Kyiv continues to request weapons from the Western countries to counter the Russian invasion. On Wednesday, Berlin decided to send 14 German-made Leopard 2 tanks to Ukraine and allow other European countries to supply similar tanks to Kyiv. Also on Sunday, President Volodymyr Zelensky said he was confident that his country could defeat Russia this year, despite Ukraines current difficulties on the battle front. ‘2023 must and will certainly be the year of our victory’ President Zelenski wrote in a social media post. At the same time, the Ukrainian leader admitted that the situation was very difficult regarding the heavy fighting in the east of the country.

Cairo – The US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, is meeting today in Cairo with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry to discuss regional issues such as the transition to democracy in Sudan and the elections in Libya. Blinken will also address the concerns related to the observance of human rights by the authorities in Cairo. Egypt is the first stage of the tour that the US official is taking in the Middle East, at a time of escalating violence between Israelis and Palestinians. Today, Blinken will travel to Jerusalem, where he will reiterate the US calls for calm and the US support for a two-state solution, although US officials have admitted that the resumption of peace talks is unlikely in the near future. On Thursday, an Israeli raid on a refugee camp in the West Bank left ten people dead, and on Friday a Palestinian shot dead seven people near a synagogue in Jerusalem. The US Secretary of State will also travel to Ramallah, to meet with the President of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas. (LS)

30 January 2023
December 11, 2022 UPDATE

Budget — The state budget and social insurance draft laws will be debated in Romania’s Parliament on Monday. The final vote is to be given in the plenary sessions of the two chambers on Thursday. The state budget for next year is based on an economic growth of 2.8% and a revenue increase of 14%. The budget deficit is forecast to increase by almost 4.4% of the GDP, and the main novelty is the increase to 2.5% of the Defense budget. The state budget for next year will allow, according to the authorities, an increase in pensions by 12.5% and a minimum wage of 3,000 lei (about 600 Euros). According to the document, the Ministries of Defense, Development, Agriculture, Transport and Education will receive more funds. The fields of Energy, Justice and Health will receive less money. The opposition criticizes the Governments budget bill and announces that it will submit amendments in Parliament.

Visit — The Romanian President Klaus Iohannis will receive, on Monday, in Bucharest, the president of the Swiss Confederation, Ignazio Cassis. The two will discuss the bilateral relationship and economic cooperation, with an emphasis on stimulating investments and identifying new areas of collaboration. At the same time, they will also exchange views on current topics on the international agenda, including the developments in Ukraine, humanitarian aid measures for the Ukrainian population and refugees, the consequences of the conflict in terms of energy, as well as in terms of global food security. Romanian-Swiss multilateral cooperation is also on the agenda of the discussions, including from the perspective of Switzerlands future mandate as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council, which it will exercise in the period 2023-2024. On the other hand, the signing ceremony of the Romanian-Swiss Framework Agreement will take place, through which the second Swiss financial contribution to reduce economic and social disparities in the EU will be operationalized. President Ignazio Cassis also has a scheduled meeting with the Prime Minister Nicolae Ciucă and will also be received by Her Majesty Margareta, the Custodian of the Romanian Crown.

Meeting — The Romanian Agriculture Minister, Petre Daea, is participating, on Sunday and Monday, in the meeting of the Agriculture and Fisheries Council (AGRIFISH) in Brussels. According to an agriculture ministry communiqué, the meetings agenda includes important aspects for the Romanian agricultural sector, such as the market situation, the strategic plans of the CAP, animal welfare and fishing opportunities for next year. The ministers are discussing the progress of the new EU forest strategy for 2030 and the actions taken at EU and national level. At the same time, the ministers will debate the current situation of the market in the member states, the main issues related to the energy and fertilizer crisis, the high prices of production factors, as well as the pressure that the crisis exerts on both farmers and consumers. Also, the European officials will tackle the strategic plans included in the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) in the context of the current situation in Ukraine and the new challenges facing both the agriculture and fisheries sectors.

Agreement — The EU member states reached an agreement, on Saturday, regarding the unlocking of a financial assistance package worth 18 billion Euros, which will be granted to Ukraine in 2023. ‘Ukraine can count on the EU. We will continue to support Ukraine also from a financial point of view, as long as it is necessary’ shows a press release from the European Council. The proposal was adopted by the Council and will be presented to the European Parliament to be adopted next week. On Tuesday, Hungary vetoed the package proposed by the European Commission.

