Radio România Internațional

Tag: FCSB

  • December 13, 2024

    December 13, 2024

    GOVERNMENT – President Klaus Iohannis is expected to convene the new Parliament on December 20. Having won nearly two thirds of seats after the December 1 parliamentary election, pro-European parties and the group of national minorities have engaged in talks with a view to forming a coalition cabinet. Leaders of the Social-Democratic Party (PSD), the National Liberal Party (PNL), the Save Romania Union (USR) and the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians (UDMR) have agreed that each party would control a number of ministries equal to their share in Parliament. The new cabinet will comprise 16 ministries. Three self-proclaimed sovereigntist parties – the Alliance for the Unity of Romanians (AUR), SOS Romania and the Young People’s Party (POT) – will also be represented in the new Parliament. The new government will very likely be sworn in ahead of the Christmas holidays. For the time being, the pro-European coalition has agreed to designate a common candidate for the 2025 presidential election.

     

    INVESTIGATION – The Prahova Tribunal is today examining the appeal submitted by prosecutors and defendants against the decision to place former mercenary Horațiu Potra under pre-trial arrest. Potra is an acting local councilman and a close associate of the former independent candidate in the 2024 presidential election, Călin Georgescu, known for his extremist and sovereigntist views and his admiration for Vladimir Putin. Potra is the target of an investigation into violations of the arms and munitions regulations, operations involving pyrotechnical materials and incitement. Another close associate of Călin Georgescu, Eugen Sechila, a former member of the Foreign Legion, was also placed under pre-trial arrest and barred from leaving the country. Sechila was detained on Thursday at Otopeni Airport and taken in for questioning after prosecutors were tipped he might try to leave the country. Sechila was officially charged with displaying legion symbols. According to the legislation in force, the public display of fascist, legionnaire, racist or xenophobic symbols is punishable by up to three years in prison and the loss of certain rights.

     

    MOLDOVA – The Parliament of the Republic of Moldova last night voted the introduction of a state of emergency at national level for 60 days, starting December 16. The measure was taken after the Russian energy giant Gazprom decided to cut gas deliveries to Transnistria starting January 1. 56 of the total of 101 Moldovan MPs voted in favor of Prime Minister Dorin Recean’s initiative.  “The measure is designed to put an end to Moscow’s gas blackmail”, the Moldovan Prime Minister said. The Republic of Moldova receives approximately 2 billon cubic meters of gas every year from Russia via a power plant in Transnistria, which covers most of the country’s electricity output. Gazprom’s decision to discontinue gas deliveries to Transnistria starting next year will impact enterprises and the population in Moldova, while authorities in Transnistria will have to procure their electricity on the international market at higher costs, experts say.

     

    UKRAINE – The Foreign Ministers of France, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain and the United Kingdom met in Berlin on Thursday to reiterate support for Ukraine and its irreversible NATO track. The Ministers also promised Kyiv additional military support in the war against Russia as well as post-conflict security guarantees. At the end of the meeting, the Foreign Ministers joined the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, in signing the Berlin Declaration, given that the scenario of peace talks between Ukraine and Russia has become a possibility with Donald Trump’s return at the White House. Several member states, including the USA and Germany, have expressed reluctance towards the prospect of a swift accession to NATO for Ukraine. In the case of an agreement between Russia and Ukraine, Kyiv’s allies could deploy a peace-keeping corps to Ukraine, as a security guarantee.

     

    FOOTBALL – Romania’s champions, FCSB, drew 0-0 against Hoffenheim of Germany on Thursday in the 6th round of Europa League. The team from Bucharest ranks 10 in the group standings and holds good chances of advancing to the next phase. Two more rounds follow in Germany, with the final match scheduled at home against Manchester United of England. The draw for the 2026 World Cup preliminaries is scheduled today in Zurich. (VP)

  • Sports Weekend

    Sports Weekend

     

    The Bucharest-based football team FCSB drew 0-0 in their Europa League away game played on Thursday night against the German side Hoffenheim. The Romanian champions, now in the main phase of the competition, have 11 points after 3 wins, 2 draws and 1 defeat. They are in 10th place, with the stated goal of finishing among the top 8 teams at the end of this stage and going straight to the round of 16.

     

    The atmosphere at the stadium in the small town of Sinsheim, where Hoffenheim plays its home games, was dominated by the Romanian fans. Romania’s champions played fast-paced European football, very different from its performances in the domestic championship. The Bundesliga team dominated, but did not manage to score. FCSB’s defence was good, with dangerous counterattacks and several great opportunities to score missed. The final result was fair and pleased the Romania players.

     

    There is now a break in European competitions, after which FCSB will play the last two matches of the main stage in Europa League. On January 23, they will take on the Azerbaijani team Qarabag, away from home, and then, on the 30th, they will face Manchester United in Bucharest.

     

    The top eight teams qualify directly for the round of 16, and the teams ranked between 9 and 24 will have to go through play-off matches. Teams that finish between 25 and 36, as well as those that lose the play-off, will be eliminated from the competition.

