Radio România Internațional

Tag: daylight saving time

March 30, 2024

Schengen. Romanian seaports and international airports join the Schengen Area on Sunday, March 31. At sea, the controls are not eliminated, but they are simplified. At the airports, people who choose to fly to or from Schengen member states, after undergoing the security control, will go directly to the boarding gate, without stopping at the Border Police counters to have their travel documents checked. However, police checks are possible to establish the legal status of some passengers, in order to prevent cross-border crimes and illegal migration. To symbolically mark the moment of Romania’s entry into Schengen by air and sea, new departure terminals were inaugurated, on Friday, at the airports of Iasi (east) and Timisoara (west). Present at the event in Timişoara, Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu expressed his confidence that, by the end of the year, Romania would have also joined Schengen area on land, the most important component of the area of free movement of people and goods. Austria is the only country in the EU that still opposes this approach. Currently, 27 European states are full members of the Schengen Agreement, and Romania and Bulgaria become, as of March 31, members with partial rights.

Central Bank. The reference index for consumer loans in Romania has dropped to 5.9% per year, from 5.97%, the level published three months ago, according to data provided by the National Bank of Romania. It is the first important drop in this index in the last 12 months, which will lead, starting April, to lower rates for mortgage loans contracted on the basis of this index for almost 500,000 Romanians. A second decrease will occur in July, down to 5.84%. Also, the Central Bank has announced, the three-month ROBOR index, according to which the cost of consumer loans in national currency with variable interest is calculated, had slightly increased on Friday from 6.05% to 6.06% per year.

Summer time. Tonight, Romania will start observing the daylight saving time, so clocks will go forward one hour, 3 am becoming 4 am. Sunday will be the shortest day this year. With the transition to summer time, the difference between the official time of Romania and UTC will be of three hours. Daylight saving time is observed until October 27. The member states of the European Union were supposed to decide by 2021 whether they wanted to permanently adopt summer time or winter time. However, the discussion is still open.

Easter. Roman Catholic and Protestant Christians celebrate Easter on Sunday. In Romania, approximately 1,300,000 people are preparing for the Resurrection of Jesus Christ, three days after crucifixion. In a pastoral letter, the Roman Catholic Metropolitan Archbishop of Bucharest, Aurel Percă, states that, unfortunately, the song of Easter joy proclaimed by the Church contrasts with the cries that come from so many painful situations, increasingly frequent in the world, such as wars , injustice, inequality and poverty. The President of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, also posted a message reading that in the spirit of solidarity and compassion, we should direct our thoughts and prayers to those who are suffering. This year, Easter for Roman Catholics and Protestants is five weeks before that for Orthodox, Greek Catholics and Neo-Protestants, who will celebrate it on May 5. In 2010, 2011, 2014 and 2017, the Resurrection was celebrated on the same day by all Christians, regardless of denomination. Next time that all Christians will celebrate Easter on the same day is 2025.

Moldova. An employee of the Embassy of the Republic of Moldova in Moscow was declared persona non grata on the territory of the Russian Federation and is to return home. Moscow’s decision comes as a response to a similar measure taken last week by the Chisinau authorities. The Ambassador of the Republic of Moldova to Russia, Lilian Darii, was summoned to the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, where he was handed a note of protest and was informed of the decision taken. The Moldovan authorities have announced that they will continue to take all the necessary measures to prevent Russia’s attempts to interfere in the state’s internal affairs.

Drugs. In the last two weeks, Romanian police officers specialized in fighting organized crime have carried out almost 300 searches and discovered and seized, among other things, approximately 28 kg of cannabis, over 5 kg of cocaine and over 13 kg of other drugs. According to a press release of the Romanian Police, 132 arrest warrants and 78 preventive arrest warrants were issued. In the case of 21 people, the measure of judicial control was taken. (MI)

30 March 2024
March 24, 2017 UPDATE

THE FUTURE OF THE EU– Romania’s President, Klaus Iohannis, on Saturday is attending the EU Summit in Rome, where a Declaration on the future of the EU will be adopted. According to a communiqué issued by the Presidential Administration, Romania will plead for a stronger, more consolidated Europe. Early this month, Bucharest sent a document to the EU member states, expressing its stand on the issue. “The fact that there is no alternative to a European solution, which places the stability of our economies and societies and the prosperity of our citizens at the center of the Union’s actions, should be clearly expressed”, the document also writes. The president’s agenda on Friday also included a visit to Pope Francis at the Vatican, alongside other European leaders.

