Radio România Internațional

Tag: exhibition

  • January 25, 2025 UPDATE 2

    January 25, 2025 UPDATE 2

     

    RATING The financial rating agency Standard & Poor’s confirmed Romania’s ‘BBB minus’ rating, but revised the outlook from “stable” to “negative”. The reasons are related to high fiscal and external risks, the agency reports. According to S&P, the fragmented and uncertain political environment, as well as the substantial spending ahead of the elections, pushed the fiscal deficit to almost 8.7% of GDP, far above expectations. The Romanian finance minister Tánczos Barna says the change in the outlook from stable to negative indicates that measures are needed to reduce the budget deficit, and that the country needs a balanced public budget and a streamlined government structure. He also said that the government’s measures to reduce the deficit and consolidate economic growth must be implemented at an alert pace, in the form already agreed on with the EU.

     

    UKRAINE The president of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that, taking into account Ukraine’s cooperation with the Republic of Moldova, it is possible for Kyiv to cover Moldova’s entire electricity demand, and a 30% discount on the supply price is also possible. He made these statements at a meeting on Saturday in Kyiv with the president of Moldova, Maia Sandu. The two officials also discussed possible coal deliveries to the Republic of Moldova. In turn, Maia Sandu accused Russia of trying to create economic and social chaos in Moldova and bring a pro-Russian government in power in Chisinau. She traveled to Kyiv amid energy tensions in Transnistria, a pro-Russian breakaway region between the two countries, AFP reports. This strip of land with a population of about half a million, which remains outside Moldova’s control, was supplied by the Russian natural gas giant Gazprom for free, through a pipeline that crossed Ukraine. The latter ended the contract with Moscow on January 1, thus cutting off supplies to Moldova, including to Transnistria, which declared a state of emergency. With Kyiv fighting the Russian invasion for three years, Chisinau is worried about a possible spillover of the conflict to its territory, especially through the destabilisation of Transnistria by Russia. The rest of Moldova is for now safe from energy cuts, thanks to electricity and gas imports from Romania.

     

    ELECTIONS The Liberals will convene on Sunday in a special National Council meeting to validate the former party president Crin Antonescu as the joint candidate of the ruling coalition in Romania. The Social Democrats scheduled a special congress on February 2 for the same purpose, and UDMR will make its decision at the beginning of next week. The first and second rounds of the presidential elections are scheduled for May 4 and 18. So far, the mayor of Bucharest, Nicuşor Dan, the independent candidate Călin Georgescu and the president of Save Romania Union, Elena Lasconi, have announced plans to run for president. The latter two were top placed in the presidential elections canceled last year. After the first election round on November 24 was validated, the Constitutional Court of Romania canceled the election as a whole on December 6, although voting in the second round had already begun abroad. The Court made its decision after the Supreme Defence Council published a report indicating foreign interference in the electoral process, but investigations have so far failed to confirm it. Tens of thousands of Romanians took to the streets to demand that the second round be resumed.

     

    EXHIBITION Romania’s foreign ministry announced that on Saturday the National Museum of History of Romania (MNIR) and the Culture Ministry were notified that an explosion took place and several exhibits were stolen at the Drents Museum in the Netherlands, which is hosting an exhibition called ‘Dacia! Rijk van goud en zilver’ (Dacia! Kingdom of gold and silver), organised jointly with MNIR. According to the institution, initial investigations indicate that the blast was design to help as yet unidentified perpetrators to break into the museum building and steal pieces from Romania’s Dacian treasure. The foreign ministry notified the Romanian interior ministry and the Romanian police, and the Romanian embassies in all neighboring countries are on alert. Romania’s foreign minister Emil Hurezeanu spoke with his Dutch counterpart Caspar Veldkamp, ​​highlighting the exceptional importance of the stolen exhibits. The Dutch side assured Romania of its operational and political determination to solve the case. The Dutch police also activated cross-border cooperation mechanisms and informed the Interpol of the matter.

     

    HOLOCAUST The minister of culture Natalia Intotero will represent Romania, on Monday, at the ceremony commemorating the 80th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp in Poland. The event, held under the patronage of the president of Poland, marks the International Holocaust Remembrance Day declared by the United Nations, and brings together camp survivors, official delegations of states and international organisations. Romania’s participation in the ceremony on January 27 reflects its solid commitment to keeping alive the memory of the victims of the Holocaust, to fighting all forms of denial, distortion, or downplaying of this tragic moment, as well as to fighting anti-Semitism, xenophobia, radicalisation and hate speech, while at the same time promoting respect for fundamental human rights, both at national and international level, the Romanian culture ministry said. (AMP)

  • January 25, 2025 UPDATE

    January 25, 2025 UPDATE

     

    UKRAINE The president of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that, taking into account Ukraine’s cooperation with the Republic of Moldova, it is possible for Kyiv to cover Moldova’s entire electricity demand, and a 30% discount on the supply price is also possible. He made these statements at a meeting on Saturday in Kyiv with the president of Moldova, Maia Sandu. The two officials also discussed possible coal deliveries to the Republic of Moldova. In turn, Maia Sandu accused Russia of trying to create economic and social chaos in Moldova and bring a pro-Russian government in power in Chisinau. She traveled to Kyiv amid energy tensions in Transnistria, a pro-Russian breakaway region between the two countries, AFP reports. This strip of land with a population of about half a million, which remains outside Moldova’s control, was supplied by the Russian natural gas giant Gazprom for free, through a pipeline that crossed Ukraine. The latter ended the contract with Moscow on January 1, thus cutting off supplies to Moldova, including to Transnistria, which declared a state of emergency. With Kyiv fighting the Russian invasion for three years, Chisinau is worried about a possible spillover of the conflict to its territory, especially through the destabilisation of Transnistria by Russia. The rest of Moldova is for now safe from energy cuts, thanks to electricity and gas imports from Romania.

     

    EXHIBITION Romania’s foreign ministry announced that on Saturday the National Museum of History of Romania (MNIR) and the Culture Ministry were notified that an explosion took place and several exhibits were stolen at the Drents Museum in the Netherlands, which is hosting an exhibition called ‘Dacia! Rijk van goud en zilver’ (‘Dacia! Kingdom of gold and silver’), organised jointly with MNIR. According to the institution, initial investigations indicate that the blast was designed to help as yet unidentified perpetrators to break into the museum building and steal pieces from Romania’s Dacian treasure. The foreign ministry notified the Romanian interior ministry and the Romanian police, while the Romanian embassies in all neighboring countries are on alert. Romania’s foreign minister Emil Hurezeanu spoke with his Dutch counterpart Caspar Veldkamp, ​​highlighting the exceptional importance of the stolen exhibits. The Dutch side assured Romania of its operational and political determination to solve the case. The Dutch police also activated cross-border cooperation mechanisms and informed the Interpol of the matter. (AMP)

  • Taste, refinement and socialising in early 20th century Bucharest

    Taste, refinement and socialising in early 20th century Bucharest

    Hosted by the Filipescu-Cesianu Museum in Bucharest, the exhibition entitled “Taste, refinement and socialising in early 20th century Bucharest” is aimed at reconstructing fragment of daily life, namely the dining ritual, among the Bucharest elite under the influence of profound cultural transformations, between the strict ceremony from before the First World War to the more relaxed approach from the inter-war period.