     

    This weekend, matches are scheduled counting for the Romanian Football Super League, round number 20. On Friday, two games: Botoşani vs Hermannstadt and Dinamo Bucharest vs Poli Iaşi. On Saturday, Oţelul hosts the Arad team UTA in Galaţi, while in Craiova, Universitatea faces Sepsi Sfântu Gheorghe. The evening ends with the game in Cluj, pitting Universitatea against Petrolul Ploieşti. On Sunday, in Clinceni, Unirea Slobozia play CFR Cluj, while in Ovidiu, Farul Constanţa meet FCSB. The last match in this round, Rapid Bucharest vs Gloria Buzău, is scheduled for Monday. Universitatea Cluj and FCSB lead the standings, tied on points. (AMP)

  • December 12, 2024

    December 12, 2024

     

    SCHENGEN The EU interior ministers convening in the Justice and Home Affairs Council have decided to lift controls at internal land borders with and between Bulgaria and Romania, starting with 1 January 2025. “Through the coordinated efforts of Romanian authorities, through steps at political and diplomatic level, we can finally enjoy a well-deserved right, legitimately acquired by Romania”, president Klaus Iohannis said, welcoming the decision announced in Brussels. “The advantages of our membership in the free movement area are multiple and have a direct impact on citizens, on the economy and on the image of our country. Scrapping border controls means faster and simpler movement for those who travel, the time spent at the borders will be considerably reduced, and logistics costs for companies will decrease, which will rapidly increase the competitiveness of Romanian products and services on the European market. Romania’s attractiveness to foreign investors will also increase considerably”, the head of state also said. “It is a historic decision, a victory for justice and national dignity and a clear signal that we will never accept being second-class citizens in Europe,” PM Marcel Ciolacu also stressed. “It is, above all, a triumph of all Romanians, regardless of their political choice or social situation, a victory for teamwork,” the PM added. The European Commission welcomed the unanimous decision of the JHA Council, noting that “The full accession of both countries not only strengthens the Schengen Area, but will further consolidate the internal market, increase travel, trade and tourism. A solid Schengen Area strengthens the unity of the EU and makes the EU stronger on a global scale.”

     

    GOVERNMENT Negotiations continue in Parliament to define a government programme for the pro-European coalition. The talks are taking place between the Social Democratic Party, the National Liberal Party, the Save Romania Union and the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania, as well as the ethnic minorities group. According to the negotiations so far, the new cabinet would have only 15 or 16 ministers at most, and a small number of state secretaries. The distribution of these positions among the coalition parties is yet to be decided. The structure of the new government should be finalised by the end of the week. In addition, the coalition party leaders are also to decide on the new parliamentary majority will operate and who will take over the leadership of the two chambers. The new parliament is due to convene next Friday for a first session, in which the new senators and deputies will be validated.

     

    SALARIES In Romania, net average wages per month in October reached around EUR 1,050, up 12.3% compared to the corresponding month in 2023, the National Statistics Institute announced on Thursday. The highest values ​​were reported in the IT&C sector, and the lowest in the textile industry. According to the Institute, average net earnings increased in October compared to September in most economic sectors. In the public sector, in October, salary increases were operated in education and public administration. In healthcare and social assistance, average net earnings decreased slightly compared to the previous month.

     

    INFLATION The annual inflation rate in Romania rose to 5.11% in November, as against 4.67% in October. Compared to November 2023, food prices rose by 5%, and services by over 7.5%, according to the National Statistics Institute. The National Bank of Romania has revised upwards its inflation forecast for the end of the year, to 4.9%.

     

    FOOTBALL The Romanian football champions, FCSB, are taking on the German side Hoffenheim tonight in Sinsheim, in the 6th round of the Europa League group stage. With three wins, a draw and a defeat, FCSB has 10 points and is in 10th place. The Romanian champions hope for another victory, which will improve their chances to rank among the top 8 teams qualified straight into the round of 16. Hoffenheim has 5 points, with one win, two draws and two defeats, and is in 25th place, one place below the play-off qualification zone. (AMP)

  • November 7, 2024

    November 7, 2024

    MINIMUM WAGE – The national minimum wage will go up to the equivalent of 810 EUR starting January 1, 2025, according to a government decree expected to be adopted in today’s meeting. The government’s decision practically complies with the European directive that requires that the minimum wage in member states should not be less than 50% of the average gross wage.

     

    EPC – The President of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, is attending the two-day Summit of the European Political Community (EPC) and the informal meeting of the European Council, organized in Budapest, the Presidency reports. President Iohannis will call for a united and firm position of European leaders regarding the security developments in the region, as well as the continuation of support for the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of Ukraine, in the context of Russia’s war of aggression. Also, the president of Romania will take part in a discussion panel addressing issues related to migration, on which occasion he will plead for the identification of solutions at European level in the field of managing illegal migration, in the short term, as well as through a more comprehensive approach in the long term, which would allow for greater cohesion and efficiency at European level in addressing this phenomenon. The European Political Community is an intergovernmental format of political dialogue between European states, seeking to boost cooperation on issues of common interest, in order to strengthen security and stability on the European continent.

