Radio România Internațional

Tag: death toll

  • October 31, 2024 UPDATE

    October 31, 2024 UPDATE

    SPAIN Six Romanian nationals out of the 22 reported missing in Spain are safe, the Romanian Foreign Ministry says. According to the same sources, the latest death poll stands at over 150 dead and scores missing in one of the biggest natural disasters in Spain’s recent history. In Bucharest, Prime Minister Ciolacu summoned the ministers and representatives of government institutions for talks over the situation of the Romanians in Spain affected by the latest flooding. According to government spokesman Mihai Constantin, the Prime Minister has called on the ministries to establish an action group in order to set up a logistic centre in Castellon de la Plana so that the Romanian state may provide additional assistance to the Romanians affected. Ciolacu has called on the ministries to keep permanent contact with the Spanish authorities and the Romanians there and provide transportation to those requesting repatriation. The Romanian diplomacy has cautioned that the Spanish weathermen have again issued alerts for heavy downpours in the region of Valencia, Tarragona, Andalusia and part of Catalonia.

     

     CAMPAIGN The electoral campaign for the parliamentary elections in Romania starts on Thursday night, and it will last until November 30. During this period, the parties, alliances or independents entering the race for a seat in the new two-chamber parliament will have to convince the electorate to grant them the vote on December 1. There are currently 330 parliamentarians in the Chamber of Deputies, and 136 in the Senate. We recall that, also during this period, the presidential election campaign, which started a week ago, is taking place in Romania. The first round of the presidential elections will take place on November 24 and the second round – on December 8.

     

    EC The European Commission has praised the progress made by the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine in implementing reforms necessary for joining the EU. In the annual report on the enlargement of the Union, in which it makes an assessment of all accession candidate or aspirant states, the Commission expresses its hope that, next year, it will be able to start discussions on negotiation chapters with Chisinau and Kyiv officials. The Republic of Moldova showed commitment on the path of reforms and showed political stability in the last year, despite Russia’s hybrid attacks, the European Commission believes. Brussels draws attention to the fact that there is still a need for efforts in many areas, including Justice. Despite the steps taken before, additional efforts are needed, also on the part of Ukraine, the Commission says. Both Ukraine and Moldova started accession negotiations in the summer of this year.

     

    MOLDOVA On Sunday, November 3, the second round of the presidential elections takes place in the Republic of Moldova. Running are the incumbent president, the pro-European Maia Sandu, and the pro-Russian Alexandr Stoianoglo. In the first round, Sandu got over 42% of the votes, and her opponent, 26%. Maia Sandu has stated that joining the European Union is the only way forward for the Moldovan people and said about Stoianoglo that he is a tool of evil forces.

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  • April 21, 2020

    April 21, 2020

    Covid-19 Romania — So far 482 people have died of coronavirus infection in Romania, and the number of Covid-19 infections has exceeded 9,200, the Strategic Communication Group informs. According to the authorities, 2,153 people have been declared recovered and have been discharged from hospital. Outside Romania, another Romanian infected with the new coronavirus has died in Belgium, taking the death toll of Romanian victims abroad to 62. According to the Strategic Communication Group, 947 Romanian citizens from abroad have been confirmed with coronavirus infection, most of them in Italy, 633. In another development, the Romanian authorities say they are not yet considering relaxing restrictions over the pandemic because of sanitary security. In the analysis the authorities are going to make, they will take into account the recommendations of the EC while trying to coordinate their actions with those of the other EU states. The Romanian President Klaus Iohannis has today summoned a meeting with the PM, part of the government ministers and the head of the Department for Emergency Situations, Raed Arafat, to assess the measures needed for managing the current sanitary crisis. In a Facebook post, referring to the recently ended Easter break, the interior minister Marcel Vela thanked the Romanian citizens for having observed the authorities’ decision meant to fight the spread of the coronavirus infection. At the same time, scores of people have been taken into temporary custody or fined over the past days for having violated the military decree provisions or for violent acts.