     

    Andreea Mâniceanu, one of the curators of the exhibition, told us more the rules of etiquette among the Bucharest society at the start of the 20th century: “In the first part of the 20th century, the etiquette and lifestyle of the Bucharest high society were marked by a series of distinct elements, such as the western influence, for many of its members were educated abroad, especially in France, which led to the adoption of western manners and lifestyle. The fashion, the architecture and social habits all reflected these tendencies.”

     

    Andreea Mâniceanu also spoke to us about the fashion of the day:  “The Bucharest high society also paid special attention to clothing. Men used to wear elegant suits after the latest fashion inspired by the trends in western Europe, while women used to wear very elegant dresses, often created by fashion houses. Moreover, the balls and receptions were important opportunities for showing off this elegance.”

     

    The exhibition also shows the public the lifestyle of the Bucharest high society in the first half of the 20th century in terms of habitation and social life: “The residence of the Bucharest high society in the first part of the 20th century were often located in central areas like Calea Victoriei and Cotroceni and had an eclectic architecture that combined Neoclassical, Art Nouveau and Romanian Revival styles. Their residents attended balls, receptions and dinners given at the Royal Palace and other sumptuous residences. The cafes, clubs and fancy restaurants like Capșa were meeting places for politicians, aristocrats and artists. The exhibition ‘Taste, Refinement and Socialising’ explores the transition and mutual influences between lifestyle and living space in the pre-war and interwar periods, emphasizing the dynamic between exterior and interior. In the pre-war period, the aristocratic lifestyle was defined by opulence and a sophistication that was visible in the architecture and interior design of homes. There was a strong external influence, especially regarding the interior design of spaces inspired by Western models and artistic trends such as the Baroque. The houses reflected a lifestyle oriented towards show and social status, and the interior spaces were designed to impress guests. The furniture, decorations and materials used in the pre-war houses expressed this relationship of continuity between exterior and interior grandeur. Through this alternation between exterior-interior and interior-exterior dynamics, the exhibition emphasizes how the social and economic changes of the two periods influenced the perception and organization of the home space in the pre-war period. The interior space was a reflection of the exterior world, social hierarchies and etiquette, while in the interwar period interior changes in everyday life and aesthetic preferences began to shape the way in which exterior space was perceived and organized.”

     

    Andreea Mâniceanu also tells us about the cultural life of the era: “The Bucharest elite also had a close connection with the cultural scene. Opera, theater and art exhibitions were appreciated by this social class. Moreover, patronage of art and literature was a way for elites to display their prestige.”

     

    How does the exhibition at Casa Filipescu-Cesianu present the dynamics of transformations in Bucharest society in the first half of the 20th century? “The exhibition ‘Taste, refinement and socializing in early 20th century Bucharest conveys the message of an evolution from a society centered on status and show to a functional, individualistic one, where privacy and personal comfort begin to prevail over ostentation and social grandeur.” (CM, LS)

  • June 18, 2024

    June 18, 2024

    GOVERNMENT – The governments of Romania and the State of Bavaria are today convening in a joint session marking 25 years of bilateral ties. The two delegations will sign a memorandum on entrepreneurship, SMEs and startups. The agenda of the meeting also includes the Schengen Area, migration, security cooperation, the war in Ukraine, as well as Moldova’s EU integration. Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu and his Bavarian counterpart, Markus Söder, will hold bilateral talks, followed by a private meeting. Of Germany’s federal states, Bavaria is Romania’s biggest investor and trade partner, two-way trade exceeding 8 bln EUR.

     

     

    MEETING – The president of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, is meeting his Italian counterpart, Sergio Mattarella on Wednesday in Bucharest. According to the presidency, the Italian president’s visit continues top-level exchanges after the Romanian president’s visit to Italy in 2018, the first after a 45-year break, as well as in the context of the joint Romanian-Italian government session hosted by Rome over February 14-15 this year. Romania and Italy this year celebrate 145 years of diplomat ties, as well as 60 years since relations were elevated to the rank of Embassy. The two officials will also tackle developments at European and global levels, focusing on the EU Strategic Agenda and security topics.

     

     

    LAW – The Constitutional Court of Romania is today examining a notification from the High Court of Cassation and Justice regarding the so-called “Law on Fugitives”. At the end of 2023, the High Court referred to the Constitutional Court the Law on modifying and amending the 2009 Criminal Code Law, passed by the Chamber of Deputies in 2023. The said law stipulated that people with final sentences who do not turn themselves in to undergo imprisonment procedures within seven days of the sentence being passed are considered fugitives and risk an additional prison sentence of 6 months up to 3 years. The law allegedly violates the right to fair trial and the right to individual freedom, the High Court argues. Former Bucharest Mayor General Sorin Oprescu and former chief prosecutor of the Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism, Alina Bica, are two examples of Romanian officials who managed to flee Romania to elude prison sentences. Italy and Greece are the top destinations for fugitives from the law.

     

     

    BACCALAUREATE – The Romanian Baccalaureate continues today and tomorrow with the oral examination in the Romanian language. High-school pupils will then undergo the maternal and foreign language examinations as well as the computer skills test. The written exams are scheduled to start on July 1. Education Ministry officials say they have undertaken additional security measures to reduce the possibility of fraud. CCTV surveillance systems will be used to monitor all examinations, while the evaluation of written exams will be available on the digital platform only.

     

     

    EXHIBITION – Italy’s capital-city Rome is hosting an exhibition featuring Romanian traditional costumes and ceramic items from the collections of the Romanian Village Museum, alongside other exhibits from the Museum of Civilizations in Rome. Open until July 14, the exhibition also marks the Universal Day of the Romanian Blouse, celebrated on June 24.