     

    AGRICULTURE – The Common Agricultural Policy needs a separate budget, and farmers need to be sure they will receive the funds without limitations linked to the rule of law or other unrelated conditions, European Commissioner for Agriculture, Janusz Wojciechowski, said in Bucharest. On the sidelines of his official visit to Romania, the EU Commissioner attended the National Conference of the Romanian Farmers’ Club jointly with the Minister of Agriculture, Florin Barbu. The European official said that, at EU level, the agricultural trade balance with third countries reached a record surplus of 70 billion EUR in 2023. The Conference was attended by farmers, high-ranking Romanian and European officials with responsibilities in the development of agriculture policies and strategies, leaders in the field of agricultural technologies, as well as representatives of farmers’ associations at European and national levels.

     

    SEDM – The Republic of Moldova is a full member of the South-East Europe Defense Ministerial Process (SEDM), hosted by Tirana, Albania, Romania’s Defense Minister, Angel Tîlvăr, said during a meeting with his Moldovan counterpart, Anatolie Nosatîi. Talks focused on recent security developments in the Black Sea region and Moldova’s European integration efforts. Minister Tîlvăr emphasized the importance of firm support for the Republic of Moldova in the face of security challenges and destabilization attempts, part of the hybrid actions of the Russian Federation. Angel Tîlvăr emphasized that the Republic of Moldova was the first state to sign a Partnership in the field of security and defense with the European Union, on May 21, a partnership that plays a key role in the modernization and strengthening of the armed forces of the Republic of Moldova.

     

    US ELECTION – Leaders from all over the world continue to react after Donald Trump announced his victory in the US presidential election. The current US President, Joe Biden, invited him to the White House and expressed his commitment to ensure a smooth transition. In turn, the president of the European Council, Charles Michel, emphasized the “enduring alliance” and the “historic link” between the EU and the USA. NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said that Donald Trump’s leadership will once again be essential to keeping the Alliance strong.

     

    GERMANY – Germany’s liberal party has announced that all its ministers will leave Olaf Scholtz’s governing coalition, after the Chancellor fired Finance Minister Christian Lindner. Social Democrat Scholtz thus remains without a majority in the Chamber of Deputies. Scholtz has announced a confidence vote for January 15, which is expected to pave the way for snap elections in March. The bone of contention between Scholtz and his Finance Minister was covering the 2025 budget deficit, at a time when Germany is going through its second year of recession. Several economic sectors are struggling and announcing layoffs, such as the car industry.

     

    FOOTBALL – Romanian football champions, FCSB, are tonight playing the Danish side FC Midtjylland at home, in a match counting towards the 4th round of Europa League. In the first three fixtures, FCSB grabbed two wins, 4-1, at home, against Rigas FS of Latvia, and 1-0, away from home, against the Greek club PAOK Thessaloniki, coached by Romanian Răzvan Lucescu, and sustained one defeat, in Scotland, 0-4 to Glasgow Rangers. (VP)

  • Sports Weekend

    Sports Weekend

    Romania’s handball team Dinamo Bucharest on Thursday outperformed German side Fuchse Berlin 38-31 in a home game counting towards the Champions League’s Group A. At the end of a balanced first half the visitors had one goal more than the hosts. However, Dinamo made a successful comeback and put on a better play in the second half of the game. The hosts’ best scorers were the Brazilian Haniel Langaro and Israeli Yoav Lumbroso, each with five goals.

    Following this result, Dinamo advanced to the third place in Group A, with 10 points out of 7 matches.  Veszprém and Paris Saint-Germain are ranking first in the group each with 12 points. Dinamo will be playing the first game on November 21 also against Fuchse, this time in Berlin.

    This week has seen the football matches of the groups stage of Romania’s Cup.  Two surprising results were registered on Thursday: third leaguer Sănătatea Cluj secured a one-all draw against first leaguer Farul Constanţa, which managed to score the equalizer only in the 85th minute of the game through Rivaldinho, the son of the great Brazilian footballer Rivaldo. Another surprising result was the one-all win of the second-leaguer Metalul Buzău against Universitatea Craiova. In the leg’s derby, FCSB secured a 4-0 win against Dinamo Bucharest.

    This weekend will be seeing the matches of the Superleague’s 15th leg. In the first match on Friday Gloria Buzău plays CFR Cluj. On Saturday, Sepsi OSK is taking on Petrolul Ploieşti in a home match while Dinamo Bucharest receives UTA of Arad. On Sunday, Politehnica Iaşi will be up at home against Oţelul Galaţi, while Universitatea Cluj on its own turf plays Farul Constanţa. Universitatea Craiova takes on FCSB in a home match. The leg’s last two matches are on Monday when Unirea Slobozia plays FC Botoşani and Rapid Bucharest plays FC Hermannstadt. Universitatea Cluj tops the ranking with 29 points, followed by Petrolul with 22.

