Radio România Internațional

Tag: Jordan

  • February 3, 2024 UPDATE

    February 3, 2024 UPDATE

    AGREEMENT The PM
    of Romania Marcel Ciolacu and the representatives of farmers and carriers
    Friday reached an agreement ending the recent protests. On Monday, the PM’s
    office will set up an inter-ministry committee tasked with identifying the best
    solutions for the protesters’ demands. Farmers and carriers in Romania
    protested for 3 weeks against high business costs, low prices for produce, the
    import of cheap foodstuffs from Ukraine and the constraints introduced by the
    EU as part of its climate change action.


    COMMEMORATION A
    ceremony commemorating the prominent politician Iuliu Maniu, a former prime
    minister of Romania and leader of the National Christian-Democratic Party, was
    held on Saturday at the Memorial for the victims of communism in Sighetu
    Marmaţiei (north-west). Maniu died on the night of February 4 1953, in the political
    prison in Sighet, where he was serving a life sentence for high treason
    pronounced by the communist regime. His name was cleared under a Supreme Court
    ruling in 1998, and a monument was erected in his honour in the Revolution
    Square in Bucharest.


    MOLDOVA Chişinău
    extended an entry ban against the leader of the Romanian nationalist party AUR,
    George Simion, by another 5 years. Under Moldova’s legislation, foreigners may
    be declared undesirables if they have or if there are strong reasons to believe
    they intend to conduct activities likely to endanger the country’s national
    security or public order. According to the R. of Moldova, the Romanian
    authorities have been notified in this respect, and George Simion challenged
    the decision in court. The AUR leader was expelled from Moldova in 2018, with
    an entry ban in place for a period of 5 years.


    HEALTHCARE Trade
    unions in the healthcare sector have new talks scheduled next week with the
    Romanian authorities in the context of the recent protests. The vice-president
    of the Ambulanţa Trade Union Federation, Magyary Arpad, had a meeting on
    Friday with the healthcare minister, Alexandru Rafila, but failed to reach an
    agreement on salaries, equipment and the personnel shortage in the system.
    Arpad voiced optimism with respect to a 20% pay raise deal, but said he was not
    sure the measure would cover all healthcare personnel and whether it would be
    implemented in full or in several instalments. He said the talks also concerned
    the procurement of ambulance vehicles, office revamping and changes in the
    legislation. Trade unions in healthcare initiated nation-wide protests in
    November 2022, but suspended them until after next week’s meeting with PM
    Marcel Ciolacu. Talks will also be held in the coming days with the Sanitas trade
    union federation, which has its own salary demands for several categories of
    healthcare personnel.


    ALERT
    Healthcare units in Romania are implementing additional measures after a state
    of epidemiological alert was declared due to the growing number of respiratory
    infections and flu cases. Special attention is given to the health of hospital
    personnel and to the protection equipment, and visiting hours have been reduced.
    Visitor access is denied in ICUs, neonatology and pediatrics departments,
    coronary care units, oncology and hematology units, and in infectious disease
    units. In other hospital departments, no more than 2 visitors will be allowed
    at the same time in a room, and individual protection equipment will be
    compulsory.


    MIDDLE EAST The
    US conducted scores of air raids against targets operated by Iran-controlled
    groups in Iraq and Syria. The Pentagon said the raids were a response to the
    recent drone attack by Iran-supported fighters, which killed 3 US troops at a
    military base in Jordan, the BBC reports. Taking part in Friday’s raids were B1
    long-range bombers, flying out of the US. Iran condemned the strikes, claiming
    they violated the sovereignty of Syria and Iraq, AFP reports. In Bagdad, a
    government spokesman announced the US strikes in western Iraq killed at least
    16 people, including civilians. Meanwhile, the US state secretary Antony
    Blinken will travel to Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Qatar, Israel and the West Bank
    between February 4 and 8, primarily to reach a deal securing the freeing of all
    the Israeli hostages kept in Gaza following the Hamas terror attack of October
    7. (AMP)

  • May 3, 2016

    May 3, 2016

    The Prime Minister of Romania, Dacian Cioloş, is to submit to President Klaus Iohannis today a request to discharge Vlad Alexandrescu as Culture Minister and a nomination for his replacement. According to political sources, one of the favourites for this appointment is Corina Şuteu, former head of the Romanian Cultural Institute in New York, and currently a state secretary in the Culture Ministry. The dismissal comes against the backdrop of a scandal at the Romanian Opera House in Bucharest, triggered by discontent with the successive appointments for the director post as well as with the substantial imbalances between the salaries paid to the Romanian and the foreign dancers. Protests led to the cancellation of three shows, and PM Ciolos asked for Vlad Alexandrescus resignation. In messages posted on Facebook or published in the media, Vlad Alexandrescu says he was forced out because he upset various interest groups. The head of government said he had not been informed of the problems Vlad Alexandrescu claimed to have been facing and promised he would urge the new minister to carry on the reforms initiated by Alexandrescu.