    Covid-19 world — The coronaviurs pandemic across the world has so far caused 2.5 million infections and more than 170 thousand deaths. The US is the hardest hit country with almost 800 thousand cases and more than 42 thousand deaths. Europe reports half of the total number of contaminations the world over and more than 60% of deaths. Spain, Italy, Germany, France and the UK remain the most affected European countries. The number of daily contaminated persons has dropped though in Italy, which has two regions where no new cases of infection have been reported of late. In Spain, the number of deaths caused by Covid-19 in the past 24 hours has dropped, being the smallest percentage of the past month. Several European states, among which Germany, have started the week with a relaxation of restrictions, while continuing to call for caution, isolation and social distancing.



    Dacia Mioveni — The Dacia Mioveni Factory in southern Romania, which belongs to the Renault group, has resumed progressive car production as of today. As of May 4 they will resume work at full capacity. The company announced that for the period when the activity was suspended, they defined and applied measures to protect the employees against the new coronavirus, and that they would inform employees on the need to observe these measures. Dacia factory in Mioveni stopped working in mid March when the employees were furloughed due to the coronaviurs pandemic. In another development, the American car maker Ford informed that most of its employees from the factory in Craiova (southern Romania) will remain furloughed by April 30.



    Oil price — Romania will not be affected, on short term, by the drastic drop in the oil price reported in the US, given that the country consumes a lot of oil from its domestic production – says the Romanian economy minister Virgil Popescu. The price of the American oil collapsed on Monday, dropping under 10 dollars per barrel, thus breaking a new negative record, due to the ever decreasing demand against the backdrop of the coronaviurs pandemic, according to the CNN. While production dropped by 10%, demand decreased by 30% at world level, shows a Reuters analysis. (tr. L. Simion)

  • January 8, 2018 UPDATE

    January 8, 2018 UPDATE

    PSD Mihai Tudose, Prime Minister of the leftist government in Bucharest, on Monday said at the end of a session of the National Executive Committee of the main ruling Social Democratic Party (PSD) that he didn’t give up the idea of a cabinet reshuffle. Tudose added the issue would be tackled in detail in another Executive Committee session due in Iasi, eastern Romania in late January. The Social Democrats have also decided to propose senator Ioan Denes for the seat of the Ministry of Waters and Forests after his colleague Doina Pana has recently stepped down on health reasons. Besides Prime Minister Tudose, the PSD-ALDE government has 27 ministers, out of whom three deputy Prime Ministers and two delegate ministers.




    BNR The board of directors of Romania’s Central Bank (BNR) on Monday decided to raise the reference interest rate to 2% a year from 1.7%. According to a BNR communiqué the decision is to come into effect on Tuesday. Another decision is to maintain the present levels of obligatory minimum reserves on debts in the local and foreign currency of credit institutions, the BNR communiqué also says.




    SHIPWRECK 64 migrants are believed to have lost their lives in the first major shipwreck this year in the Mediterranean sea off the coasts of Libya, the International Migration Organization has announced. 86 survivors of various African nationalities have been transported back to Libya. According to the IOM about 170 thousand migrants made it to Europe by crossing the Mediterranean last year, most of them fleeing the armed Middle East conflicts and the poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa.




    MEASLES The death toll of the measles outbreak in Romania has reached 38, the National Centre for the Supervision and Control of Transmissible Diseases with the National Public Healthcare Institute has announced. According to the same sources, the confirmed infections have exceeded 10,300 with the most number of cases reported in unvaccinated people. In another development, Health Minister Florian Bodog has called on all the public healthcare institutions to check on all advertising billboards promoting information campaigns on vaccination. The measure has been decided after a series of anti-vaccination billboards were mounted in several Romanian cities and towns late last year, the Healthcare Ministry has announced.




    AWARD The production “Graduation” by the Romanian director Cristian Mungiu was named best foreign film by the National Society of Film Critics, one of the most prestigious associations of film critics in the Unites States. In 2017, the award went to “Toni Erdmann”, a production with Romanian contribution directed by Maren Ade. Established in 1966 in New York, the National Society of Film Critics comprises 59 members, including journalists for leading American publications. “Graduation” is about a doctor in a small Romanian town who does everything he can to make sure his daughter is accepted into a British university after the latter suffers sexual aggression right before the start of high school graduation exams. The production has received many international prizes, such as best director award at Cannes Film Festival in 2016.