    (bill)

  • Sports Roundup

    Sports Roundup

    Romania obtained two silver medals at the European Table Tennis Championships, which ended in Linz, Austria on Sunday.

    Both medals were won by Bernadette Szocs in the women’s singles and doubles. In the doubles, the Romanian and Austrian Sofia Polcanova were outperformed by the Czechoslovakian pair Hana Matelova / Barbora Balazova 3-2.

    In the singles finals, the Romanian player lost to her colleague in the doubles, Sofia Polcanova, who won the match 4-1.

    Corona Braşov has qualified for the third round of the Ice Hockey Continental Cup after a 6-3 win against the Lithuanian side Energija Elektrenai.

    The game took place on the Olympic Skate Rink in Brasov, which hosted the Group D matches in the competition’s second round.

    In the other match on Sunday, the Latvian side Mogo secured a 5-2 win against the Hungarians from Ferencvaros. Corona tops the ranking and goes further into the competition, the F group, which also includes the Danish side Aalborg Pirates, Katowice of Poland, and the French side Brûleurs de Loups of Grenoble.

    All the three women’s handball sides which played in the Champions League last weekend were outperformed by their opponents. On Saturday, in group B, Rapid Bucharest lost at home 31-34 against the French side Brest Bretagne, which was their fourth defeat in a row. In Group A on Sunday, Norwegian side Storhamar secured a 23-25 home win against Gloria Bistriţa-Năsăud and Metz of France, secured a 32-31 away win against CSM Bucharest. CSM ranks fourth in the group while Gloria comes 7th. At the end of the group stage, the first two sides in the group will go into the quarter finals.

    The sides ranking third, fourth, fifth and sixth are playing tie matches to reach the quarterfinals whereas the sides ranking 7th and 8th are leaving the competition.

    FCSB on Sunday won the historical derby of the Romanian football when they outperformed Dinamo Bucharest 2-0, in the Superleague’s 13th leg.

    On Friday, Universitatea Cluj clinched a 2-0 home win against Oţelul Galaţi, while in Buzau, southern Romania, local side, Gloria, obtained a 3-0 win against Hermannstadt. On Saturday in Sfântu Gheorghe, central Romania, local side Sepsi secured a 1-0 win against UTA, and the game in Ploieşti, southern Romania, pitching Petrolul against CFR Cluj ended in a goaless draw. Also in a goaless draw ended the game in Craiova, between the local side Universitatea and FC Botoşani.

    Monday will see the leg’s last games, Poli Iaşi versus Unirea Slobozia and Rapid Bucharest versus Farul Constanţa. Universitatea Cluj tops the ranking with 26 points followed by Universitatea Craiova with 21.

  • October 4, 2024

    October 4, 2024

    A roundup of local and international news.

     

    FRANCOPHONIE – The Romanian President Klaus Iohannis, is on a two-day visit to France, to attend the Francophonie Summit. According to the Presidential Administration, the 19th High-level Conference of the heads of state or government of the 88 member states, full members, associate members and observers of the International Organization of La Francophonie (OIF) has the theme “Create , innovate and do business in French’ (“Creer, innover, entreprendre en francais”). The participation of the Romanian President in the Francophonie Summit is an opportunity to highlight the country’s contribution to the global effort to transform and adapt multilateralism, an effort that also concerns the OIF, in a context marked by major challenges to the rules-based international order.

     

    VISIT – The Romanian Prime Minister, Marcel Ciolacu, is today making an official visit to the neighboring Republic of Moldova, to meet with President Maia Sandu, PM Dorin Recean and Parliament Speaker, Igor Gross. The Prime Minister is accompanied by Deputy Prime Minister Marian Neacşu, the Minister of Economy, Entrepreneurship and Tourism, Ştefan-Radu Oprea, and the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Florin Barbu. Ciolacu said previously that he was going to Chisinau to reaffirm Romania’s solid and unequivocal support for the Republic of Moldova, at all levels.

     

    SUMMIT – Romania’s development depends on investments and initiative, and our country needs people with a western attitude towards work, said Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu, at a summit for Romanians everywhere held Thursday in Bucharest. According to Ciolacu, over 3 million Romanians emigrated between 2008 and 2022 alone, pointing out that last year was the first time that 190,000 Romanians returned to the country. Attending the event, Senate Speaker Nicolae Ciucă said that he very much wants Romanians from the diaspora to return home, adding that the involvement of the state in facilitating the return of Romanians to the country is “absolutely necessary and important”.

     

    EUROBAROMETER – The main motivation for Romanians to vote in the European Parliament elections was the economic situation, according to a Eurobarometer survey published by the European Parliament. The other main reason was the increase in prices and the cost of living. The study places Romanians above the average of the 27 member states in terms of optimism regarding the future of the Union. According to the Eurobarometer, other topics that led Romanians to go to the polls were social protection, well-being and access to healthcare, the international situation, democracy and the rule of law, but also defense and security.

