Radio România Internațional

Tag: kidnapping

  • October 13, 2016

    October 13, 2016


    KIDNAPPING The Romanian Foreign Ministry has announced that the Romanian engineer kidnapped in Nigeria on October 10th has been released. The ministry has reiterated its firm recommendation that the Romanian citizens in conflict areas or in security high risk areas should contact the closest Romanian diplomatic missions and record their presence in the region, in order to benefit from proper protection and assistance. According to the Nigerian policy, the Romanian engineer was kidnapped by armed men in the state of Delta, in the south of the country. The region has been hit by a wave of rebel attacks on oil and natural gas installations. They are fighting to get a larger share of the revenues generate by oil, as a large part of Nigerias production comes from Delta.



    COHESION POLICY A quarter of the total government investments in Romania, in the 2007-2013 period, is the result of the EU cohesion policy, according to an independent evaluation made public by the European Commission. Some 15 billion and a half Euros have been invested in transportation, enterprise support programs, research and environmental protection projects, through the European regional development program. Also, within the same time-frame, the cohesion policy helped create 35,000 jobs. At European level, the number of jobs created in that period stood at one million, accounting for one third of the total number of jobs in the whole of the EU created during the same interval. According to the Commission, the cohesion policy has benefited all the EU member countries and has supported them in difficult times from an economic point of view.



    JHA The Romanian Interior Minister Dragos Tudorache is attending in Luxembourg the Justice and Home Affairs Council meeting. The main topics on the agenda of talks are the implementation of the regulation concerning FRONTEX, the new European Border and Coast Guard Agency, the IT measures concerning border management, the stage of fulfillment of objectives regarding migration and relocation, as well as the reform of the European asylum granting system. The Romanian official will present Romanias contribution to managing migration and will stress the importance of rendering the new agency operational as soon as possible, as well as Romanias availably to deploy 75 border police officers as part of a rapid response team.



    EU-ASEA Today and tomorrow, the Romanian Foreign Minister Lazar Comanescu is attending in Bangkok, Thailand, the 21st joint EU – Association of Southeast Asian Nations ministerial meeting. Previously, the Romanian Foreign Minister went to Jakarta, Indonesia, where he talked with his counterpart Retno LP Marsudi about boosting bilateral political, economic and commercial dialogue. The two officials attended the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the two countries chambers of commerce. Lazar Comanescu has agreed with the trade minister Enggartiasto Lukita to encourage Romanian and Indonesian companies to participate in promotion events. During talks with the transportation minister Budi Karya Sumadi, the Romanian foreign minister stressed Romanias capacity to become for Indonesia a maritime access gate to Europe.



    MOLDOVA According to an opinion poll, in the Republic of Moldova, 34% of the citizens would vote for this former Soviet countrys unification with neighbouring Romania. According to the latest public opinion barometer, quoted by the Radio Romania correspondent in Chisinau, 51% of those questioned would vote for Moldovas EU integration, and 43% for the countrys joining the Russia -Belarus- Kazakhstan Customs Union. 42% of the respondents would vote for Chisinaus accession to NATO. The results of the polls were made public in the run up to the presidential elections due on October 30th. According to political analysts, the stake is not just political, but also geo-political, because the battle will be carried out between pro-Russia and pro-Western candidates.



    APPOINTMENT The UN General Assembly is to official appoint today the former Prime Minister of Portugal Antonio Guterres as UN Secretary General. Guterres will replace the South-Korean Ban Ki-moon and his term will last 5 years, as of January 1st. Antonio Guterres is the first head of government to reach this position and, according to diplomatic sources in New York, is very likely to use his leadership skills and expertise in refugee-related issues to take over the initiative of regulating the main current crises, especially the one in Syria.




  • 12 October, 2016

    12 October, 2016

    DIASPORA – Today is the last day for submitting the list of candidacies for the diaspora in the elections scheduled for December 11. On October 23rd the lists are definitive, and the Foreign Ministry proposed to the Permanent Election Authority the proposals for polls abroad, numbering 417, 111 more than in the elections in 2012.



    JAKARTA – As part of his visit to Indonesia, Romanian Foreign Minister Lazar Comanescu held talks with his counterpart, Retno Marsudi, on enhancing political, economic and trade exchanges. The two attended a ceremony for the signing of a memorandum between the national chambers of commerce of the two countries. Comanescu expressed Romania’s willingness to act as Indonesia’s maritime gate to Europe. Jakarta is the first stage of a four day tour of Asia. On Thursday and Friday the head of diplomacy will take part, in Bangkok, Thailand, the 21st ministerial meeting of the EU-ASEAN meeting.



    KIDNAPPING – The Bucharest Foreign Ministry has activated today an emergency response center after a Romanian engineer has been abducted in Nigeria. The ministry said that they follow closely the situation through the embassy in that country, keeping in touch with Nigerian authorities, as well as with the Romanian citizen’s family and employer. The Nigerian police and media claim the man was abducted as part of the wave of rebel attacks against oil and gas installations.



    NATO -Romanian head of the general staff Nicolae Ciuca takes part today in the Strategic South Direction NATO conference, held in Naples, Italy. The agenda contains security issues, emphasizing NATO’s southern flank, as well as issues covered by this summer’s summit in Warsaw.