LONDON ATTACK — The latest death toll of Wednesday’s terror attack in London, issued by the British Police on Friday, takes the number of fatalities to four. 50 other people, of 12 nationalities were injured in the attack. Two Romanian tourists, a man and a woman are among those injured. The man has been released from hospital, whereas his partner is still in critical condition in hospital, although according to the Romanian Embassy her condition has somewhat improved in the last hours. She fell off Westminster Bridge into the Thames River, after the attacker rammed the car into people crossing the bridge. According to the British Police, the terrorist, who was shot dead, is Khalid Masood, 52, born in Great Britain and who embraced radical Islam. The attack has been claimed by the Islamic State group. Romania’s President, Klaus Iohannis, has firmly condemned the attack and, in a phone conversation with the British Prime Minister Theresa May, he expressed full solidarity with the United Kingdom. Klaus Iohannis also sent a message of condolence to the families of the victims and wished a fast recovery to those injured. In turn, Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu has said the government, via the Romanian Embassy in London, is monitoring the health condition of the two Romanian nationals who sustained injuries. In a message on Twitter, the British ambassador to Bucharest, Paul Brummel, sent a message to the Romanians, thanking them for their reaction to the attack.

LOANS — The National Bank on Friday announced that loans for businesses and natural persons amounted to some 3 billion euros in late February, down by 35% as compared to the same period of last year. At the end of last month, overall debt in national currency stood at over 1.3 billion euros, of which 1.1 billion were reported in Bucharest. In January, the number of natural persons with debt exceeding 30 days rose to some 650 thousand, the National Bank reports.

SUMMER TIME — On March 26, the last Sunday of March, Romania will switch to summertime or daylight saving time (DST). This is the practice of advancing clocks during summer months by one hour so that evening daylight lasts an hour longer. In Romania clocks will be advanced by one hour, from 03.00 to 04.00, local time. Consequently, this will be the shortest day of the year, with only 23 instead of 24 hours. This practice is aimed at saving electricity, using instead sunlight for a longer period of the day. Natural light is also a booster of people’s mental and physical health. DST is currently used by over 100 countries the world over.

EXERCISES — The French frigate “La Fayette” is starting Friday taking part in military exercises alongside similar Romanian ships, in the Black Sea. French and Romanian marines will work together to put into practice NATO standard operation practices, according to scenarios of ensuring free navigation and a maritime traffic flow. On Monday, the frigate “La Fayette” will take part in an exercise meant to consolidate interoperability with the Romanian Navy. There will be a busy timetable, including live fire exercises. Becoming militarily operational in 1996, “La Fayette” is equipped with anti-ship and anti-aircraft missiles and has a self-defense arsenal. A Panther helicopter is also onboard the ship, which increases the frigate’s action range.

FOOTBALL — Romania’s national team is training in Cluj, north-western Romania, ahead of Sunday’s match against Denmark. The match counts towards preliminary Group E as part of the qualifiers for the 2018 World Cup to be hosted by Russia. Also on Sunday, Armenia is playing Kazakhstan while Montenegro is facing Poland. After trouncing Armenia 5-nil, drawing 1-all against Montenegro at home and nil-all against Kazakhstan away from home, losing nil-3 against Poland in Bucharest, Romania is ranked 4th in the group tables, with 5 points. We recall that Romania is coached by German Cristoph Daum, the first foreign coach in the history of the Romanian team, after last year’s subpar performance at the 2016 European Championships in France. (Translated by V. Palcu)

24 March 2017
March 27, 2016

MESSAGE – Romanian President Klaus Iohannis has today conveyed a message of solidarity with the victims of violence and intolerance. On the occasion of the Catholic Easter, Iohannis said in a post on his Facebook page that “these days, when we celebrate the gift of light and life, we should be close to all those who need our solidarity.” A German ethnic, President Iohannis is a Lutheran, the traditional religion of Transylvanian Saxons, who also celebrate Easter today. However, Iohannis attends the religious service at the Roman-Catholic Church in Sibiu, whose member his wife, Carmen, is. In Romania, about 1.5 million Christians are today celebrating the Resurrection of Jesus Christ. The country’s majority Orthodox community and the Greek-Catholic believers will celebrate Easter on May 1st.

SECURITY – The risk of terrorist attacks in Romania is real, but things are kept under control, Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos has said. In an interview with a private TV station, Ciolos has said that intelligence services must be provided with the instruments they need in order to monitor the situation without affecting transparency and citizens’ rights. Ciolos has pleaded for a more thorough control of the prepaid phone cards sold, which in Romania can be purchased without checking the buyer’s identity, and has explained that the issue is in the attention of the justice and interior ministers. Prepaid phone cards from Romania have been used during in preparation for attacks in EU member countries, Ciolos has said. His statements come after Tuesday’s attacks at Brussels’s airport and metro station that killed 31 people and injured around 300.

DST – Clocks changed in Romania on Saturday night, when 3 am became 4 am. The practice, known as Daylight Saving Time, is meant to use sunlight as much as possible. In summer, clocks are turned forward by one hour. Now there is a 3-hour difference between Romanias time and UTC. Sunday is thus the shortest day of the year, with only 23 hours. More than 100 different countries worldwide use Daylight Saving Time. In Romania, this system has been used since 1932.

ANNIVERSARY — Street events are marking this evening in downtown Bucharest, the 98th anniversary of the union of Bessarabia with the Kingdom of Romania. On March 27, 1918, as the Russian Empire fell apart, the legislative body of Bessarabia voted in favour of the mostly Romanian-speaking province joining the Kingdom of Romania. The establishment of the Romanian nation state was to be completed late that same year with the union of Bukovina, in the north-east and Transylvania, Banat, Crisana and Maramures, which had that far been part of the Habsburg Empire. In 1940, further to an ultimatum, Moscow annexed both Bessarabia and northern Bukovina, which are currently part of the national territories of the ex-Soviet republics of Moldova and Ukraine.