     

     

    ELECTIONS – European heads of state and government met face to face, for the first time since the European Parliament elections, to negotiate the highest positions in European institutions. The current president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, is favorite to be entrusted with a new term at the helm of the Commission, backed not just by the winner of the European Parliament elections, the European People’s Party, but also enjoying the support of most heads of state or government in Europe. The former Portuguese Prime Minister António Costa is credited expected to be designated President of the European Council, while the Estonian Prime Minister, Kaja Kallas, will reportedly be appointed High Representative for Foreign Affairs.

     

     

    EURO 2024 – Turkey is today playing Georgia while Portugal will take on Czechia in Group F fixtures. On Tuesday, in Group E, Romania grabbed a 3-0 win against Ukraine, while Slovakia won 1-0 against Belgium. (VP)

  • Bucharest hosts “Georgia – the Cradle of Wine” exhibition

    Bucharest hosts “Georgia – the Cradle of Wine” exhibition

    Georgia’s ancient wine-making culture is in the spotlight as part of an exhibition hosted by Bucharest’s Museum of Old Maps and Books.

    In an exclusive interview to RRIs Eugen Cojocariu, ambassador Tamar Beruchashvili has spoken about the exhibition.

  • May 22, 2024 UPDATE

    May 22, 2024 UPDATE

     

    PAY RAISE The government of Romania intends to raise the salaries of some categories of public sector employees by 10% this year, in 2 equal installments. A draft order in this respect has been put up for debate by the Labour Ministry. Some of the employees targeted by the measure have recently organised protests, but Prime Minister Ciolacu explained on Tuesday that the budget did not allow for more pay raises. The draft order concerns the employees of various cultural institutions, of the trade registry offices, diplomatic staff, defence personnel, town hall staff and employees of other institutions funded from the government’s and Parliament’s own sources.

     

    SECURITY President Klaus Iohannis said on Wednesday that there is no direct threat against Romania and “no sign or indication” of any attacks or other “undesired events” targeting Romania. “Of the information I have, I can tell you that Romania is a safe country. Romanians have no reason to fear, but obviously we must always be ready for unexpected occurrences,” he explained. According to Iohannis, Romania, thanks to its NATO membership, benefits today from the most important security guarantees in its history. “It is very, very important for us to understand that we are not alone, we are together with our Allies and we can handle any situation quite well,” Klaus Iohannis pointed out.

     

    BSDA The Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu Wednesday said there are good prospects for the Romanian defence industry to conclude impressive contracts worth billions of euros. Attending the international exhibition “Black Sea Defense and Aerospace” in Bucharest, the PM said this is the biggest event devoted to the defence industry in the Black Sea region. The presence of 400 companies from 31 countries proves the importance of this event, Ciolacu went on to say. All the five operational fields (land, air, naval, cyber and space) are being represented, and the event’s main attraction is the multi-role F-35 jet fighter that the US Navy has for the first time brought to an exhibition in Europe. The event is aimed to identify opportunities and find production and business cooperation solutions contributing to the promotion of Romania’s defence industry worldwide.

     

    BACCALAUREATE In Romania, the high school graduates who were part of Olympiad teams and international arts or sports competitions Wednesday stood the compulsory speciality test in a special Baccalaureate session. The exam started on Tuesday with the Romanian language and literature test, with the alternate speciality test scheduled for Thursday and the native language and literature test on Friday. Students’ digital and linguistic skills will be tested in the following days, and the final results will be announced on June 4.

     

    FESTIVAL The International Theatre Festival ‘Shakespeare’ continues in Craiova, south-western Romania with a new series of theatre shows, multi-media installations, outdoor film screenings, book launches and round table talks.  ‘Macbeth’, produced by the Chisinau-based Teatrul Fără Nume company in the Republic of Moldova, and the ‘Twelfth Night’ directed by Andrei Serban at the State Theatre in Constanta were the festival’s main events on Wednesday. Shakespeare village, a British village from the 1600s built from scratch on the local hippodrome, is the venue for scores of concerts and shows, while the Craiova Promenade is hosting the Shakespeare Dimension cube, providing a virtual immersion into the Shakespearian world. At its 30th edition this year, the international event consists of 300 shows and events bringing together some of the world’s most famous directors and actors, such as Robert Wilson, Declan Donnellan, Peter Brook or Robert Lepage. (AMP)

  • May 22, 2024

    May 22, 2024

    BSDA Romanian Prime Minister, Marcel Ciolacu, on Wednesday said there are prospects for the Romanian defence industry to conclude impressive contracts of billions of Euros. Attending the international exhibition Black Sea Defense and Aerospace in Bucharest, the Prime Minister said this is the biggest event devoted to the defence industry in the Black Sea region. The presence of 400 companies from 31 countries here proves the importance of this event, Ciolacu went on to say. All the five operational fields are being represented, the land, air, naval, cyber and space and the event’s main attraction is the multi-role F-35 jet fighter, the US Navy has for the first time brought to an exhibition in Europe. The event is proposing to identify opportunities and find cooperation solutions both in terms of production and the business field contributing to the international promotion of Romania’s Defence industry.

     

    WAGES The government in Bucharest intends to raise the salaries of some categories of state employees by 10 percent this year in two equal installments. A draft ordinance on the issue has been put up for debates by the Labour Ministry. Some of the state employees who are to benefit the measure have recently staged protest rallies, but Prime Minister Ciolacu yesterday explained the budget did not allow for more pay raises. Those to benefit the aforementioned measure are employees from various cultural institutions, of the trade registry, the diplomatic field, the defence industry, of mayor offices and other institutions funded from the government’s and Parliament’s own sources.

     

    FESTIVAL The International Theatre Festival ‘Shakespeare’ continues in Craiova, south-western Romania with a new series of theatre shows, multi-media installations, outdoor film screenings, book launches and round table talks.  ‘Macbeth’, brought by the Theatre without Name based in Chisinau, the Republic of Moldova, and the ‘Twelfth Night’ directed by Andrei Serban at the state theatre in Constanta are the festival’s main events today. Shakespeare village, a British village from 16 hundred build from scratch on the local hippodrome is the venue for scores of concerts and shows, while the Craiova Promenade is hosting the Shakespeare Dimension cube, providing a virtual immersion into the Shakespearian world. At its thirtieth edition this year, the aforementioned international event consists of 300 shows and events bringing together some of the world’s most famous directors and actors such as Robert Wilson, Declan Donnellan, Peter Brook or Robert Lepage.

     

    VISIT Romanians will be able to travel to Turkey without passports only with their ID cards, Turkish president Tayyip Recep Erdogan decided during the formal visit Romania’s Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu paid to Ankara. The Romanian Prime Minister participated together with president Erdogan in the first joint session of the two governments, when they decided that Romanian farmers may resume the export and transit of meat through Turkey. Also high on the talks agenda were the extended cooperation in the fields of defence and energy.