     

    REPATRIATION – The 69 people repatriated from Lebanon on Thursday are Romanian citizens and first degree family members, most of them women, children and medical cases, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Bucharest. The flight was made with the support of the Romanian Defense Ministry, with an aircraft of the Romanian Air Force. The move was made in the context of the escalation of the conflict in the Middle East.

     

    EUROPA LEAGUE – The Romanian soccer champion, FCSB (Bucharest), won its second victory in as many games in the new Europa League format, after beating the Greek champion, PAOK Thessaloniki, 1-nil on Thursday evening. The Greek team is trained by the Romanian Razvan Lucescu. In the first match of the group, the Bucharest team defeated the Latvian RFS at home, 4-1. FCSB, Lazio, Lyon, Tottenham and Anderlecht are the only teams with maximum points after two stages in the Europa League. The next match of the Romanian champions is also away, against the Scots from Glasgow Rangers.

     

     

  • October 3, 2024

    October 3, 2024

     

    DEFICIT The Romanian minister for investments and European projects, Adrian Câciu, said a 7-year plan to reduce the budget deficit would be presented by the October 15 deadline set by the EC. According to Câciu, the plan is accompanied by reforms included in the National Recovery and Resilience Plan. The measures mainly consist in cutting unnecessary expenditure by public institutions and improved collection of government revenues.

     

    EUROPEAN COMMISSION The commissioners nominated by member states and by the EC president Ursula von der Leyen will be interviewed by the European Parliament’s specialized standing committees next month. According to France Presse, the new College of Commissioners might therefore take office in early December. Romania’s representative Roxana Mînzatu was nominated for executive vice-president for skills, education and culture, quality jobs and social rights.

     

    YOUTH European youth born in 2006, including in Romania, may enroll in the 2024 DiscoverEU programme, which provides free travel across the Union. A dedicated European Commission webpage is available for young people to enroll in order to win one of the 35,000 free travel permits and discount accommodation and meal cards. Each permit allows for one trip between March 2025 and May 2026. Winners may choose certain destinations in Europe, including ones on the DiscoverEU cultural route that connects EU capital cities, UNESCO sites and European heritage sites. Applications may be submitted until October 16. More than 300,000 youth have benefitted from this programme since its launch in 2018.

     

    WB The country partnership framework between the World Bank and Romania for 2025-2029 was launched in Bucharest. PM Marcel Ciolacu says that in the next 3 years the estimated funding for Romania from the WB group will be over USD 6 bln, in favourable financial terms. The money is intended to help bridge the gap between the more developed and integrated urban communities and the poorer and more isolated rural environment. A USD 500 mln loan agreement has also been signed, for the funding of disaster risk management policies.

     

    FOOTBALL Romania’s football champions, FCSB, play tonight away from home against PAOK Thessaloniki in the Europa League group stage. In the first round, the Greek champions coached by the Romanian Răzvan Lucescu were defeated by Galatasaray Istanbul, 3-1 in Turkey, while FCSB won against RFS (Latvia) 4-1 in Bucharest. (AMP)

  • Sports Weekend

    Sports Weekend

    The Romanian handball side Dinamo Bucharest on Thursday registered their third consecutive win in the Champions League groups. The trainees of headcoach David Davis Cámara secured a 34-25 win against Pelister Bitola, the champions of North Macedonia in a match counting towards Group A.

    Dinamo’s best player was the Hungarian Miklós Rosta, who scored seven goals. After three legs, only two Group A sides haven’t tasted defeat yet; they are Sporting Lisabon and Dinamo Bucharest. The Romanian side will have their next game on October 10 against the Hungarians from Veszprém, currently coached by Xavi Pascual, the former technician of the Romanian champions.

    We continue with football. The Romanian eleven FCSB has started off on the right foot in the Europa League. The Romanian champions secured a 4-1 win, on the National Arena in Bucharest, against the Latvian side RFS. Daniel Bîrligea scored for the hosts in the 8th minute, Marius Ştefănescu, in the 32nd minute and Darius Olaru twice in the 58th and 69th minutes. The Slovenian Žiga Lipušček scored for the visitors on the 23rd minute.

    FCSB will be taking on PAOK Salonic in an away game next Thursday, an eleven coached by Romanian Răzvan Lucescu. In their first match in the present edition of Europa League, the Greek side lost in Istanbul 3-1 to local side Galatasaray.

    This weekend will be seeing the games of the 11th leg of the Romanian Football Superleague

    Friday will be seeing two matches: Petrolul Ploieşti versus FC Hermannstadt and Dinamo Bucharest versus FC Botoşani. On Saturday, Politehnica Iaşi, on their own turf, will be taking on Universitatea Cluj, and CFR Cluj will be up against UTA, after which Rapid will be playing Oţelul Galaţi in Bucharest. Two other games will be taking place on Sunday when Gloria Buzău will receive Farul Constanţa, and FCSB will be up against Sepsi OSK in an away game. The leg’s last game, on Monday: Universitatea Craiova will be up against Unirea Slobozia. Universitatea Cluj tops the table with 22 points, followed by Oţelul Galaţi with 17.