Handball — Romania’s handball champions Rapid Bucharest scored a prestigious victory in the Champions League in womens handball, 30-27 against the multiple champion Gyori Audi ETO KC (Hungary), on Sunday, at home, in a Group B match. After this victory, the Romanian handballers have reached 12 points in the group, as many as Gyori and Esbjerg (Denmark) and one below Metz (France). In the last match of this year, Rapid will meet, away from home, Storhamar (Norway), on December 17. The first two teams in the group go directly to the quarter finals, and the next 4 to the play-offs.

Corruption – The Greek vice-president of the European Parliament, Eva Kaili, and three other people were indicted and imprisoned, on Sunday, in Belgium, in an investigation regarding suspicions of corruption in connection with Qatar. The four were accused of belonging to a criminal organization, money laundering and corruption. Eva Kaili could not benefit from her parliamentary immunity because she was caught in the act of committing the offence she is accused of was on Friday. According to the Federal Prosecutors Office, they suspect the payment of significant sums of money or the offering of significant gifts to third parties in a political and/or strategic position that allows them, within the European Parliament, to influence the decisions of this institution. On Saturday, the president of the European Parliament, the Maltese Roberta Metsola, decided on a first sanction against Eva Kaila. The Greek vice-president was left without all delegated responsibilities, including that of representative for the Middle East region. Left-wing MEPs and environmentalists demanded the resignation of Eva Kaili, who was also excluded from the Greek Socialist Party.

11 December 2022
December 11, 2022

Budget — The state budget and social insurance draft laws will be debated in Romania’s Parliament on Monday. The final vote is to be given in the plenary sessions of the two chambers on Thursday. The state budget for next year is based on an economic growth of 2.8% and a revenue increase of 14%. The budget deficit is forecast to increase by almost 4.4% of the GDP, and the main novelty is the increase to 2.5% of the Defense budget. The state budget for next year will allow, according to the authorities, an increase in pensions by 12.5% and a minimum wage of 3,000 lei (about 600 Euros). According to the document, the Ministries of Defense, Development, Agriculture, Transport and Education will receive more funds. The fields of Energy, Justice and Health will receive less money. The opposition criticizes the Governments budget bill and announces that it will submit amendments in Parliament.

Meeting — The Romanian Agriculture Minister, Petre Daea, is participating, on Sunday and Monday, in the meeting of the Agriculture and Fisheries Council (AGRIFISH) in Brussels. According to an agriculture ministry communiqué, the meetings agenda includes important aspects for the Romanian agricultural sector, such as the market situation, the strategic plans of the CAP, animal welfare and fishing opportunities for next year. The ministers are discussing the progress of the new EU forest strategy for 2030 and the actions taken at EU and national level. At the same time, the ministers will debate the current situation of the market in the member states, the main issues related to the energy and fertilizer crisis, the high prices of production factors, as well as the pressure that the crisis exerts on both farmers and consumers. Also, the European officials will tackle the strategic plans included in the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) in the context of the current situation in Ukraine and the new challenges facing both the agriculture and fisheries sectors.

Gaudeamus — The 29th edition of the Gaudeamus book fair, organized by Radio Romania at the Romexpo exhibition center in Bucharest, comes to an end on Sunday. Starting on December 7, approximately 200 participants offered the public a varied range of editorial products, on different supports, suitable for all ages and fields of interest, music and educational games. For the first time, two spaces dedicated to interactive activities for the youngest visitors were set up within the fair. All stands were also found in virtual format on the gaudeamus.ro website. The honorary president of this years edition was the writer Ana Blandiana.

Agreement — The EU member states reached an agreement, on Saturday, regarding the unlocking of a financial assistance package worth 18 billion Euros, which will be granted to Ukraine in 2023. ‘Ukraine can count on the EU. We will continue to support Ukraine also from a financial point of view, as long as it is necessary’ shows a press release from the European Council. The proposal was adopted by the Council and will be presented to the European Parliament to be adopted next week. On Tuesday, Hungary vetoed the package proposed by the European Commission.