     

    (bill)

     

  • The Exhibition “Femininity and motherhood in prehistory”

    The Exhibition “Femininity and motherhood in prehistory”

    The month of March marks the beginning of spring and the celebration of femininity, these being the international symbols associated with this month. The National History Museum of Romania (MNIR), in the historical center of Bucharest, celebrated the month of March with a very special exhibition. Its curator, the archaeologist and museographer Andreea Bîrzu, told us about this exhibition:

    “In March, the National History Museum of Romania celebrates women through a new temporary exhibition: ‘Femininity and motherhood in prehistory. Neo-Eneolithic anthropomorphic plastic representations from the museum collection. An exhibition that we especially dedicated to all ladies and young ladies.”

    Andreea Birzu also explained the curatorial concept behind this exhibition hosted by the National History Museum of Romania.

    “The curatorial project offers the public the extraordinary opportunity to learn the story of some of the most spectacular artefacts from this remote period in human history. The exhibition discourse is structured around exceptional archaeological cultural assets from the museum’s collection of prehistoric objects, miniature embodiments of female shapes, vessels and statuettes that have lasted more than 6,000 years. Expressive, with a great emotional and symbolic impact, many of these anthropomorphic representations are true masterpieces of prehistoric art.”

    Curator Andreea Bîrzu gave us more details about the prehistoric artifacts on display at the National History Museum of Romania:

    “Of great diversity in shape, decoration and artistic achievement, the statuettes and vessels depict female characters in various poses. Perhaps the most impressive, the one that prompts the viewer to reflect, is that of motherhood, suggested by anatomical details carefully chosen and modelled by the prehistoric craftsmen. The breasts and the pubic triangle are visible, just like the protruding abdomen. Often, these pieces have an elaborate decoration, with geometric or spiral designs, inlaid on the surface of the body, suggesting elements of clothing, ornaments, hairstyles or even tattoos.”

    We asked Andreea Birzu which was in her opinion the item that impressed visitors the most.

    “Perhaps the most impressive representation of the female figure is that of motherhood, suggested by carefully chosen and modeled anatomical details. … The figurine of the mother with the child on her chest, discovered at Rast, in Dolj county, in southwest Romania, is perhaps the most relevant.”

    But what these arfecats meant to the prehistoric people? Andreea Birzu explained:

    “These artifacts give us particularly valuable information about the development of the community, about the beliefs, concerns and ideals of people in the distant past. They illustrate aesthetic and religious canons specific to the Neo-Eneolithic world, understood as expressions of reality, of aspects of daily life, of women’s identity, or as representations of divinities, of fecundity and fertility, or as objects of worship. The existence of these artifacts is closely related to the spiritual life of prehistoric societies, depicting through symbolic images the values ​​and principle of femininity. Femininity and motherhood were certainly sources of complex meanings for the prehistoric man, which remain rooted in the collective consciousness of modern people.”

    The exhibition hosted by the National History Museum of Romania was received with interest by the audience, Andreea Birzu told us:

    “The reaction of the visitors who see these objects, some of them for the first time, is very interesting. Most of them told me that they were delighted by the expressiveness of these pieces, by their ability to attract and hold their gaze like a magnet. Some have also said that they were amazed by the extraordinary power of abstraction of the prehistoric artisans, who managed to render with simple, rudimentary means the essence of femininity which they transposed in these figures of clay and bone.”

  • March 27, 2024

    March 27, 2024

    Visit – The National Bank supports and encourages initiatives aimed at the development of the capital market in the Republic of Moldova, and as an institution responsible for prudential supervision and the stability of the financial market, we want to facilitate the free movement of capital and financial services, the governor of the National Bank of Moldova, Anca Dragu, said on Wednesday in Bucharest. She emphasized that these are actually chapters of negotiation for Moldova’s accession to the European Union, “chapters in which the National Bank has a leading role, so that the Republic of Moldova should enjoy prosperity and economic stability”. Romania commits and continues to commit unconditionally to supporting the European path of the Republic of Moldova, said, in turn, the speaker of the Romanian Senate, Nicolae Ciucă. They participated, on Wednesday, together with the Moldovan Prime Minister, Dorin Recean, and the head of the Moldovan Parliament, Igor Grosu, in a forum organized by the Stock Exchange, an event that promotes solid economic cooperation and the interconnection of the capital markets between the Republic of Moldova and Romania.

     

    Bessarabia – Romania is among the staunch supporters of the European future of the Republic of Moldova, as its citizens wish, the Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu said in a message on the occasion of the Day of Bessarabia’s Union with Romania. The Romanian Cultural Institute – ICR and its representations abroad are organizing a series of cultural events to mark 106 years since this historic moment. Today, at the National Art Museum of Romania, a painting exhibition is opened that includes 100 works by artists from the Republic of Moldova, and the National Theater in Bucharest will host performances in which Romanian and Moldovan actors will participate. On March 27, 1918, the Chisinau State Council voted in favor of the Union of Bessarabia with Romania, Bessarabia being a Romanian province annexed by the Russian Empire in 1812, after the Russian-Turkish war (1806-1812). This historical act opened the process of the unification of Romania, completed on December 1, 1918, through the Union of all the Romanian provinces which were then under foreign rule. 22 years later, in the summer of 1940, following an ultimatum, Stalin’s Moscow annexed both Bessarabia and northern Bukovina, territories that currently belong to the former Soviet Republics of Moldova and Ukraine, respectively.

     

    Brancusi – The Pompidou Center in Paris hosts an exhibition-event dedicated to Constantin Brâncuşi, considered the father of modern sculpture, which can be visited until July 1. Hundreds of sculptures, photographs, sketches and archival images are on display in the exhibition which includes Brâncuşi’s Workshop, the place where the great Romanian artist created and lived, alongside works borrowed from major international museums. All of Constantin Brâncuşi’s works from the Romanian heritage are exhibited, sent by the National Art Museum of Romania and the Art Museum in Craiova (southern Romania). ‘Brâncuşi is an artist who was very little exposed during his life, as he preferred to invite his contemporaries to come to his workshop. He liked to control all dimensions of the presentation of his sculptures’, explains Ariane Coulondre, curator of the exhibition, in a press release. The Brâncusi Retrospective at the Pompidou Center, the first in the last almost 30 years and the largest ever organized event, is held with the support of the Romanian Embassy in France and the Romanian Cultural Institute.

     

    Deficit – Romania’s budget deficit reached, after the first two months of the year, almost 29 billion lei (about 6 billion Euros), accounting for 1.67% of the Gross Domestic Product, show data published by the Finance Ministry. The deficit is almost double compared to the same period of last year. The Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu said, however, that it would observe the 5% threshold estimated for the end of the year. The economy is self-financing and we will have the largest economic growth in Europe, the Romanian PM also said.