    (bill)

  • August 30, 2024 UPDATE

    August 30, 2024 UPDATE

    Visit – Romania’s president Klaus Iohannis will be paying a formal visit to Chişinău at the invitation of his Moldovan counterpart, Maia Sandu. The visit comes against the background of the two countries’ celebrating the Day of the Romanian language on August 31st. Iohannis is expected to deliver a firm message of support and encouragement for the authorities and citizens of the Republic of Moldova in their efforts to modernize and democratize the country and for the irreversible implementation of the rule of law and the European roadmap – the presidential administration has announced. The president will also be making an appeal to international partners to carry on their multidimensional assistance to the Republic of Moldova mainly in the context of the aggression war Russia is presently waging on Ukraine and all the risks entailed by this situation.

     

    Sanctions – Romania supports the adoption of new sanctions against Russia. During Thursday’s informal meeting, in Brussels, of the European Foreign Ministers with their Ukrainian counterpart, Dmitro Kuleba, the Romanian FM Luminiţa Odobescu emphasized that the pressure on Moscow must be maintained and the military and energy support given to Ukraine must be continued. The issue of military aid for Kyiv was also discussed on Friday at the informal meeting of the defense ministers of the member states. The agenda of the meeting also included the operational commitments carried out under the auspices of the Common Security and Defense Policy, the EU’s level of preparation in the field of defense and the prospects for the development of the EU Satellite Center. The Secretary of State for Defense Policy, Planning and International Relations, Simona Cojocaru, who represented Romania, highlighted the essential role of the European Union Military Assistance Mission to support Ukraine (EUMAM UA), as well as of the European Peace Facility. She also reiterated the existence of challenges in the extended Black Sea region, caused by the Russian Federation’s war of aggression.

     

    Football – The Romanian football champions, FCSB, qualified to the Europa League groups after the victory obtained, on Thursday evening, in Bucharest, against the Austrian team LASK Linz, with the score 1-0, in the decisive leg of the play-off. The first leg had ended in a draw, 1 all. The vice-champions CFR Cluj (north-west) failed to qualify to the Conference League groups, after losing, away from home, score 3-0, the play-off decisive match against the Cypriot team FC Pafos. In the first leg, Cluj won 1-0. The English team Manchester United and the Scottish team Glasgow Rangers are among FCSB’s opponents in the main phase of the Europa League, according to Friday’s drawing of lots in Monaco. The other opponents of FCSB are the Greek teams PAOK Thessaloniki and Olympiakos Piraeus, FC Midtjylland – the champion of Denmark, Qarabag FK – the champion of Azerbaijan, the German team Hoffenheim and FK RFS – the champion of Latvia.

     

    Internship – 148 young Romanians finished the government internship program that started on July 1 on Friday. For two months, they worked in government departments, ministries and other central public institutions. Mihai Ghigiu, the head of the Prime Minister’s Chancellery, told them that they are needed in the public administration. He showed that the average age in the administration will reach 50 years, which means that in the next 6-7-8 years many areas will be left without specialists. Mihai Ghigiu encouraged the young people to go and study abroad, and to use the acquired knowledge in Romania. (LS)

     

  • August 30, 2024

    August 30, 2024

    SANCTIONS Romania supports the adoption of new sanctions against Russia. At the informal meeting of the EU Foreign Ministers with their Ukrainian counterpart Dmitro Kuleba, on Thursday, the Romanian Foreign Minister, Luminita Odobescu, said that pressure has to be kept on Moscow and so has military and energy support for Ukraine. The issue of the military support for Ukraine is presently being talked upon by Defence Ministries of the EU countries. Talks are focusing on the EU operation, already underway, to train the Ukrainian soldiers to defend their country against the Russian invasion, DPA reports. A new plan of relocating some of these training operations to Ukraine will be discussed. Some of these training sessions are presently being held in Germany and Poland and the mission kicked off in November 2022. According to data released in May, 52 thousand Ukrainian troops had benefitted from this training.

     

    VISIT Romania’s president Klaus Iohannis will be paying a formal visit to Chisinau at the invitation of his Moldovan counterpart, Maia Sandu. The visit comes against the background of the two countries’ celebrating the Day of the Romanian language on August 31st. Iohannis is expected to deliver a firm message of support and encouragement for the authorities and citizens of the Republic of Moldova in their efforts to modernize and democratize the country and for the irreversible implementation of the rule of law and the European roadmap – the presidential administration has announced. The president will also be making an appeal to international partners to carry on their multidimensional assistance to the Republic of Moldova mainly in the context of the aggression war Russia is presently waging on Ukraine and all the risks entailed by this situation.

     

    VISIT Romania’s president Klaus Iohannis will be paying a formal visit to Chisinau at the invitation of his Moldovan counterpart, Maia Sandu. The visit comes against the background of the two countries’ celebrating the Day of the Romanian language on August 31st. Iohannis is expected to deliver a firm message of support and encouragement for the authorities and citizens of the Republic of Moldova in their efforts to modernize and democratize the country and for the irreversible implementation of the rule of law and the European roadmap – the presidential administration has announced. The president will also be making an appeal to international partners to carry on their multidimensional assistance to the Republic of Moldova mainly in the context of the aggression war Russia is presently waging on Ukraine and all the risks entailed by this situation.