Negotiations — The EU countries participated in emergency negotiations on Saturday in an attempt to reach an agreement on capping the price of natural gas at the December 13 meeting of European Energy Ministers, but they remain divided over the plan. 12 member states, including Romania, Belgium, Italy, Poland and Slovenia, are pushing for a significantly lower cap on the price of natural gas across the Union. The latest proposal, according to Reuters, provides for a cap if prices exceed 220 Euros/Megawatt hour for five days, at the Natural Gas futures quotes of the Amsterdam-based TTF Hub (where reference prices are set in Europe) to be delivered the next month, and when the prices are higher by 35 Euros compared to the world average price for liquefied natural gas. It is a lower level than the limit of 275 Euros/Megawatt hour proposed by the European Commission, but the 12 EU member states say it is still not low enough.

Football – The French team, the defending world champions, qualified for the semi-finals of the World Cup in Qatar on Saturday, after defeating England 2-1 in the last quarter-final. Also on Saturday, the Moroccan national team became the first African team to qualify for the semi-finals, after defeating the Portuguese team, score 1-0. There are only four matches left in the final tournament in Qatar, the semi-finals, third-place playoff and the final. On Tuesday, Argentina will meet Croatia, and on Wednesday Morocco will be up against France. The third-place playoff will take place on December 17, and the final on December 18. (LS)

11 December 2022
European money for the Romanian farmers

After more than a year and a half in which the Romanian Agriculture Ministry consulted with representatives of public and private organizations in the field and drafted 1,900 pages for the National Strategic Plan 2023 – 2027, the Romanian farmers and Romanian agriculture will benefit from help. The European Commission has approved the Plan worth almost 16 billion Euros. Of this amount, approximately 10 billion Euros represent direct payments and sectoral interventions, and the rest will be allocated for rural development. According to the Agriculture Minister, Petre Daea, Romania’s Plan is meant to improve farmers’ means of subsistence and their competitiveness. Romania uses about 40% of its budget for rural development to encourage ecological practices in areas of high natural value, in order to protect biodiversity. And in order to maintain the attractiveness of rural areas in Romania, the plan will support the creation of more than 12,000 jobs in these areas, with financing for enterprises and infrastructure.

Moreover, farmers will be supported to adopt new innovations, from precision agriculture to agroecological production methods – the minister promises. Petre Daea also stated that the new document includes a support instrument for farmers with losses, by which compensation is granted in case of disasters, the total amount allocated being almost 400 million Euros. According to Petre Daea, this support instrument must be implemented urgently, through a very strict timetable, and the expected completion date is the third quarter of next year. By the end of the year, however, Petre Daea promises that compensations will be paid to Romanian farmers for the drought-affected crops sown last fall. He admitted that the 2021/2022 agricultural year was a difficult one, which put Romanian farmers to the test, in a context in which ‘the pedological drought affected the whole country.

This is also seen in Romania’s corn production, which is the lowest in the last 15 years. Nevertheless, the minister has given assurances that the production obtained will ensure domestic consumption, estimated at approximately 7 million tons, with availability for export. Things were different in 2021, when according to the data of the National Institute of Statistics, Romania ranked on the first place in the EU both in terms of the area cultivated with corn and in terms of production, which was close to 15 million tons. As regards wheat, last year Romania occupied the fourth place in the EU in terms of cultivated area, but also in terms of production, with over 10 million tons, while the domestic consumption of wheat is estimated at 2.5 – 3 million tons per year. Since 2015, Romania has consistently taken the first place in the EU for the production and cultivated area of sunflower – according to data provided by the National Institute of Statistics. (LS)

8 December 2022
Romania has enough cereals to cover its domestic demand

With 300 thousand hectares affected by drought out of its 7 million cultivated with cereals, authorities in Romania are carefully assessing the situation to be able to cope even with the worst-case scenarios. Last year Romania reported record high harvests of 11.3 million tons of wheat but bad weather conditions this year have wreaked havoc on the crops and so have the higher production costs.

This years harvest is lower by 15-18% than in 2021, Romanias Agriculture Minister Petre Daea has admitted.

Petre Daea: “Parts of the entire quantity of cereals harvested will be stored in depots and storehouses, other parts will be delivered to processing plants so that they may turn the grain into flour, others will be dispatched to bakeries and processing plants to meet the domestic demand and of course well see what quantities we can export.”

According to Minister Daea there is enough wheat to cover Romanias domestic needs estimated somewhere around 2.5 – 3 million tons and there is also a surplus, which can be exported. Although the quantity is lower than last year, the grain quality is superior; Minister Daea went on to say.