    The second International Light Festival, Spotlight 2016, will take place in Bucharest between May 5 and 8. Apart from captivating shows, including 15 art installations, building lighting and video-mapping sessions prepared by the guest artists will transform representative buildings in Bucharest, such as the CEC Building, the National History Museum building and the National Military Society buildings. This year, Spotlight is part of the events supporting the candidacy of Bucharest for European Capital of Culture in 2021.



    May 3 is the World Press Freedom Day. On this occasion, the Council of Europe Secretary General, Thorbjorn Jagland, called on the 47 member countries to make sure that their national legislation on defamation does not silence the media and does not weaken public debate. The Council of Europe says it is critical for democracy that the media carry on its monitoring and criticising of those in power. In Romania, some people continue to abuse the journalist profession in order to intimidate, blackmail or trade influence, and some public authorities have attempted to block the access to information on major topics in the recent history of Romania – the 1989 Revolution, the miners riots of June ’90 or the Colectiv tragedy, reads the latest FreeEx report released by ActiveWatch. The document also reveals that the global Press Freedom Index worked out by Reporters without Borders puts Romania in the 49th place in the world, up three positions since the previous year.



    In Romania, companies that pay less than roughly 280 euros per month, the new national minimum wage for full-time employees, will be fined. Under a government resolution endorsed late last year, more than 1.1 million employees benefit from this increase, which took effect on May 1. The raise is intended to bring national minimum wages up to nearly 60% of the national average salary. Still, salaries in Romania remain some of the lowest in the EU, only higher than in Bulgaria, but below those in other former communist states. At the opposite pole, the highest national minimum wages are paid in Luxemburg, 1,923 euro/month, followed by Belgium, Netherlands, Germany and Ireland, where national minimum wages are around 1,500 euro per month.



    The European Commission has warned Turkey that the prospective lift of visa requirements for Turkish citizens may be quickly suspended in case Ankara fails to meet the criteria set by the European bloc. Turkey, which wants its citizens to be able to travel freely in the EU in exchange for enforcing the migrant deal, must meet 72 criteria set by Brussels. The European Commission will decide on Wednesday whether these criteria are complied with, and should the report be positive, it will draft a legislative proposal to be endorsed by the European Parliament and the EU member states.



    Norway, as part of a US-headed international coalition with operations in Syria and Iraq, will deploy 60 troops to train Syrian rebels fighting against the terrorist groups in that country, the Norwegian PM, Erna Solberg announced, according to Le Figaro. The Norwegian troops selected into this special task force will be sent to Jordan, and the name of the groups they will train has not been disclosed. Norway is already present in areas where the international coalition is fighting against the IS group, particularly in Erbil (Iraq), where soldiers are training peshmerga fighters for countering terrorist groups.



    The Romanian Irina Begu (no. 34 WTA) managed a surprising win against Spains Garbine Muguruza (4 WTA), 5-7, 7-6, 6-3, in the second round of the WTA tournament in Madrid, with 4.7 million USD in prize money. In the eighth-finals, Irina will be facing the American Christina McHale (59 WTA). Also qualified in the eighth-finals is another Romanian player, Patricia Ţig (134 WTA). Two other Romanians have qualified into the second round of the Madrid tournament, Simona Halep, no. 7 WTA, and Sorana Carstea (no. 127 WTA). Halep played the final of the Madrid tournament in 2014, when she lost to Russias Maria Sharapova.

  • October 2, 2015 UPDATE

    October 2, 2015 UPDATE

    The Prime Minister of Romania Victor Ponta is on an official visit to Jordan on Saturday and Sunday, at the invitation of his counterpart, Abdallah Ensour. According to a news release issued by the Romanian Government, the goal is to reconfirm the very good level of bilateral political and diplomatic relations and to find the best solutions to improve economic relations. Victor Ponta will be received by King Abdullah II and will have a meeting with the Prime Minister of Jordan, followed by meetings with officials for the country’s Chamber of Commerce and a group of Iraqi business people whose companies operate in Jordan and Iraq. The talks with Amman officials will focus on strengthening the economic cooperation, particularly in the field of agriculture, energy, tourism and health. The participants will also analyse international and regional developments.