     

    Handball – CS Dinamo Bucharest defeated the Danish team Bjerringbro Silkeborg, score 37-34, on Tuesday evening, at home, in the first leg of the play-off of the EHF European League men’s handball competition. The second leg will take place on April 2, in Silkeborg. Trained by the Spanidh Xavi Pascual, the Romanian champions start with the first chance in the return leg to qualify for the next stage. Afterwards, the winners of the quarterfinals will play in the Final Four Tournament (semifinals and finals). The German team Fuchse Berlin is the holder of the trophy. (LS)

  • The Exhibition “Victor Brauner, between the oneiric and the occult”

    The Exhibition “Victor Brauner, between the oneiric and the occult”

    The exhibition “Victor Brauner. Between the oneiric and the occult” is hosted by the National Gallery of the National Art Museum of Romania until April 30, 2024. Opened on December 1, 2023, the exhibition emphasises the originality, grounded in domestic sources, of Victor Brauner’s works as well as his contribution to the surrealist movement started one hundred years ago.

    The exhibition presents, through more than 100 exhibits, the initial sources of the artist’s creation, stemming from the traditional spirituality and his interest in the occult and esoteric practices, as well as the evolution of his artistic means towards a surrealist aesthetic.

    Călin Stegerean, the director of the museum, is the one who designed the concept of the exhibition:

    Călin Stegerean: “The exhibition presents works by the artist and objects that we borrowed from the Dimitrie Gusti National Village Museum in Bucharest and which aim to reflect the artist’s inclination towards the oneiric and the occult. In fact, a lot of biographical sources speak of this sensitivity and the way in which it was translated into his paintings and beyond. Because our exhibition also has an important component represented by graphic works, drawings, works in watercolour and gouache, but also engravings, which, just like his paintings, are excellent. There are works that belong to the National Art Museum of Romania, but also works that I borrowed from the Pompidou Centre in Paris, from the Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Saint-Etienne, also from the Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Strasbourg, as well as from the Museum of Visual Art in Galati and the Tara Crisurilor Museum in Oradea. I think we managed to bring so many works because the project of the exhibition was convincing, as it’s something quite new in the international landscape of museography. In recent years, there have been several exhibitions dedicated to this artist, including the one organized in 2023 in Timișoara, which was a European Capital of Culture, but none presented the artist’s creation on these coordinates, which are essential to his work, the oneiric and the occult. Moreover, there are many works signed by him in Romania, so it was an opportunity for collectors to present them to the general public. The exhibition also includes avant-garde magazines and books signed by the artist, from the National Library of Romania, the Metropolitan Library of Bucharest and the Lucian Blaga Central University Library in Cluj-Napoca. Also, unpublished documents related to the séances organized by Bogdan Petriceicu Hașdeu, which we brought from the National Archives of Romania.”

    Victor Brauner was born in 1903, in Piatra Neamț. After moving to Viena and Brăila, in 1918 his family came to Bucharest, where Victor Brauner attended the Fine Arts School. The year 1923 saw his first contact with the avantgarde movement, with the young artist becoming a contributor for some of the country’s leading avantgarde magazines, such as Contimporanul, Punct, Integral, Unu, Urmuz, and taking part in major group exhibitions together with Marcel Iancu, M.H. Maxy, Hans Mattis-Teutsch, Milița Petrașcu.

    In 1932 he joined the surrealist movement spearheaded by André Breton and took part in several exhibitions of this group. In 1938 he moved to Paris, never to return to Romania, and grappled with various problems during World War II. After the war, his success in Europe and in the US skyrocketed.  He died in 1966, widely acknowledged as a remarkable representative of surrealism.

    The exhibition in Bucharest also hosts screenings of “Les illuminations successives,” an excerpt from the movie “Victor Brauner – Le grand illuminateur totémique” (2014) directed by Fabrice Maze.

    Călin Stegerean: “This is an event that we promote under the motto ‘More than an exhibition, an experience.’ Because the public are invited to experience it with their senses, an experience restoring their relationship with visual arts. The design is unique, it is designed to convey a dreamy, oneiric dimension through the very configuration of the space and the colours of the walls on which the works are displayed. We actually set out to offer several types of messages, some of them represented by the texts accompanying the various sections of the exhibition, but beyond that, there are the changing colours of the walls, and the geometry of the space is nothing like what the public has seen so far in the temporary exhibitions hosted by our museum. I believe this is a first at international level as well, and I must confess we did some thorough research in this respect.”

    The National Art Museum of Romania owns eight paintings and two drawings by the artist Victor Brauner. (MI, AMP)

  • “Between Romania and France”.  A Bucharest Art Gallery Exhibition

    “Between Romania and France”.  A Bucharest Art Gallery Exhibition

    The annual exhibition organised by the Bucharest Art Gallery with the Bucharest City Museum is of particular importance this year, when Romania celebrates 30 years since it became a full member of the International Francophonie Organisation. We talked about the exhibition with the museum’s deputy director, Elena Olariu:

     

    Elena Olariu: “The exhibition was opened on November 17, 2023 and will stay on until September 26 this year, so there is enough time for art lovers to see it. In 2023 we celebrated 30 years since Romania joined the OIF, and this is precisely the reason why this exhibition was organised. The most important idea conveyed by the works on display is the intrinsic connection between Romanian and French art. Since the second half of the 19th Century, and especially in the 20th Century, until the communist regime started, Romanian youth would go to Europe to study art. They would study in Munich and in Paris. In Paris, they would go to the greatest art academy in the world, the Beaux Arts, as Paris had become the world’s art centre, at least in the second half of the 19th Century.”

     

    Elena Olariu gave us more details about the history of Romanian Francophonie from the perspective of fine arts and the Romanian artists’ love for France and especially for Paris. She also spoke about the beginnings of modern art in Romania and the birth of higher education in arts, initiated by the painter Theodor Aman (1831-1891):

     

    Elena Olariu: “It was in the French capital that Theodor Aman studied, for instance, and it is with him that our exhibition begins. He completed his art studies in Paris and even started to show his works there, at the official art salons, major art exhibitions, the largest in Europe actually, which showed works by French artists and by the artists who stayed in Paris after graduation. Theodor Aman had fulfilled his dream of studying in the European capital of art. But he returned to Romania and set up the Fine Arts School here in Bucharest.”