According to the latest data released, the extremely hot temperatures of late and the prolonged drought have affected crops in three quarters of Romanias counties. The most affected proved to be the corn and sunflower crops where harvest works started earlier that last year. “We are first harvesting the crops affected because they have reached maturity and in this way we can minimize losses. And sunflower harvests will be reaching processing plants shortly” Minister Daea also said

In order to support the farmers, the Ministry of Agriculture has allowed them to turn the affected crops into fodder. Furthermore, the Ministry has also issued a Guide of Good Farming Practices in order to enable farmers to cope with the latest climate changes and severe drought. “Climate change is real, it is no longer fiction, and for this reason we must use all the means we have so that the production level and its proper valorization may positively impact Romanias economy” says Minister Daea. Romania is one of the EUs biggest grain exporters and also an active exporter to the Middle East; the main importer here being Egypt. Romanias grain is exported through the countrys main sea port at Constanta, presently also used by another great grain producer, Ukraine, after the blockade imposed by Russia.

11 August 2022
Hăbări ditu bana românească şi internaţională

UCRAINA Secretarlu general al ONU, Antonio Guterres, căftă luni izini ti inspectorlli internaționali s’intră la centrala nucleară ditu Zaporizhzhia, după ţi Ucraina și Rusia arcară căbatea unualantu mutrinda atea ditu soni bombardari a naima marillei instalații nucleară ditu Europa ţi easti tru ună zonă acătată di askerili aruseşti tru sudul ali Ucraină. Instalația fu bombardată di dauă ori tru dzălili ditu soni, ama nu ditectată niţi ună curari radioactivă. Autoritățli ucrainene nu exclud piriclliulu a unlui fănico nuclear tru regiune și feaţiră un apel tră andridzearea a unei zone dimilitarizate anvărliga ali centrală. Tru arada a llei, Rusia ari nădie că născănti ditu văsiliili occidintale cu ună mare influență ti Ucraina va s’ufilisească aestă influență tra s’nu s’facă ma largu bombardarea a aliştei instalații nucleară di cătră armata ucraineană, diclară Dmitri Peskov, purtătorlu di zboru a Kremlinului.

COVID 19. Ministrul a Sănătatillei, Alexandru Rafila, diclară luni că numirul total di infecții săptămânale cu Covid-19 fu ñicuratu tru kirolu ditu soni cu ţinţi ñilli tru România. Uidisitu cu oficialu, aestă scădiari easti probabil s’hibă idyea după ună săptămână ică dauă. Autoritățli ditu România dimăndară luni aproximativ 4.700 di năi infecții, majoritatea tru capitala București, tru Hunedoara, tru vest, Cluj tru nord-vest și Brașov tru ţentrul ali Românie. Aproapea 430 di persoane sunt yitripsiti tru spitale, ditu care 274 tru TI. Tru 24 săhăţ ditu soni fură raportate și 14 dicese asociate.

AGRICULTURA Uidisitu cu ministurlu ali Agricultură, Petre Daea, până tru 2027 România lipseaşti s’aibă aproximativ 2,6 milioane di ictări di teren irigabil tră cari va s’hibă ahărdziţ 1,5 miliardi di euro di la bugetlu național. Ministurlu angrăpsi pi un singiru di socializare că implementarea a programlui guvernamental di modirnizare a sistemlui di irigații lipseaşti s’hibă faptă cathi dzuuă, fără dănăseari. Uidisitu cu datili oficiale fapti public, aproapea 243.000 di ictări ditu 30 di giudiţe ditu România avură znie di itia a xerillei tru aestu an.

RATĂ Rata di politică monetară fu majorată di luni cu 0,75%, până la 5,5% tru an. Easte a șasea creaștire a ratei clleaie tru aestu an, instrument pritu care Banca Centrală Română cilăstăseaşti s’ţănă la distanță inflația. Ninti di apofasea dimăndată vineri di Banca Centrală, indicele ROBOR la 3 mesi alină di la 8,11% la 8,12% pe an, agiungânda luni la 8,14% pi an. Experții financiari s’așteaptă ca aestu indice s’crească cabaia, atea ţi va s’crească ratele variabile a dobândzălor la împrumuturi. Ratele a dobândzălor la creditele ipotecare criscură cu piste 50% di la ahurhita a anului și aproapea s’dublară andicra di aoa şi șase ani. Inflația tru alunaru nÂstricu 15% și s’asteaptă s’armănă pi aestu livelu tru al treilea trimestru. Banca Centrală va s’prezenta marță un nou raport trimestrial mutrinda inflația.