    Translated by Daniel Bilt


  • The Week, November 16-22

    The Week, November 16-22

    The Priorities of the New Government


    The new Government of Romania, headed by Dacian Ciolos, started working after receiving the confidence vote of a large Parliamentary majority. In the medium and long run, the Government is to draw up the 2016 budget bill and to organise the parliamentary and local elections due next year. The priorities also include a 10-year investment plan, a national development strategy, reforms in public education and healthcare.



    The Government also wants to strengthen the role of the country in the EU and NATO, to consolidate and extend the strategic partnership with the USA, and to support the European accession efforts of the neighbouring Republic of Moldova. Romanians expect quite a lot from the new Cabinet, made up of experts from the private sector or European institutions. President Klaus Iohannis has briefly presented these expectations:



    Klaus Iohannis: “This is your chance to prove how to govern Romania properly, in a very complicated year and with high expectations from the society and from the people. But you must also be aware of the expectations of politicians. I firmly believe that everybody wants everything to run like clockwork, and for this to happen we need an efficient government



    The Social Democratic Party Reviews Its Position


    Monday was a moment of review and reflection for the Social Democratic Party, whose former head, Victor Ponta, led a succession of coalitions with his party at the forefront for the last 4 years. The new chairman, Liviu Dragnea, did the accounting for his partys period of leadership, saying that the successive Ponta cabinets took over in 2012 an economy struggling out of crisis, managing to set economic growth to 3.8%, one of the highest in the EU. Right now the budget deficit is 1.5% of the GDP, as compared to 5.4% in 2011. Liviu Dragnea went on to provide more detail:



    Liviu Dragnea: “Romania borrowed little from abroad and the domestic market, because the economy went well. The GDP went from 133 billion Euro to 158 billion Euro in 2015. In this way, the Ponta Government managed to have money for two things that are fundamental: to increase purchasing power for most Romanians, by boosting income and reducing taxation, and to bolster business by correct measures included in the Fiscal Code.“



    Many, however, blame Ponta for a perpetually conflicting relationship with former president Traian Basescu, to the detriment of the country, for alleged corruption, and for losing the run for the presidency in 2014.




    Postal Voting for Romanians Living Abroad

    Romanias Constitutional Court ruled unanimously that the new law on postal voting is in conformity with the countrys Constitution, and President Klaus Iohannis endorsed it on Thursday. The document provides for the voters with their residence abroad wishing to cast their votes to register with the Election Registry by means of an application filed personally or sent by mail to the diplomatic mission or consulate in their country of residence. Registration is not available on-line.



    The alternative offered by postal voting aims to fix the irregularities marring the November 2014 presidential elections, and to allow thousands of Romanians to express their option. The first application of the law comes in next years parliamentary elections. If it proves itself, it may be broadened to apply to the presidential and European Parliament elections as well.



    Romania and the Fight against Corruption


    Terrorism is effective only when it strikes fear into the hearts of people, says president Klaus Iohannis, referring to last weeks tragic terrorist attacks in the French capital city, which also killed two Romanians.



    Klaus Iohannis: “If we were to let ourselves be overwhelmed by fear, only then would terrorists achieve their true goal, and we shouldnt let this happen. We should not let xenophobia, ultra-nationalism and chauvinism govern our societies. On no account must we allow this fear to breed hate speech against a religious community that was in no way related to the attacks.



    An ally and friend of France at NATO and EU level, Romania has joined in the measures adopted by the international community in an attempt to prevent such tragic events from happening. The president said that no special measures will be taken concerning the Muslim population in Romania, out of respect for ethnic and religious minorities. Most Tartar and Turkish ethnics are clustered in the south-east, and the 70,000 Muslims residing in Romania are a model of integration and loyalty towards the Romanian state.



    Colectiv Fire Death Toll Rises


    Three weeks after the Colectiv nightclub fire in Bucharest, the death toll continues to rise, closing in to the 60 mark. Of the 40 patients with burn injuries being treated in hospitals in Bucharest, over 10 are in critical care. Another 30 patients were transfered to medical units abroad. The fire at the Colectiv nightclub broke out during a rock concert attended by several hundred people. A large number of people died from their burn injuries, while many others after becoming intoxicated with a deadly mix of gases resulted from the fire.