FOOTBALL – Romania’s national football team is playing this evening against the defending European champions Spain, in a friendly game on home turf, in preparation for the European Championship scheduled to take place this summer in France. On Wednesday, Romania won a match against Lithuania, 1-nill, in the southern Romanian town of Giurgiu. In Euro 2016, the Romanians will play the opening game, on June 10, against France, in a group that also includes Switzerland and Albania. Romania’s latest participation in a continental final tournament was in 2008, when they left the competition in the group stage.

TENNIS – Romanian tennis player Simona Halep, No. 5 in the world, will play against British Heather Watson in the fourth round of the Miami Open, with 6 million dollars in prize money. In the third round Halep defeated German Julia Goerges in two sets, 6-4, 6-1. In the same round, Romanian Monica Niculescu will be up against the American Coco Vanderweghe while Irina Begu will play against Krstyna Pliskova of the Czech Republic.

(Translated by Elena Enache)

26 March 2016
25 March, 2016

The Belgian police have arrested seven persons in
connection with Tuesday’s attacks in Brussels, in which at least 31 people were
killed and 270 wounded, the BBC reports. The police are still looking for two
other persons believed to be directly involved in the attacks claimed by the
so-called Islamic State. The two were caught on surveillance cameras in the
company of the three suicide bombers responsible for the attacks. The latter,
who had Belgian nationality, were on a list of most wanted suspects in
connection with the Paris attacks last November, in which 130 people were
killed. In a bid to ensure Belgium of Washington’s support in the fight against
terrorism, US Secretary of State John Kerry today met senior officials in
Brussels. The US lost two citizens in the attacks.
Separately, the French police made one arrest on Thursday, thwarting a plot that was in an advanced stage, according to the French interior minister Bernard Cazeneuve, who added that no link was established to either the Paris or the Brussels attacks. EU justice and interior ministers who held an emergency meeting in the wake of the Brussels attacks decided on Thursday to speed up a plan to tighten control on the Schengen borders and take measures to fight terrorism financing.

Romanian
prosecutors investigating the deadly fire at the Colectiv nightclub in
Bucharest last October have requested a new expert report to be ready by the 1st
of April. Investigators say the three reports submitted so far, from the
National Institute for Research and Development in Mine Safety and Protection
to Explosion, the Forensics Institute and the General Prosecutor’s Office,
contradict each other and generate confusion. The fire, which has claimed 64
lives so far, sparked large-scale street protests last autumn that led to the resignation
of prime minister Victor Ponta. The three owners of the club, who are currently
in house arrest, are facing charges of manslaughter.

Clocks change in Romania on Saturday night, when 3 am
becomes 4 am. The practice, known as Daylight Saving Time, is meant to use
sunlight as much as possible. In summer, clocks are turned forward by one hour.
When Romania switches to summer time, there will be a 3-hour difference between
Romania’s time and UTC. Sunday will thus be the shortest day of the year, with
only 23 hours. More than 100 different countries worldwide use Daylight Saving
Time. In Romania, it has been used since 1932.

Romania’s majority Orthodox
community, as well as its Greek-Catholic minority are today celebrating the
religious feast of the Annunciation. This is the celebration of the announcement
by the angel Gabriel to the Virgin Mary that she would conceive the Son of God.
For Catholics, it’s Holy Friday today, the commemoration of Christ’s
crucifixion and death three days before his resurrection. This year,
Roman-Catholic and Protestant Christians celebrate Easter on Sunday, 27th
of March, while Orthodox and Greek-Catholic Christians celebrate it on the 1st
of May.

The 98th anniversary of Romania’s union with Bassarabia, an eastern province that had until then been under Tsarist occupation, is celebrated in Bucharest and across Romania. The Romanian Academy is holding a special event today, musicians from the Republic of Moldova are having concerts in Bucharest, and street events are held on Sunday in the centre of Bucharest to celebrate the union.

World no. 5
Simona Halep of Romania defeated the Russian player Daria Kasatkina to reach the third
round of the WTA Premier tournament in Miami, with 6 million euros in prize
money. Two other Romanian players are vying for a place in the third round:
Irina Begu, world no. 35, who faces Sabine Lisicki of Germany, world no. 37,
and Monica
Niculescu, world no. 33, who faces the Chinese player Shuai Peng, world no. 664. Both matches are held
today.

Romania face defending European champions Spain on Sunday in Cluj in a
friendly game ahead of the European Football Championship hosted by France this
summer. In another friendly on Wednesday, Romania defeated Lithuania 1-nil in
Giurgiu, also at home. Romania will face France in the opening game at the
European Championship on the 10th of June, in a group that also
includes Switzerland and Albania.

(Translated by: C. Mateescu)

25 March 2016