Autoru: Udălu a hăbărloru

Armânipsearia: Taşcu Lala

8 August 2022
August 8, 2022 UPDATE

UKRAINE UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, on Monday called for the access of international inspectors to the nuclear power plant in Zaporizhzhia after Ukraine and Russia traded accusations over the recent shelling of the largest nuclear facility in Europe situated in an area occupied by the Russian troops in southern Ukraine. The facility has been shelled twice in the past days but no radioactive leak has been detected. Ukrainian authorities do not rule out the risk of a nuclear catastrophe in the region and have made an appeal for setting up a demilitarized area around the plant. In turn Russia hopes that some of the Western countries with big influence over Ukraine, will use this influence to prevent further shelling of this nuclear facility by the Ukrainian army, Dmitri Peskov, spokesman for the Kremlin, has said.

COVID-19 Health Minister Alexandru Rafila on Monday said the total number of weekly Covid-19 infections had been reduced by five thousand in Romania of late. According to the official, this drop is likely to carry on after one week or two. On Monday, authorities in Romania announced roughly 4,700 new infections, most of them in capital Bucharest, in Hunedoara, in the west, Cluj in the north-west and Brasov in central Romania. Almost 43 hundred people are being treated in hospitals 274 of whom in ICUs. 14 related fatalities have also been reported in the past 24 hours.

AGRICULTURE According to Agriculture Minister Petre Daea, by 2027 Romania must have some 2.6 million hectares of irrigable land for which 1.5 billion Euros will be earmarked from the national budget. The minister wrote on a social network that the implementation of the governments programme on upgrading the irrigation system must be done every day, without interruption. According to official data released, almost 243,000 hectares of land in 30 Romanian counties have been affected by drought this year.

RATE The monetary policy rate has been increased as of Monday by 0.75%, to 5.5% per year. This is the sixth increase in the key rate this year, a tool by which the Romanian Central Bank tries to keep inflation at bay. Before the decision announced by the Central bank on Friday, the 3-month ROBOR index went up from 8.11% to 8.12% per year, reaching 8.14% per year on Monday. Financial experts are expecting this index to go up significantly, which will raise variable interest rates on loans. Interest rates on mortgage loans have gone up by more than 50% since the beginning of the year and have almost doubled as against six years ago. Inflation in July exceeded 15% and is expected to stand at this level in the third quarter. The Central Bank will present a new quarterly report on inflation on Tuesday.

(bill)

8 August 2022
May 25, 2019 UPDATE

ELECTIONS Romanians will be voting in the European Parliamentary elections
this Sunday and will also have their say in a referendum on justice summoned by
the country’s president, Klaus Iohannis. 13 political groups and 3 independent
candidates are vying for the 33 MEP seats earmarked to Romania but the 33rd
mandate will come into effect though only after Britain’s leaving the block has
produced judicial effects. 441 polling stations have been set up for the
Romanians abroad, most of them in Italy, Spain and the neighboring ex-soviet
Republic of Moldova, a country with a Romanian-speaking majority. Citizens in
20 other EU countries are called to cast their ballot in these elections on
Sunday. Britain, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic, Ireland, Slovakia, Latvia
and Malta have already voted in the European Parliamentary elections.

FINES Romanian police have given fines
up to 13,800 Euros to people involved in illegal fishing activities on Danube
River in a larger sting operation at European level, which involved several
riparian countries. 90 people are being investigated for their alleged
involvement in no less than 138 illegal activities on the Romanian side of this
river. According to Romanian police sources, 26,500 Euros worth of goods have
been seized by the police, consisting mainly in boats, fuel, fishing tools as
well as roughly 200 kilos of fish. Search operations at European level, involved
18 hundred vessels and over 25 thousand people.