  • Death toll from Bucharest nightclub fire reaches 53

    Death toll from Bucharest nightclub fire reaches 53

    Two victims of the Colectiv nightclub fire died at Floreasca Emergency Hospital this morning, taking the death toll to 53.

    On Wednesday evening, Alexandru Pascu, the bassist of Goodbye to Gravity, the heavy metal band that was holding a free concert in the Colectiv club when fire broke out, on October 30, died in a French hospital, where he had been transferred earlier in the day.

    He is the fourth member of Goodbye to Gravity who died of injuries sustained in the fire. Guitarists Vlad Telea and Mihai Alexandru died in the club, while the band’s drummer, Bogdan Enache, died on November 8th, his condition having worsened while he was being transferred to a hospital in Switzerland.

    The band’s lead singer,Andrei Galut, is currently being treated in a hospital in the Netherlands, where he underwent surgery.

    Over 70 people, including 20 in critical condition, are still in hospital. 36 people have been transferred to hospitals in Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Britain, Norway, Israel and Switzerland. All expenses related to transport and treatment are covered by the Romanian state.



    A crisis group made up of specialist doctors has also been created to provide psychological counseling to the injured and the families of the victims. In another development, judges decided on Wednesday to release the former mayor of Bucharests sector 4 where the fire occurred. Cristian Popescu Piedone was arrested last Saturday on charges of abuse of power and intellectual forgery. The magistrates decision is final.

  • November 10, 2015 UPDATE

    November 10, 2015 UPDATE

    Romania’s President, Klaus Iohannis, on Tuesday appointed Dacian Ciolos, former EU Commissioner for Agriculture in the executive led by José Manuel Barroso, as the country’s new prime minister. Ciolos, aged 46, has vowed in a brief comment at the presidential palace in Bucharest, to focus his attention and energy on putting together a team of technocrats that will seek Parliament’s approval. In his turn, President Klaus Iohannis, who held two rounds of talks with parliamentary parties prior to nominating the new PM, has said Romania needs an independent premier of high moral and professional value and has called on political parties to eliminate corrupt members and promote to public positions only competent, non-corrupted people. Dacian Ciolos comes to replace leftist Victor Ponta who quit last week amid public anger over a deadly nightclub fire.




    The death toll from the horrific fire at the Colectiv club in Bucharest on October 30th reached 49 on Tuesday. Over 70 people who suffered severe burns are still in Bucharests hospitals, some of them in critical and serious condition. 35 patients have been transferred to hospitals in 7 other countries. Doctors from Germany and France are now assessing the possibility of further transferring patients to various hospitals in Europe.




    The United States Ambassador in Bucharest, Hans Klemm said on Tuesday that the American anti-missile system at the Deveselu military base in southern Romania would be operational in the spring of 2016 and that everything was going according to the approved schedule and budget. On the occasion of a visit to the military base, Hans Klemm said that the anti-missile system was an essential element of the bilateral strategic partnership.




    A NATO delegation is in Chisinau as of Tuesday to assess the reconstruction program of the Republic of Moldovas defense capability. The program, which involves major allies such as the US and Germany, contributing both money and expertise, is run in keeping with the decisions made at last years summit, when NATO included in its own security strategy the defense capabilities of the partner countries, including the Republic of Moldova, Ukraine and Georgia. The NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said back than that the Republic of Moldova would thus be helped to consolidate security against potential threats coming from Russia. The NATO delegations visit is taking place against the background of political uncertainty in Chisinau, where consultations on the formation of a new parliamentary majority continue.




    A new program with the IMF and the European Commission is quite unlikely for Romania, as elections are drawing near, the World Bank Country Economist Catalin Pauna said on Tuesday at a conference on taxation. He has stated that the World Bank estimates a 3.6% economic growth rate this year and a 3.9% growth rate in 2016. As for 2017, the estimated rate is 4.1%. According to Pauna, the inflation dynamics, affected by fiscal measures and the VAT cut of June, will be influenced next year by the reduction of the VAT from 25% to 20% in January.