     

    The deputy director of the Bucharest City Museum also listed a number of other major Romanian artists (such as Nicolae Grigorescu, 1838-1907, Ion Andreescu, 1850-1882 and Ștefan Luchian, 1869-1916), whose works are on display at the Suțu Palace, and who were influenced by France and the artistic connections with the arts in Paris:

     

    Elena Olariu: “Another important artist, a grand master, our national painter Nicolae Grigorescu, also left for Paris to complete his education in arts. Many of these Romanian artists had been church painters and they went to Paris to learn about modern art, the art of easel painting, as we would say today. Andreescu did the same, and we have an interesting work of his in the exhibition. … After Grigorescu and Andreescu, it was Ștefan Luchian’s turn to come to Paris. Although Luchian had initially studied in Munich, he lived for a while in Paris afterwards. And this very interesting alternation between Munich and Paris was a regular practice for a long time.”

     

    Elena Olariu also mentioned the extraordinary relationship between the Romanian painter Theodor Pallady and the great French painter Henri Matisse:

     

    Elena Olariu: “In France, Romanian artists met French artists as well… Pallady, for instance, became friends with Matisse, … and, for those who don’t know the amazing story of the Romanian traditional blouse, he offered the French artist a small series of traditional blouses with exquisite needlework. He gave them to Matisse as a present, and in turn Matisse made an important series of drawings and paintings featuring these peasant blouses worn by young female models. … These impressive connections were not only important in terms of art per se, but also in terms of the promotion of Romanian culture in general, and this is a very important aspect to keep in mind.”

     

    We asked Elena Olariu which other artists are featured in the exhibition:

     

    Elena Olariu: “Other important artists in the exhibition are Ștefan Popescu, who studied in Munich but lived many years in Paris, and Kimon Loghi, for instance, who travelled and worked across France. Iosif Iser, Max Arnold, Ștefan Constantin and many other artists travelled constantly between Romania and France. And I would also like to mention Cecilia Cuțescu-Storck, represented in our exhibition by a number of graphic works and paintings.”

     

    At the end of our conversation, Elena Olariu concluded:

     

    Elena Olariu: “We believe this exhibition fully reflects the important connections between Romania and France, especially in the inter-war period, and the heights reached by Romanian art during those times.” (AMP)

  • January 29, 2024

    January 29, 2024

    PARLIAMENT This week sees the start of this
    year’s first parliamentary session in Romania, marked by a special election
    context in which Romanian citizens are expected to take part in 4 types of
    elections-for the European Parliament, for the national parliament, as well as
    presidential and local elections. The Senate’s agenda includes, among others,
    emergency orders concerning the farmers and carriers who have been protesting
    across the country. The Chamber of Deputies has a number of bills pending
    endorsement, including legislation concerning drug trafficking and gambling. This
    weekend the justice minister Alina Gorghiu said 3 bills have been submitted to
    Parliament, which are aimed at curbing drug trafficking. They concern the
    set-up of a national drug trafficking register and of regional rehab centres, while
    the so-called 2 Mai Bill eliminates suspended sentences for drug trafficking
    and increases penalties to up to 10 years in prison. Other bills pending
    approval introduce 10-year driving bans for DUI, and healthcare and
    psychological assistance for people found in possession of illegal drugs.


    ECONOMY An International
    Monetary Fund mission headed by Jan Kees Martijn arrives
    in Bucharest today to review the latest economic and financial developments.
    This is a regular consultation based on Romania’s relation with the IMF, and it
    comes 4 months after the previous visit. The IMF expects a budget deficit of 6%
    of GDP and an economic growth rate of 2.3% this year. IMF experts also
    recommend a number of additional reforms, and in the previous assessment visit
    they mentioned the scrapping of the remaining exemptions, privileges and
    loopholes, a more efficient VAT implementation, a reformed property tax system,
    and the use of fiscal policies in order to promote efficient energy and the
    clean energy transition. Romania has no ongoing agreements with the IMF at
    present.


    BRANCUSI Some 100 works were included in the largest
    exhibition in 50 years in Romania devoted to the sculptor Constantin Brâncuși.
    Opened in late September in western Romania as part the Timişoara – European
    Capital of Culture, the exhibition came to an end on Sunday night. Sculptures,
    photographs, arhive documents and footage were on display in Timişoara’s National
    Art Museum. To mark the end of the exhibition, the National Bank of Romania
    launched a commemorative silver coin honouring the sculptor Constantin Brâncuşi.


    PROTESTS The French farmers’ protests have
    reached a new stage today, with major roadways into Paris and other large
    cities to be blocked indefinitely as of today. The main trade union in the sector threatened
    large-scale operations, including a complete obstruction of food supply flows
    to the capital city’s supermarkets, so that the locals may feel the effects of
    the protests. According to Radio Romania’s correspondent in Paris, the plan
    includes the use of tractors to shut down motorways and slow down traffic. Similar
    steps are also planned for France’s second-largest city, Lyon. Farmers protest the
    inadequate payments for their produce, the red tape and the competition coming
    from cheap imports. In a move to address the situation, PM Gabriel Attal admitted
    that a first set of measures, announced on Friday, was insufficient and
    promised new decisions to increase farmer revenues would be made this week.


    MIDDLE EAST Iran denies involvement in
    Sunday’s drone attack on a US military base in north-eastern Jordan, near the
    Syrian and Iraqi borders, in which 3 US troops were killed. The Islamic
    resistance in Iraq claimed responsibility for the attack, and the US president
    Joe Biden said these are groups known to be supported by Iran. Biden warned
    that the US would respond to the attack. These are the first US troops killed
    in the Middle East since the start of the war in Gaza, prompting fears of an
    extended conflict in the region. Meanwhile, Paris hosted a meeting of officials
    from the US, Egypt, Qatar and Israel, aimed at brokering a new ceasefire in Gaza
    and the release of the hostages taken by Hamas. Negotiations will continue this
    week. Violence continues in Gaza, and locals say Israeli air raids and shelling
    have increased in recent days in the region’s north and centre. According to
    the Israeli Army, its troops are involved in heavy fighting in the south, in Khan
    Younis, where they have taken out a number of terrorists. The humanitarian
    crisis is worsening, and UN calls on nations to resume their donations. (AMP)

  • The “Cuza 150” Exhibition

    The “Cuza 150” Exhibition


    In early October 2023, the
    National History Museum of Romania (MNIR) hosted the opening of the exhibition
    Cuza 150, marking 150 years since the death of prince Alexandru
    Ioan Cuza (1820-1873). Cuza was the first ruler of the Romanian United
    Principalities and of the modern Romanian state. A major historical subject of
    both controversy and fascination, Cuza’s rule had a great impact on the
    development of the Romanian state. Cornel Ilie, the deputy director of MNIR,
    the curator of the Cuza 150 exhibition, told us more:


    The exhibition obviously
    celebrates 150 years since the death of Alexandru Ioan Cuza. Like I’ve said on
    previous occasions, this is not just an exhibition about Cuza’s death. It
    rather focuses on the life and activity of Alexandru Ioan Cuza. Therefore, for
    us, Cuza 150 was an opportunity to bring Alexandru Ioan Cuza back
    into the spotlight, given he is an iconic representative of our modern history.
    His name is tied to a major milestone in Romanian historiography – the Union of
    the Romanian Principalities, as well as to a series of events and actions with
    a key contribution to the emergence of modern Romania. Our exhibition speaks
    not only to Alexandru Ioan Cuza the ruler. Surely, parts of it focus on that,
    but it also speaks to the man he was. At one point I actually considered
    picking a different name for this exhibition, for instance Cuza, man and
    ruler. Alexandru Ioan Cuza ultimately had all the makings of any man: a
    man of many talents, certainly flawed, with weaknesses and passions of his own,
    with an entourage made of people of greater or lesser quality, although with
    equal influence on his rule. Therefore, everyone who visits the exhibition will
    discover all these different sides of Alexandru Ioan Cuza.


    Cornel Ilie also told us how the
    exhibition approaches these two different personae: Cuza the ruler, the
    politician, and the prince’s private life.


    We tried to illustrate
    these two sides by means of a series of heritage items, each telling a story,
    for instance, about Alexandru Ioan Cuza’s family, his parents and rise to
    prominence. They speak to who Cuza was before ascending to the throne, about
    his diplomatic career, about his stellar military career, because Cuza is
    portrayed in full military uniform in every instance of this exhibition. He is
    never depicted in civilian dress, but always wearing military garb.


    Cornel Ilie tells us more about
    the items on display:


    There are certain
    symbol-objects, such as the two thrones of ruler Alexandru Ioan Cuza and his
    wife Elena Cuza, thrones that had also been used by Charles and his wife
    Elisabeth until 1881, when they were crowned King and Queen of Romania. Also on
    display is the famous official portrait of Alexandu Ioan Cuza which we all know
    from history books, painted by Carol Popp de Szatmari. A very interesting exhibit is the painting
    dedicated to the Union of the Romanian Principalities, signed by Theodor Aman,
    which is perhaps the most important painting dedicated to that historic moment.
    We have tried to identify all the people in the painting, so that visitors
    should know the names of all those who took part in this highly important event
    in Romania’s history. The exhibition also includes objects that tell us, for
    example, about the agrarian reform, which was very important not only because
    it meant that peasants received land, but because it was a moment that
    generated some very important changes in the political life of the country.
    There are exhibits that remind of the establishment of the university in Iași
    and Bucharest, the first two universities on Romanian territory. There are also
    very interesting objects related to the implementation of the single weights
    and measures system, given that up to that moment it had been a total chaos,
    each province using different measurement units. Part of the exhibition are also
    objects that remind us of the military reform and of the outstanding
    achievements during Cuza’s rule, when a number of vital institutions for the
    further development of the country were established. Among them are cultural
    institutions, science academies, visual art institutes and the Institute of
    Statistics, established in 1860, when the first census was conducted. The first
    weapon ever made in Romania, at the Romanian Arms Manufacture, is also
    displayed. Then there are exhibits that, as I said, tell us about Cuza’s
    personal life, about the life of his wife Elena and their relationship and also
    items that touch on taboo topics, such as the relationship he had with Maria
    Obrenovici.


    Cornel Ilie also told us his
    personal opinion on the exhibition:


    It is an exhibition that, I
    believe, has a different approach from what others may have seen related to
    Cuza before. It is an exhibition worth visiting also due to the fact that we
    put together items collected from several museums in the country. I believe
    people could better understand this complex and admirable historical
    personality, by visiting the exhibition at the MNIR. (VP/EE)



  • “Maxim Dumitraș – Son and Father” Exhibition

    “Maxim Dumitraș – Son and Father” Exhibition

    In early December, the Pavel Șușară Modern and
    Contemporary Art Museum in Bucharest (MAMCO) hosted the opening of an
    exhibition bringing two generations into a dialogue. The exhibition, entitled Maxim
    Dumitraș – Son and Father, is curated by Pavel Șușară and Dalina Bădescu, and
    will be open until the beginning of February 2024. We asked one of its curators
    about the significance of this exhibition in the contemporary art landscape and
    about what makes it unique in Romania:


    Pavel Șușară:
    Indeed, it is a special-even more than special-event. It is unique in that
    such an exhibition is impossible to organise again: even if in principle someone
    could retrace the same scenario, the characters that made this exhibition
    possible would be missing. It is an art exhibition, at a basic, superficial
    level, and obviously we have all the art’s conventions present, we have
    painting, graphic art, sculpture, all the classical genres, but what makes it
    unique is its human content, its birth and its development, its substance. It
    showcases the last period in the life of Max Dumitraș’s father, who, in order
    to alleviate his loneliness and fears, was asked by Max to draw lines over a number of compositions by Max Dumitraș. What seemed to be a stereotypical
    kind of work and a routine movement grew into a form of shelter from anxieties,
    from loneliness, from the imminence of death which he obviously felt coming. It
    became a sort of curtain, a sort of fence separating his world and the world
    beyond, which was the world shaped and created by Max. But with these lines, Max’s
    father created a protective screen, where he was safe from his own fears, and
    with time, this fence became a sort of radiograph or a map of his physical and
    psychological state. The lines become more and more faltering, less precise, more
    and more fluid, until eventually it becomes completely random and unnatural. So
    this makes the exhibition a meditation on life and death, a sort of redemption through
    art, a kind of therapy for one’s dreads, a space where the certainty of
    existing is still meaningful. It is yet another certainty.



    We also asked Pavel Șușară what place does the
    artist Maxim Dumitraș hold in Romanian contemporary art:

    Pavel Șușară: He is an institution. Apart from having
    created institutions, Maxim Dumitraș is an institution himself, in what he
    achieved and in how he created events around him, organised symposiums,
    arranged a natural space, some ravines which he turned into residences and work
    areas for artists. And he did not embellish nature, he did not introduce
    artificial elements in a natural setting, but integrated art in a natural
    setting, thus proving that art in general, creation, is not separated from the
    world for which we are not responsible, but rather a form of continuity and a
    form of noticing its harmony.