     

    FOOTBALL Romania’s football champions FCSB have qualified for the Europa League’s groups after the one-nil victory in Bucharest on Thursday against Austrian side LASK Linz. The first game ended in a draw, one-all. Unfortunately Romania’s vice-champions CFR Cluj failed to qualify for the Conference League. The Romanians were knocked out by the Cypriotes of FC Pafos, who won the decisive play-offs game 3-0. The first game went to CFR, 1-0. FCSB will today be learning their opponents in their group.

     

    TENNIS Romanian tennis player, Gabriela Ruse, is today playing Spanish Paula Badosa in the third round of the US Open, the year’s last Grand Slam tournament. Coming straight form the qualifiers, the Romanian caused a big surprise in the competition’s second round after securing a win against Barbora Krejcikova of Czechia, winner of this year’s edition of Wimbledon. This has been Gabriela’s first qualification for the third round of a Grand Slam tournament.

     

    WEATHER And now a couple of things about the weather, which is unstable with showers and thunderstorms reported in almost the entire Romanian territory and on isolated areas on the Black Sea coast. However, the weather remains warm in the country’s western regions. The highs of the ray are ranging from 24 to 34 degrees Celsius.

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  • Sports Weekend

    Sports Weekend

    Romanian tennis player Gabriela Ruse has joined the main draw of the US Open Grand Slam tournament to kick off on Monday at Flushing Meadows in New York. In the qualifiers’ last round she outperformed Alexandra Eala of the Philippines 3-6, 6-1, 6-4. Gabriela has thus won 100,000 dollars and 40 WTA points, being the third Romanian on the main board of the singles contest, after those directly qualified, Ana Bogdan and Jaqueline Cristian, respectively.

    Romania’s under-23 crew of four on Thursday walked away with gold from the World Rowing Championships held in St. Catherines, Canada. Romania’s four, made up of Emanuela Ciotău, Patricia Cireș, Mariana-Laura Dumitru and Manuela-Gabriela Lungu ended the race two seconds ahead the runner up Polish crew.

    The sides representing Romania in the European football contests obtained good results on Thursday. FCSB ended in a one-all draw their away game against the Austrian eleven LASK Linz in the play-offs of the Europa League.

    The French Adil Taoui put the hosts into the lead on the 34th minute, but David Miculescu scored the equalizer in the first half’s injury time. The qualification will be decided in Bucharest next week.

    In the Conference League’s play-offs, CFR Cluj clinched a one-nil win against Cypriot side Paphos. Kosovar Meriton Korenica fired home on minute 17 and CFR managed to keep its difference in spite of being outnumbered on the pitch after Ciprian Deac had been given an early shower for a challenge at Portuguese João Correia.

    The Romanian side put up a better show than their opponent with a sturdy defence line, bold and incisive counterstrikes.

    This weekend will be seeing the football matches counting towards the seventh leg of Romania’s Superleague. Two games are taking place on Friday: Petrolul Ploiesti versus Otelul Galati and Poli Iasi versus Rapid Bucharest. On Saturday, Sepsi are up, on their own turf, against Unirea Slobozia and Dinamo is playing Universitatea Craiova in a home game. On Sunday, CFR will be up against FC Botosani and FCSB will go to Sibiu to play FC Hermannstadt. On Monday, Gloria Buzau will be playing Universitate Cluj and UTA will be up against Farul Constanta.

    Universitatea Craiova tops the table with 14 points, two more than the second side in the ranking, Universitatea Cluj.

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  • RRI Sports Club

    RRI Sports Club

     

    The qualifiers for the group stages of European football competitions are drawing to a close. This week, the first leg of the playoffs is scheduled both for the Champions’ League and for Europa League and Conference League. At this point, Romania is represented by 2 teams: FCSB, fighting for a place in the Europa League groups, and CFR Cluj, very close to the Conference League group stage. Both Romanian teams are playing on Thursday.

     

    FCSB takes on LASK Linz in Austria. If they win the 2 legs of the playoffs, the team moves up into the Europa League groups. If they lose, they stay in the Conference League competition. The team based in Oberösterreich finished 3rd-placed this past season of Austria’s top league. Their best performance in Europe was in 2020, when they reached the eighth-finals of the Europa League, to be kicked out by Manchester United. LASK also reached the round of 16 in Conference League, in 2022, but was defeated by Slavia Prague. Last season, in Europa League, LASK played in Group E, where it finished last-placed, after Liverpool, Union Saint-Gilloise of Belgium, and Toulouse. Also worth noting is that Linz and FCSB played a friendly match early this year in Turkey, where our team won 3-1.