  • Victims of Bucharest nightclub fire still in hospital

    Victims of Bucharest nightclub fire still in hospital

    The death toll in the wake of the fire at the Colectiv rock nightclub in Bucharest in late October rises by the day. The number of injured patients in the Bucharest hospitals has gone down to around 70, 20 of whom being in a critical and serious condition. A total of 30 burnt people have been flown to clinics in Israel, Belgium, Austria, Holland, Great Britain and Norway, by a NATO aircraft included. The manager of the University Hospital, Catalin Carstoiu explained that the hospital he ran could not provide treatment after the patients had overcome the acute phase and the decision on the patients’ transfer had been correct.



    Catalin Carstoiu: “We can’t treat these patients during the post-acute phase, which is now beginning. That is why, I think the decision on their transfer was quite correct and was made when those patients could be moved from one place to another. Just think that the transfer of such patients from a ward to an operating theatre and back to the ward can trigger complications.”



    Physicians from Germany and France are now in Bucharest evaluating the condition of injured patients in the Bucharest hospitals to decide on their possible transfer to hospitals in Europe. Romanian-born doctor Ciprian Isacu, head of the Hand Unit of the Plastic Surgery Department of the Hospital University Centre in Bordeaux, France said that the medical staff in Romania had taken an exact and correct action. In his view, doctors in France, Belgium or Great Britain could not have taken a better action.



    Ciprian Isacu: “To my surprise, not only can’t we teach any lessons, but I also wonder what we would have done to cope with such a big disaster in our center in the south-west of France, maybe the biggest in France. The Romanian doctors did quality work, you can’t imagine it. From a technical point of view, Romanian physicians are very good; from a humane point of view, one can’t blame them. Burn injuries are extremely complex, the pathology in this case is maybe the most difficult and expensive one. One day of resuscitation abroad amounts to over 8,500 Euros. So, action has been taken quite as it should be.”



    According to the tests run by the National Coroner’s Institute in Bucharest, toxic doses of carbon monoxide and hydrogen cyanide have been found in the blood of all the people who died on the very evening of the tragedy at the Colectiv nightclub. The victims with respiratory, cardiovascular and kidney failure had levels of hydrogen cyanide above lethal limits. Since the toxic effects of those substances can occur even later and not right away, the people who escaped safe and sound from the fire have been advised to have a medical check up.

  • November 10, 2015 UPDATE

    November 10, 2015 UPDATE

    Romania’s President, Klaus Iohannis, on Tuesday appointed Dacian Ciolos, former EU Commissioner for Agriculture in the executive led by José Manuel Barroso, as the country’s new prime minister. Ciolos, aged 46, has vowed in a brief comment at the presidential palace in Bucharest, to focus his attention and energy on putting together a team of technocrats that will seek Parliament’s approval. In his turn, President Klaus Iohannis, who held two rounds of talks with parliamentary parties prior to nominating the new PM, has said Romania needs an independent premier of high moral and professional value and has called on political parties to eliminate corrupt members and promote to public positions only competent, non-corrupted people. Dacian Ciolos comes to replace leftist Victor Ponta who quit last week amid public anger over a deadly nightclub fire.




    The death toll from the horrific fire at the Colectiv club in Bucharest on October 30th reached 49 on Tuesday. Over 70 people who suffered severe burns are still in Bucharests hospitals, some of them in critical and serious condition. 35 patients have been transferred to hospitals in 7 other countries. Doctors from Germany and France are now assessing the possibility of further transferring patients to various hospitals in Europe.




    The United States Ambassador in Bucharest, Hans Klemm said on Tuesday that the American anti-missile system at the Deveselu military base in southern Romania would be operational in the spring of 2016 and that everything was going according to the approved schedule and budget. On the occasion of a visit to the military base, Hans Klemm said that the anti-missile system was an essential element of the bilateral strategic partnership.




    A NATO delegation is in Chisinau as of Tuesday to assess the reconstruction program of the Republic of Moldovas defense capability. The program, which involves major allies such as the US and Germany, contributing both money and expertise, is run in keeping with the decisions made at last years summit, when NATO included in its own security strategy the defense capabilities of the partner countries, including the Republic of Moldova, Ukraine and Georgia. The NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said back than that the Republic of Moldova would thus be helped to consolidate security against potential threats coming from Russia. The NATO delegations visit is taking place against the background of political uncertainty in Chisinau, where consultations on the formation of a new parliamentary majority continue.