    As of Saturday NATO is holding the largest military exercises in 13 years, involving around 36,000 troops, including Romanian ones, 60 military vessels and 200 aircraft, the Allied Command in Brunssum, the Netherlands, announced. Called Trident Juncture 2015, the exercises will take place in 3 countries – Italy, Spain and Portugal — and are scheduled to end on November 6. Apart from ground and air drills, naval manoeuvres are scheduled to take place in the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. The exercises come at a time when relations between NATO and Russia are strained, given the conflicts in Syria and Ukraine, and the immigrant crisis in Europe.



    The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry expressed its regrets for the incident triggered by the statement of a Ukrainian officer concerning Romania, the Romanian Foreign Ministry announced on Friday. The clarifications come after the Romanian party checked the media stories of September 21 regarding the set-up of a unit within the Ukrainian Army with the alleged goal of protecting the country “against possible claims of Romania over this region.” Kiev explained that none of the units of the brigade deployed in the Romanian border area has missions targeted against Romania, and labeled the incident as counterproductive. Ukraine thanked Romania for the constant support it has showed to its efforts, the Romanian FM added.



    The air strikes in Syria must target the IS group and be coordinated so as to avoid civilian victims, the EU insisted on Friday. Several countries in the international coalition in Syria (USA, UK, France, Germany, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey) Friday called on Russia to immediately cease strikes against the Syrian opposition and civilians and to concentrate efforts against the IS. Also on Friday, the President of France, François Hollande, and the Russian leader Vladimir Putin discussed in Paris about the crisis in Syria. The main contended issue was the fate of President Bashar al-Assad, a French diplomatic source said, according to France Presse. Moscow supports the leader in Damascus, but Paris and Washington want him to step down as soon as possible, and blame him for the chaos in Syria. Recently, the White House announced that Russia’s air strikes this week against the militants in Syria are “indiscriminate.” The Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, said however that the airstrikes target the same terror group that the US-led coalition is fighting against.



    The Romanian tennis players Irina Begu and Monica Niculescu will play on Saturday against the Swiss Martina Hingis and Indian Sania Mirza in the doubles final of the WTA tournament in Wuhan (China), with over 2.2 million US dollars in prize money. Irina Begu and Monica Niculescu have won a WTA tournament in 2012, in Hobart (Australia). No Romanian tennis player is taking part in the tournament’s singles.

  • September 3, 2015 UPDATE

    September 3, 2015 UPDATE

    FISCAL CODE – Romanian deputies have voted in favour of
    the new Fiscal Code, after Senators adopted the document on Tuesday. Once
    promulgated by the President, the code will provide for a gradual decrease in
    the VAT, down to 20% as of January next year and further to 19% in 2017. The
    tax on special constructions and the additional excise on fuel will be
    postponed until 2017. A tax on dividends will also apply starting this date.
    The code also provides for a surcharge of all abandoned buildings and plots of
    land in built-up areas starting January 2016.





    NATO – The first NATO command on Romanian
    territory has opened in Bucharest, concurrently with 5 other similar Allied
    structures on NATO’s eastern flank. These centres are part of NATO’s process of
    adapting to security developments. The NATO Force Integration Unit is one of
    the two Allied structures that will operate in Bucharest. Its mission is to
    plan operations, carry out military drills and coordinate the deployment of
    NATO response forces. The new unit will employ some 42 military, of whom 27
    Romanian.





    MIGRATION – President Klaus Iohannis said on
    Thursday, at the meeting with the Romanian ambassadors accredited abroad, that
    migration continues to be a challenge at European level. He stood for boosting
    efforts to fight human trafficking, to identify and implement sustainable
    solutions of dialogue and cooperation with third states, so that the deep-going
    causes of this scourge be eliminated. In another move, the president drew
    attention to the fact that Romania will have to cope with complex challenges,
    and the Romanian diplomacy will have major responsibilities in that respect. He
    reiterated Romania’s support for the territorial integrity and sovereignty of
    neighbouring Ukraine and underlined anew the unacceptable infringement of the
    international law, by the annexation of the Crimean Peninsula, by the Russian
    Federation.





    DIPLOMACY – Romanian foreign minister
    Bogdan Aurescu said on Thursday that Jordan is an oasis of stability in the
    extremely complicated context in the Middle East and serves as a model for the
    countries in the region, by promoting peace, security and stability. At a
    meeting in Bucharest with his Jordanian counterpart, Naser Judeh, Aurescu has
    also said that Jordan is a privileged partner of both the EU and NATO and has
    hailed the efforts made by that country to solve the refugee crisis. In turn,
    the Jordanian foreign minister has said his country is facing multiple
    challenges. We should oppose terrorism, extremism, and educate the youth to
    reject such ideas, in order not to become vulnerable to the radical movements’
    propaganda, he has also said. Alongside the foreign ministers of Poland,
    Slovakia and Norway, Naser Judeh is one of the special guests of the annual
    meeting of the Romanian diplomacy, which is traditionally held every year, in
    early autumn.