    Pavel Șușară also told us about the plans MAMCO has
    for the year 2024:


    Pavel Șușară: We have already scheduled exhibitions
    for the entire year. We have a joint project with the Art Biennale in Plovdiv,
    Bulgaria and we are partners in 2024. There will be 10 Romanian artists showing
    their works there. Towards the end of the year we will have the miniature
    salon, which we have turned into a biennale. All in all, we have some 6-7
    exhibitions scheduled for next year.


    In turn, the artist Maxim Dumitraș also gave us details
    about the process behind this project completed together with his father in the
    latter’s last years of life:


    Maxim Dumitraș: I started it 8 years ago, I worked
    with my father. He worked on the composition’s vertical axis, I worked on the
    colour. We intervened and we worked together on these items, which are in fact
    some canes which turned into something else over time, just like the father
    line. They turned into objects that must be touched, we called them objects of
    better. I worked on some 150 drawings with my father, we made some books
    called Bags of dreams, in which he also made the lines and I did the colour. Between
    the ages of 71 and 92, he was my apprentice in the atelier every day. When he
    was younger, I used to be his apprentice, then we switched roles and he became
    the creator-apprentice. He was a sort of philosopher, a person of exceptional
    fairness and elegance.


    At the end of the interview, Maxim Dumitraș told us
    about his accomplishments in 2023:


    Maxim Dumitraș: I always try to simplify things, but
    every year they get more and more complicated. I made a monumental sculpture,
    some 15 tonnes in weight. I had an exhibition in Bistrița and several other
    projects in Sângeorz-Băi. It was a very prolific year, so to say. (AMP)

  • November 20, 2023

    November 20, 2023

    Tour – The President of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, is paying a state visit to the Republic of Cape Verde today, where he is meeting with his counterpart Jose Maria Neves, the Prime Minister Jose Ulisses Correia e Silva and other officials. Last Tuesday the Romanian president started a tour in Africa that included Kenya, Tanzania, Zanzibar (autonomous territory belonging to Tanzania). The last stage of the tour is the official visit to Senegal.



    Visit – The Romanian Foreign Minister, Luminiţa Odobescu, is visiting Paris today, where she is having talks with the head of the French diplomacy, Catherine Colonna. High on the agenda of talks are the bilateral cooperation in the field of Foreign Affairs and Defense, the current international crises, especially the situation in the Middle East and the war in Ukraine. According to Radio Romania’s correspondent in Paris, the French FM, Catherine Colonna, will emphasize, again, Frances long-term commitment as the framework nation of the NATO Multinational Command in Romania to strengthen the defense on the Eastern Flank of the Alliance. The meeting between the two ministers represents a further opportunity to reaffirm the common decision for a lasting support given to Ukraine in all fields, hailing the efforts made by Romania for the functioning of the corridors for the export of Ukrainian cereals. The discussions also focus on the prospects of expanding the EU with the countries of the Western Balkans, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine.



    Exhibition – The exhibition “Dacia – the last frontier of the Roman world” opens in Rome today. It can be visited until the end of April. Hundreds of archaeological objects from the territory of Romania, dating back over a thousand years, are on display. The artefacts come from 47 museums in Romania, the Republic of Moldova and Italy, which provide a strong testimony of the Roman civilization. According to Ambassador Gabriela Dancău, the exhibition brings together archeology and technology, allowing access to a universe where the ancestors of the Getae-Dacians evolved. The opening of the exhibition, located in the National Museum Terme di Diocleziano in Rome, is being attended by the ministers of culture from Romania, the Republic of Moldova and Italy – Raluca Turcan, Sergiu Prodan, and Gennaro Sangiuliano, respectively.



    Cernavoda – Unit 1 of the Cernavodă Nuclear Power Plant has been resynchronized to the national energy system, and today it will operate at nominal power, the Energy Ministry informs. The unit was automatically disconnected from the national electricity distribution network on Saturday night due to winds that blew at over 100 kilometers per hour. In Constanţa county, in the south-east of Romania, the storm over the weekend felled 240 trees, tore off 50 roofs and damaged 60 cars. At the same time, approximately 40,000 consumers from 80 localities in the Dobrogea region were left without electricity. The energy supplier reported that, in the meantime, power has been restored for almost 93% of those affected.



    Pensions – In Romania, the draft public pension system law passed the Senate and reaches, today, the Chamber of Deputies, the decision-making body. The government has calculated that it needs 5 billion Euros to increase pensioners incomes and it is still not clear where this money will come from. According to the draft law, two increases are scheduled for in 2024: as of January 1,a rise by 13.8% for all the approximately five million pensioners, and in September, a new increase, based on a new calculation formula, which takes into account the seniority, the contribution or the value of the correction index, targeting, this time approximately three million pensioners. Last week, in the Senate, the MPs of the ruling coalition, PSD and PNL, voted in favor of the draft pension law, which, they said, brings balance to the system. The opposition parties Save Romania Union – USR and the Alliance for the Union of Romanians – AUR abstained from voting. During the debates, the opposition senators criticized those in power for the lack of data regarding the resources and the budgetary impact regarding this draft law.



    Budget — The drafting of the budget bill for 2024 by the Government is going to be finalized this week. The PSD-PNL coalition has already agreed that, along with funding investments, priority will be attached to education and healthcare, but it seems that even these ministries will not receive as much money as they would like, given the constraints related to the budget deficit. And, meanwhile, there are more and more requests for money at the end of this year from the town halls as well as from the Transport Ministry. The main resource for supporting the future budget will be the fight against tax evasion. The social democratic PM Marcel Ciolacu said that, by eliminating tax evasion, the necessary funds can be obtained for pension increases, education and healthcare.



    Football – Qualified, mathematically, for the Euro 2024 from Germany, the Romanian national football team meets Switzerland, on Tuesday evening, in the last match of the Qualifying Group I. Undefeated, Romania occupies the first position, with 19 points, and can be the winner of the group if it does not lose the match with Switzerland, the team qualified for the 2024 European Championship. The Romanian footballers qualified after a 2-1 victory against Israel on Saturday. It will be the 6thparticipation of the national team in a final continental tournament, after those in 1984, 1996, 2000, 2008 and 2016.



    Handball – The finalist of Romania’s Women’s Handball Cup, CSM Târgu Jiu (south) qualified, for the first time, in the groups of the EHF European League competition, after defeating the Swedish team Onnereds HK, with the score of 26-23, on Sunday, at home, in the second leg of the third preliminary round. HC Dunărea Brăila (south-east) also qualified on Sunday after defeating the German team BV Borussia 09 Dortmund, with the score of 27-22, at home. Another Romanian team that will play in the EHF European League groups is CS Gloria 2018 Bistriţa-Năsăud (north). In the Champions League groups, Romania is represented by the Bucharest teams CSM and Rapid. (LS)