    A new program with the IMF and the European Commission is quite unlikely for Romania, as elections are drawing near, the World Bank Country Economist Catalin Pauna said on Tuesday at a conference on taxation. He has stated that the World Bank estimates a 3.6% economic growth rate this year and a 3.9% growth rate in 2016. As for 2017, the estimated rate is 4.1%. According to Pauna, the inflation dynamics, affected by fiscal measures and the VAT cut of June, will be influenced next year by the reduction of the VAT from 25% to 20% in January.





  • November 8, UPDATE

    November 8, UPDATE

    The death toll following the fire in Bucharest’s Colectiv club is rising. Four more people died on Sunday from the injuries they sustained in the fire bringing the death toll to 45. Authorities and doctors have warned that the number of deaths might increase. Around 30 people continue to be in critical condition in Bucharest hospitals, due to severe burns. Tens of patients have been transferred to hospitals abroad, some of them with a NATO aircraft requested by Bucharest. The blaze at Bucharests Colectiv club on October 30 was started by fireworks. The firm contracted to ensure the pyrotechnics show at the club on the night of the tragedy is being investigated, its owners having been arrested. They are also suspected of having tried to destroy evidence. The three club owners are also under arrest, on suspicion of aggravated manslaughter and involuntary bodily harm, as the venue was overcrowded, lacked the required number of emergency exits, and may not have been authorised to hold such a concert. Cristian Popescu-Piedone, the former mayor of Bucharest District 4 where the tragedy occurred is also under arrest, for having issued permits for the club’s functioning in spite of the fact that the club did not qualify. Concerns that safety at the club was compromised because of corruption – a long-standing issue in Romania – have further fuelled public anger against the political elite and triggered the resignation of the left-of-centre government led by Victor Ponta. President Klaus Iohannis, who has recently held talks with parliamentary parties and civil society representatives with a view to appointing a new prime minister, joined protesters at Bucharest’s University Square on Sunday evening.




    The state institutions’ well-functioning is the condition for a state’s freedom and stability, which cannot exist without laws, competence and ethics, King Michael said in a message on Sunday, on the occasion of the Day of St. Michael and St. Gabriel. The former monarch, who was forced to abdicate by Soviet-backed communists more than six decades ago, has mentioned in his message the young people, who have been protesting in Bucharest and several other cities these days, against corruption and for sweeping reforms of state institutions and the political class. In his opinion, having the best possible laws and the most active civil society are not enough to secure a solid institutional life. “I am sure that the young generation will be able to find, in their Romania, the right balance between civic attitude and state institutions,” the King Michael said. “I have lived almost 100 years out of the 150 of the Crown, which entitles me to say to our young people: The time of your Romania has come!” the former monarch also said.




    As many as 140 Romanian tourists were repatriated from the Red Sea resorts of Sharm El Sheikh and Hurghada, the Romanian Foreign Ministry announced. The operation was conducted by the Romanian Transport Ministry, with the support of the Romanian Foreign Ministry and the Romanian citizens received consular assistance during the repatriation process. Several countries have decided to repatriate their citizens and restrict flight to and from the Egyptian resorts following information that that it was possible a bomb on board had brought down the Russian plane which crashed last week, 23 minutes after takeoff from the Sinai resort of Sharm el-Sheikh. The crash on Saturday killed all 224 people on board. Russia, which had 78,000 tourists in Egypt and Britain, with around 20,000 tourists, have organised aerial bridges to evacuate holidaymakers as soon as possible. The Russian-Egyptian investigation teams have detected a explosion on board the plane but have said it is too early to say what caused it. A group of Egyptian jihadist have claimed the attack.




    In Moldova’s capital city Chisinau, several supporters of the country’s unification with Romania took part in a march staged on Sunday at the initiative of the National Unity Bloc and the Union Council. ”The tragedy at the Colectiv club in Bucharest clearly shows that Romania needs to change its political class. On the other hand, the social and economic disaster the Republic of Moldova finds itself in, proves without a doubt that a reorganisation of this state as a whole is needed. We have the chance to take a vital step in both Bucharest and Chisinau, so that we can all live in a better Romania: a single government for the two Romanian states,” said Constantin Codreanu, a representtaive of the National Unity Bloc, a coalition made up of 22 NGOs.