CONFERENCE Romania’s Agriculture Minister Petrre Daea on Saturday attended a
conference entitled ‘Beekeeping in A European and Global Context’, an event
held in Bucharest during Romania’s holding the EU rotating presidency. The
event, staged on the occasion of the World Bee Day, was aimed at underlining
the importance of these insects for the entire ecosystem against the background
of the present climate change as well as their crucial role in raising crops
production. Daea said Romania comes second in the EU after Spain in terms of
bee families and the first in terms of honey production. Romania produces on an
average 22 thousand tons of honey annually ranking fourth in Europe in terms of
honey output. Statistics show though that Romanians are consuming 3-4 times
less honey than in Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium.

DISEASE 90 fresh cases of rubella have
been reported in 8 counties across Romania and in capital Bucharest. According
to the National Centre for Infectious Disease Surveillance and Control, the
total number of infections has reached 16,888; 64 of those infected have been
killed and statistics show that a quarter of the people infected need hospital
treatment, while a case out of one thousand dies. Doctors in Romania have again
drawn attention to the need for immunization, especially of children, against
serious diseases.

NAFSA 24 Romanian universities are presenting their educational offer
in Washington, over May 26th and 31st within the annual
NAFSA exhibition, the most prestigious international event of this kind,
Romania’s National Council of Rectors has announced. The conference is expected
to bring together more than 10 thousand participants and 35 hundred
universities from 100 countries. According to a communiqué of the National
Council of Rectors, Romania offers a high-quality education environment as well
as a series of facilities in its campuses up to European standards at better
prices than in other European countries.

(translated by bill)

25 May 2019
May 25, 2019

ELECTIONS Citizens of Latvia, Malta, the Czech Republic and Slovakia are
today voting in the European Parliament elections. Britain, the Netherlands and
Ireland have already cast their ballot in this election while in the other EU
countries, Romania included, people are going to vote on Sunday. 13 political
groups and 3 independent candidates are vying for a seat in the European
Parliament and Romania has been earmarked 33 seats in the European Legislature.
The 33rd mandate will come into effect only after Britain’s
withdrawal from the block has produced judicial effects. 441 polling stations
have been set up for the Romanians abroad, most of them in Italy, Spain and the
neighboring Romanian-speaking Republic of Moldova. Romania is the only member
state, which is staging a referendum concurrently with these elections. The
referendum on legal issues has been summoned by the country’s president Klaus
Iohannis.

CONFERENCE Romania’s Agriculture Minister Petrre Daea has today attended a
conference entitled ‘Beekeeping in A European and Global Context’, an event
held in Bucharest during Romania’s holding the EU rotating presidency. The
event, staged on the occasion of the World Bee Day, is aimed at underlining the
importance of these insects for the entire ecosystem against the background of
the present climate change as well as their crucial role in raising crops production.
Daea said Romania comes second after Spain in terms of bee families and the
first in terms of honey production. Romania produces on an average 22 thousand
tons of honey annually ranking fourth in Europe in terms of honey output. Statistics
show though that Romanians are consuming 3-4 times less honey than in Germany,
the Netherlands and Belgium.

NAFSA 24 Romanian universities are presenting their educational offer
in Washington, over May 26th and 31st within the annual
NAFSA exhibition, the most prestigious international event of this kind,
Romania’s National Council of Rectors has announced. The conference is expected
to bring together more than 10 thousand participants and 35 hundred
universities from 100 countries. According to a communiqué of the National Council
of Rectors, Romania offers a high-quality education environment as well as a
series of facilities in its campuses up to European standards at better prices
than in other European countries.

FOOTBALL Former champion sides, Astra Giurgiu and Viitorul Constanta are
today meeting in Ploiesti, southern Romania for the finals of Romania’s football
cup. Another famous football side from Romania, CFR Cluj has for the fifth time
and the second in a row won Romania’s football championship. They are followed
by FCSB, formerly known as Steaua Bucharest.

(translated by bill)