     

    CFR Cluj plays Paphos, of Cyprus, and their first match will be on home turf. The Cypriot team got into the Conference League playoffs after dramatically defeating the Bulgarian side ŢSKA Sofia 1948 in the 3rd qualifying round. In the first round, in Bulgaria, ŢSKA had won 2-1. In Cyprus, the 2 teams drew, nil-all, until 7 minutes into extra time, when Paphos scored, making the result even and pushing the game into an extra 30 minutes, when they increased their lead to 4-0. Previously, Paphos had lost the first qualifying round of Europa League to the Swedish side Elfsborg, and had defeated Žalgiris Vilnius of Lithuania in the Conference League’s second qualifying round.

  • August 14, 2024 UPDATE

    August 14, 2024 UPDATE

    WEATHER Romania has again been struck by a heat wave, which is here to stay at least until the end of the week. Meteorologists have issued new code orange and yellow alerts for high temperatures in the country’s southern and western regions, including in Bucharest where the highs of the day are expected to soar up to 39 degrees centigrade. The Temperature Humidity Index (THI) will exceed 80 units and these regions, which are bracing for more tropical nights with highs ranging between 21 and 22 degrees Celsius. The noon reading in Bucharest will be around 37 degrees.

     

    LAW The government in Bucharest has discussed a draft law on the implementation in universities and pre-university education institutions of a series of amendments to the regime of solving petitions and notifications. The Prime Minister wants that even the anonymous notifications concerning crimes, such as sexual aggressions, be submitted to police and prosecutors. The Executive has endorsed and submitted to Parliament a draft on changing the regime of petitions and notifications as its spokesman Mihai Constantin has announced. He explains that anonymous petitions concerning sexual harassment cases are no longer to be cancelled but submitted for investigation. If the investigation reveals that criminal deeds have been committed, the president of the committee in charge of solving these petitions and notifications shall notify the criminal prosecution institutions a.s.a.p.

     

    FOOTBALL Romania’s Cup holder, Corvinul Hunedoara came a cropper 6-1 to FC Astana of Kazakhstan in Europa Conference League. The Romanians also lost the first match 2-1 and thus failed to qualify for the competition’s next stage. Another Romanian side, CFR, will be up against Israeli team Maccabi Petach Tikva in the second round of the Conference League’s third preliminary leg, after a one-nil win in the first game. Romania’s champions FCSB was knocked out of the Champions League by the Czech side Sparta Prague who secured a 3-2 win in the return match in Bucharest. FCSB will next take on Austrian side LASK Linz in Europa League’s play offs. The Romanians will be playing their first match away on August 22nd and the return match a week later in Bucharest.

     

    FAIR As of Wednesday the city of Sibiu, in central Romania, is hosting the Gaudeamus Book Fair, organized by Radio Romania. For 5 days, in the Big Square of the historical center of the city, locals and tourists are invited to choose from a rich editorial offer. In the 15 pavilions, the Gaudeamus Book Fair brings together over 40 exhibitors. The most famous publishing houses in Romania will be present, as well as distributors of books, games, music and educational materials. Seven publishing events, book launches and autograph sessions will be organized during the fair. Those who cannot attend can follow the fairs offers and events online, on the gaudeamus.ro website.

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  • RRI Sports Club

    RRI Sports Club

    Romania will not be represented in the Champions League group stage this year either, which extends the absence of Romanian teams from the most important European inter-club competition to 11 years. The last Romanian presence in the League was recorded in 2013, when Steaua Bucharest, later renamed FCSB, reached the group stage after defeating Legia Warsaw in the play-off. This year, the closest to the League was also FCSB, which won the Romanian championship again after a 9-year break and passed the first two rounds of the qualifications.

     

    However, on Tuesday, the progress of the Bucharest-based team came to a halt in the third preliminary round of the Champions League, after FCSB lost, at home, 2 to 3, against the Czech champion, Sparta Prague. In the first match, in Prague, the score was equal, 1 all. In Bucharest, FCSB did not have a good start in the match. At halftime, the Czechs were leading 3-0 and everyone thought that the score could become even more dramatic. The Romanian team had played poorly, without any strategy, had lost most of the balls in all areas of the field, had failed in the defense line, and the qualification had become only theoretical from possible. At the break, however, the Bucharest team’s coach, the Cypriot Elias Charalambous, made several changes. In the second half, the players showed more ambition, started to control the game and even became dangerous for the goal of the Czech champions. FCSB managed to reduce the difference on the scoreboard in the 60th minute, through a beautiful shot by the team captain, Darius Olaru, and optimism revived in the stands of the Steaua stadium.

     

    In the 83rd minute, after the French Malcom Edjouma scored the second goal for FCSB, the fans erupted in cheers and everything had already become possible. The third goal, which would have sent the match into overtime, did not arrive, though, and FCSB lost the chance to advance to the Champions League. However, the Bucharest team remains in the European Cups. Next week, FCSB will face, in the Europa League group stage, the Austrian team LASK Linz, and is going to play the first away game, and, in two weeks’ time, they will play the return leg, in Bucharest. Even if they lose, FCSB will remain in Europe, and will play in the groups of the third continental competition, the Conference League. (LS)