    NATIONAL ANTI-CORRUPTION DIRECTORATE -
    Romanian Social Democrat Prime Minister Victor Ponta on Thursday went again to the
    National-Anticorruption Directorate, which has started a criminal investigation
    against him, on corruption charges. Ponta said the meeting with the case
    prosecutor took place at his request. On June 5th, prosecutors
    started criminal investigation against Ponta, for having forged documents, for
    accessory to tax evasion and money laundering. These allegations relate to his past work, as a lawyer. In the same
    case, Ponta is prosecuted for conflict of interests while acting as Prime
    Minister. In July, the prosecutors placed Ponta’s
    assets and real estate property under sequester. The first prime minister of post-communist Romania to be
    prosecuted during his term in office, Ponta rejected both the prosecutors’
    accusations and the requests made by president Klaus Iohannis and the liberal
    opposition to resign.





    MOLDOVA – The
    European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has reasserted its firm
    commitment to support the economy of the Republic of Moldova and the
    Government’s reforms, although has called on Moldovan authorities to step up
    their efforts to combat the banking crisis and ensure the transparency of
    stockholders in this field. Moldova cannot afford to lose another billion
    dollars as it happened last year, EBRD Executive Director for Eastern Europe
    and the Caucasus Francis Malige said in a meeting with Moldovan officials in
    Chisinau. According to Malige, the Government’s decision to close down the
    three banks involved in the mysterious loaning of 1 billion dollars to unknown
    recipients at the end of last year represents a first promising step. The EBRD
    official also said the country was undergoing a very difficult period, marked
    by the banking crisis, the weakening of the national currency and a severe
    economic slump. In order to attract more investment to generate jobs and boost
    growth, Moldova urgently needs to reform its banking system and crack down on corruption, Francis Malige went on to say. The EBRD has so far invested 1
    billion euros in projects aimed at supporting the private sector in the
    Republic of Moldova.





    NOMINATION – Romanian Prime Minister, Victor Ponta, has
    nominated and supports Ioana Petrescu, his former finance minister, to take
    over as vice-president of the European Investment Bank, news agencies quote
    government sources as confirming on Thursday. For a year, until Romania’s
    mandate expires, Petrescu is to replace Mihai Tanasescu, a former finance
    minister, and Romania’s representative at the IMF in the 2007-2012 period.
    Media sources in Bucharest say Tanasescu has become undesirable to the bank
    management after his involvement in a huge corruption scandal related to the
    purchase of Microsoft licences in Romania, for which he allegedly took a 90,000
    Euro bribe.


    FILM – Italian
    filmmaker Adriano Valerio’s debut feature film Il Viaggio has been selected
    for the Venice International Film Festival in the Settimana della critica
    section. Having reached its 72nd edition, the prestigious festival will run
    through September 12. The opening night will be held on September 4 and will be
    attended by a Romanian delegation. Il Viaggio tells the story of three young
    people facing personal crises. The female protagonist, Clara ,has just ended a
    long-term love affair and is about to lose her job. Ivo is unemployed, and his
    frustrations cause him to make rash decisions. The film tells the story of a
    counter-migration flow, from Italy to Romania, where people seek jobs and
    happiness. The film’s cast also includes Romanian actor Stefan Velniciuc. Il
    Viaggio was co-produced by Italy, Bulgaria, Romania and Macedonia.





    FOOTBALL – Romania’s national team will
    play Hungary on Friday, in an away match, as part of the 2016 European Cup
    preliminaries. On Monday, Romania will play Greece at home. After four wins and
    two draws in six games, Romania is the leader of Group F, with 14 points,
    followed by Northern Ireland with 13 points and Hungary with 11. The last
    matches will be played in October, when Romania plays against the Faeroe
    Islands, away from home, and Finland, on home turf. Romania last qualified to a
    European Championship in 2008, when it did not move past the group stage. Also
    on Friday, Romania’s Under-21 team will play, on home turf, in the central
    Romanian city of Targu Mures, against Bulgaria, as part of the 2017 UEFA
    European U-21 Championship qualifying competition. On Tuesday in Yerevan, the
    young Romanian footballers will meet Armenia, which they defeated in a first
    match played on home turf in March, 3-0.






    RUGBY -
    Romania’s national rugby team will meet Tonga’s squad in Bucharest on Saturday,
    in the last test-match ahead of the Rugby World Cup due in Great Britain. Romania is part of Group D, alongside
    France, Ireland, Canada and Italy. The matches of the group will start on
    September the 18th. Dubbed The Oaks, the Romanian rugby players
    have participated in all final tours of the World Cup, but they never moved
    past the group stage.