25 May 2019
March 25, 2019 UPDATE

VISIT King Abdullah ll of Jordan has cancelled his three-day visit to
Romania, which was supposed to start on Monday after Romanian Prime Minister
Viorica Dancila announced Bucharest’s intention to move its embassy from Tel
Aviv to Jerusalem. The head of the Romanian state Klaus Iohannis has said the
move will take place only after the completion of a study, which is presently
underway and hasn’t been submitted to the Romanian presidency yet. A final
decision on this matter belongs to the Romanian president, who, under the
Constitution, is entitled to any foreign policy decision, being also Romania’s
representative at international level, says a communiqué issued by the Romanian
presidency. The EU is keeping its position concerning Jerusalem, adding that the
only realistic solution to the conflict between Israel and Palestine involves
the existence of two states with the same capital. European officials on Monday
said the community executive had been notified about the Romanian Prime
Minister’s statement over the intention to move the country’s embassy to
Jerusalem as well as the statement of the Romanian president who said the final
decision on the issue belonged to him. In October 2018, the Romanian Foreign
Ministry submitted to the government a study over the effects of moving the
country’s embassy to Jerusalem. The idea was first launched by the strongman of
the ruling coalition in Bucharest, Social-Democrat Liviu Dragnea in late 2017. In
response, the Palestinian Authority has provisionally recalled its ambassador
in Bucharest.

COMMISSIONER The European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety Vytenis
Andriukaitis will be paying a formal visit to Bucharest over March 26th
and 27th, the European Commission’s Representation in Bucharest has announced.
On Tuesday Andriukaitis will be delivering a speech on Tobacco control,
sustainable development and the right to health and will be attending a round
of Q & A discussions. The European Official will be received by Romanian
president Klaus Iohannis, Agriculture Minister Petre Daea and the Minister of
Healthcare Sorina Pintea. On Wednesday, the European official is to attend the
opening of the fourth annual conference on tobacco control staged by the
European Network for Smoking and Tobacco Prevention jointly with the Romanian
Society of Pneumology.

POPE
The apostolic visit to Romania by Pope Francis will be taking place over May 31st
and June 2nd during which he will be visiting Bucharest, Sumuleu
Ciuc in the centre of Romania, Iasi in the north-east and Blaj also in central
Romania, the presidential administration announced on Monday. According to the
same sources, the Pontiff and Romanian president Klaus Iohannis will be having
talks on May 31st, followed by a meeting with the authorities, civil
society and the diplomatic corps. The Pope is also to see the head of the
Romanian Orthodox Church, patriarch Daniel in Bucharest. The Pope’s visit comes
upon the invitation of the Romanian president Klaus Iohannis. This is the
second visit paid to Romania, a country with an Orthodox majority, by a
Pontiff, after that of Pope John Paul II in 1999.

(translated by
bill)

25 March 2019
Measures to encourage Romanian agriculture

Even before the demise of communism, Romania had a wide irrigation network spreading 3.2 million hectares. At present most of it lies in ruin, many of the systems were stolen or left derelict. The high cost of irrigation water, the overall underfunding in agriculture as well as the lack of interest in certain cases have over the years led to a constant shrinking of irrigated farmland in Romania. Another contributing factor was climate change, affecting multiple economic sectors of which agriculture is the most vulnerable, considering activities in this sector are directly reliant on climate change.

Authorities have been trying to reinvigorate the system. The line Minister Petre Daea said some 2 million hectares of farmland will benefit from irrigation by the end of the year. Overseeing the building of a new irrigation system in Iasi County, Minister Daea said he wanted to set up 30 new building sites for such systems all over the country, in addition to the 40 systems that are already in construction.

Petre Daea: “We will have 70 building sites all over the country. We will be monitoring how construction works unfold for the irrigation systems. Climate change is a fact, not fiction. We need to set up the 2 million hectares and irrigate them by 2020 so as to ensure production is stable and farmers can use the water. Wherever we have the possibility to use this heaven-sent gift, the water, we have to use it so the production process can benefit both the country and farmers”.

Minister Daea explained the irrigation systems are in a certain state of degradation and are not being used to their full potential. The Romanian official said rehabilitation works in the southern part of Iasi County should be over by April 15, and the systems in the northern part of the county will be rehabilitated starting in September. The Romanian state has a major contribution to the irrigation system, investing and carrying out works by means of the Land Improvement Agency. Investments currently account for 40% of the total budget allotted to the Agriculture Ministry, Minister Petre Daea pointed out.

In another development, the Agency for Payments and Intervention in Agriculture initiated, on March 1, a call for subsidy requests for 2019. Farmers can file for a single subsidy request with county or local branches of the Agency and the Bucharest Office by May 15, even if they are administering farmlands in different towns and villages and other counties. All applications must be submitted to the Agency county branches when applicant-farmers are administering a surface larger than 50 hectares and to local centers when the surface is smaller or equal to 50 hectares of farmland.

1 March 2019