    Romanian and British military are carrying out, until November 11, joint training actions with a view to setting joint action procedures during drills to be conducted in Romania’s territorial waters and the Black Sea international waters in the upcoming period. For this purpose, the British destroyer HMS DUNCAN is currently in the Black Sea port of Constanta. The warship is equipped with state-of-the-art radars and anti-aircraft systems. Among the current missions of such warships in international waters are fighting piracy and drug trafficking and granting humanitarian aid to people affected by natural disasters in various parts of the world.

  • November 8, 2015 UPDATE

    November 8, 2015 UPDATE

    The death toll following the fire in Bucharest’s Colectiv club rose to 45. Four more people died of their injuries on Sunday and nine people on Saturday. Authorities and doctors warned that the number of fatalities could rise.



    Over 40 people continue to be in critical condition in Bucharest hospitals, due to severe burns. Some 20 patients have already been transferred to hospitals abroad. The blaze at Bucharests Colectiv club on October 30 was started by fireworks.



    The firm contracted to ensure the pyrotechnics show at the club on the night of the tragedy is being investigated, its owners having been arrested. They are also suspected of having tried to destroy evidence.



    The three club owners are also under arrest, on suspicion of aggravated manslaughter and involuntary bodily harm, as the venue was overcrowded, lacked the required number of emergency exits, and may not have been authorised to hold such a concert. Cristian Popescu-Piedone, the former mayor of Bucharest District 4 where the tragedy occurred is also under arrest, for having issued permits for the club’s functioning in spite of the fact that the club did not qualify.



    Concerns that safety at the club was compromised because of corruption – a long-standing issue in Romania – have further fuelled public anger against the political elite. Thousands of protesters are holding daily rallies in Bucharest and several other cities, which have triggered the resignation of the left-of-centre government led by Victor Ponta.

  • November 8, 2015 UPDATE

    November 8, 2015 UPDATE

    The death toll following the fire in Bucharest’s Colectiv club rose to 45. Four more people died of their injuries on Sunday and nine people on Saturday. Authorities and doctors warned that the number of fatalities could rise.



    Over 40 people continue to be in critical condition in Bucharest hospitals, due to severe burns. Some 20 patients have already been transferred to hospitals abroad. The blaze at Bucharests Colectiv club on October 30 was started by fireworks.



    The firm contracted to ensure the pyrotechnics show at the club on the night of the tragedy is being investigated, its owners having been arrested. They are also suspected of having tried to destroy evidence.



    The three club owners are also under arrest, on suspicion of aggravated manslaughter and involuntary bodily harm, as the venue was overcrowded, lacked the required number of emergency exits, and may not have been authorised to hold such a concert. Cristian Popescu-Piedone, the former mayor of Bucharest District 4 where the tragedy occurred is also under arrest, for having issued permits for the club’s functioning in spite of the fact that the club did not qualify.



    Concerns that safety at the club was compromised because of corruption – a long-standing issue in Romania – have further fuelled public anger against the political elite. Thousands of protesters are holding daily rallies in Bucharest and several other cities, which have triggered the resignation of the left-of-centre government led by Victor Ponta.

  • November 8, 2015 UPDATE

    November 8, 2015 UPDATE

    The death toll following the fire in Bucharest’s Colectiv club rose to 44. Three more people died of their injuries on Sunday and nine people on Saturday. Authorities and doctors have warned that the number of deaths might increase. Over 40 people continue to be in critical condition in Bucharest hospitals, due to severe burns. Some 20 patients have already been transferred to hospitals abroad. The blaze at Bucharests Colectiv club on October 30 was started by fireworks. The firm contracted to ensure the pyrotechnics show at the club on the night of the tragedy is being investigated, its owners having been arrested. They are also suspected of having tried to destroy evidence. The three club owners are also under arrest, on suspicion of aggravated manslaughter and involuntary bodily harm, as the venue was overcrowded, lacked the required number of emergency exits, and may not have been authorised to hold such a concert. Cristian Popescu-Piedone, the former mayor of Bucharest District 4 where the tragedy occurred is also under arrest, for having issued permits for the club’s functioning in spite of the fact that the club did not qualify. Concerns that safety at the club was compromised because of corruption – a long-standing issue in Romania – have further fuelled public anger against the political elite. Thousands of protesters are holding daily rallies in Bucharest and several other cities, which have triggered the resignation of the left-of-centre government led by Victor Ponta.




    The state institutions’ well-functioning is the condition for a state’s freedom and stability, which cannot exist without laws, competence and ethics, King Michael said in a message on Sunday, on the occasion of the Day of St. Michael and St. Gabriel. The former monarch, who was forced to abdicate by Soviet-backed communists more than six decades ago, has mentioned in his message the young people, who have been protesting in Bucharest and several other cities these days, against corruption and for sweeping reforms of state institutions and the political class. In his opinion, having the best possible laws and the most active civil society are not enough to secure a solid institutional life. “I am sure that the young generation will be able to find, in their Romania, the right balance between civic attitude and state institutions,” the King has said. “I have lived almost 100 years out of the 150 of the Crown, which entitles me to say to our young people: The time of your Romania has come!” the former monarch has also said.




    As many as 140 Romanian tourists have been repatriated from the Red Sea resorts of Sharm El Sheikh and Hurghada, the Romanian Foreign Ministry announced. The operation was conducted by the Romanian Transport Ministry, with the support of the Romanian Foreign Ministry and the Romanian citizens received consular assistance during the repatriation process. Several countries have decided to repatriate their citizens and restrict flight to and from the Egyptian resorts following information that that it was possible a bomb on board had brought down the Russian plane which crashed last week, 23 minutes after takeoff from the Sinai resort of Sharm el-Sheikh. The crash on Saturday killed all 224 people on board. Russia, which had 78,000 tourists in Egypt and Britain, with around 20,000 tourists, have organised aerial bridges to evacuate holidaymakers as soon as possible. The Russian-Egyptian investigation teams have detected a explosion on board the plane but have said it is too early to say what caused it. A group of Egyptian jihadist have claimed the attack.




    Croats are voting on Sunday in a parliamentary election, against the background of the refugee crisis. This is their first parliamentary election since joining the European Union in 2013. The opposition HDZ-led Patriotic Coalition is in favor of a tougher stance than its main rival, the ruling Social Democrats, led by PM Zoran Milanovic on the migrant issue, seeking stricter border controls to manage the flow of people crossing Croatia on their way to Western Europe. Over 330,000 migrants have passed through Croatia since mid-September.




    Romania ranked first in the EU last year in terms of number of people working in the field of agriculture, with 25.4%, the Romanian Statistics Institute has announced. Greece with 13% and Poland with 11% follow. The Czech Republic, on the other hand, has the biggest number of people working in the industry sector, 38.3%, followed by Slovakia with 35.5%. In Romania, the number of people working in industry stood at 30,1% in 2014 while 44.5% worked in the field of services.





  • November 7, 2015 UPDATE

    November 7, 2015 UPDATE

    COLECTIV (UPDATE) – Another person who sustained injuries and burns in the Colectiv nightclub fire passed away on Saturday, raising the death toll to 39 dead. Previously, on Saturday morning, 6 people died. Of these, two died while being transported for treatment to hospitals abroad. According to the latest reports, some 107 people are still hospitalized, of whom 48 are in critical condition.



    Two patients in critical condition on Saturday afternoon were transported to Vienna, Austria with two planes of the Mobile Emergency Service for Resuscitation and Extrication (SMURD).



    So far several skin-grafting surgeries have been made, while in some cases doctors were forced to operate to clear the patients airways. Interim Prime Minister Sorin Cimpeanu has said the Government will next week refund all costs for patients who were treated in hospitals abroad. In another move, the former mayor of Bucharest District 4, where the tragedy occurred, Cristian Popescu-Piedone has been detained, being charged with abuse of office and forgery. He is being accused of having issued operation permits for the clubs functioning in spite of the fact that its owners did not get the approval of the Department for Emergency Situations beforehand.



    The clubs three owners have been taken into pre-trial custody on suspicion of aggravated manslaughter and involuntary bodily harm. The firm contracted to ensure the pyrotechnics show at Colectiv on the night of the tragedy is also being investigated, its owners having been arrested.



    Also on Saturday, interim Prime Minister Sorin Campeanu said only 7% of schools in Romania have been greenlighted for functioning by the Department for Emergency Situations.