    FOOTBALL – Romania’s national football team tied with a blank score board in Astana against the home team of Kazakhstan, in its third preliminary game of the 2018 World Cup scheduled for Russia. Also on Tuesday in group E, Poland defeated Armenia 2-1, while Montenegro defeated Denmark in an away game, 1-0. Montenegro and Poland lead the group with 7 points each, while Romania is third, with 5 points. Romania plays Poland on November 11th.



    PRISONS – Romanian prison guards and employees are protesting the national authority employing them, against what they claim are unfair salaries and work conditions. They are also protesting against staff shortages, which bring along unpaid overtime.



    TRIAL – The Romanian Anti-Corruption Directorate asked for presidential endorsement in pursuing in court the case against former Interior Minister Gabriel Oprea for manslaughter. Oprea, whose most recent public office was in Parliament, resigned his seat in the Senate on October 1st. According to legal provisions, the head of state has to approve warrants against government ministers. The former minister and MP has been indicted for the accidental death of police officer Bogdan Gigina, which occurred while he was part of the official convoy accompanying the then minister, which the latter was allegedly not entitled to at that moment.

  • August 30, 2015 UPDATE

    August 30, 2015 UPDATE

    MUSICAL FEAST – In the following three weeks, Bucharest
    is hosting Romania’s most important cultural event, the George Enescu
    International Festival, which has reached its 22nd edition. Nearly
    3,000 foreign and Romanian artists will take part in this year’s edition of the
    Festival. The participating orchestras include the San Francisco Symphony,
    Israel Philharmonic, conducted by the world famous Zubin Mehta, the Vienna
    Philharmonic, the Bavarian State Orchestra, Staatskapelle Dresden, London
    Symphony Orchestra, Saint Petersburg Orchestra, Monte Carlo Philharmonic, Royal
    Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam. According to the organisers, the 2015
    edition of the world’s leading promoter of the works of the great Romanian
    composer George Enescu, will consist in 58 indoor concerts and many other
    outdoor events. Radio Romania will broadcast 36 live transmissions. The rest of
    the concerts will be recorded and broadcast in the following days. Furthermore,
    the Casa Radio Publishers launches five albums to mark this edition of the
    festival.





    LANGUAGE -
    The Romanian language is a core value of the Romanian people’s identity and
    the language of an important culture in Europe, the minister delegate for the relation
    with the Romanians abroad, Angel Talvar, said during the celebrations held in
    Spain to mark the Romanian Language Day, on August the 31st. It is the language of the Romanians who
    work, study, make research and do business. The Romanian language is an element
    of identity and helps people get closer to one another and form a community.
    The Romanian Language Day is equally a feast for Romania and the Romanians
    around the world, for those who feel like Romanians do and for those who love and
    appreciate the beauty of the Romanian people.





    KIDNAPPING -
    The Romanian authorities confirm the information on the existence of a video
    footage featuring a Romanian citizen who claims to have been kidnapped by a
    Jihadist group in Burkina Faso and asks to be saved. The
    Foreign Ministry has announced that a crisis sell is currently investigating
    the authenticity of the video recording and is also analysing all possible ways
    to solve the situation of the Romanian national taken hostage in Burkino Faso.
    According to media sources, the mining company the Romanian was working for
    announced his being kidnapped in April, but the first images showing proofs of
    life were released on Saturday. The crisis cell is made up of representatives
    of the Foreign Affairs and Defence Ministries, respectively, of the intelligence
    services and of the Presidential Administration.



    RAILWAY TRANSPORTATION– Fresh from an emergency meeting held in
    Paris, French interior minister, Bernard Cazeneuve, has made a thorough
    presentation of the measures agreed upon by the EU member states in an effort
    to improve railway transport safety and security, in the wake of last week’s
    attack on a high speed train running from Amsterdam to Paris. He referred to a
    thorough control of the passengers’ identity, with visual checks being likely
    to be introduced again. Furthermore, luggage will be verified both in stations
    and on board the train. Joint patrols, made up of security officers from
    various countries will be set up to assure transport security, the French
    minister has underlined. The perpetrator of the attack on the Thalys train,
    Moroccan Ayoub El Khazzani, was charged with attempted murder last week.
    Carrying a Kalashnikov assault rifle, nine chargers, a Luger automatic pistol
    and a cutter, the 26 year old Moroccan bought a ticket for the Thalys train
    without problems. Later on, he opened fire on board the train, being
    immobilised by passengers.





    JAPAN – Tens
    of thousands of people protested in front of the Parliament building in Tokyo
    against some draft security laws which are meant to extend the Japanese army’s
    prerogatives and which have been described by critics as infringing the
    pacifist fundamental law of the country. The rally is proof of a greater
    mobilisation in Japan, in the context in which conservative Prime Minister
    Shinzo Abe hopes these draft laws will be passed by Parliament in the current
    session, which comes to an end in late September. The draft laws would allow
    the Japanese army to get involved in fighting operations abroad, if need be, to
    protect the interests of the country, which would be a first since the end of
    WWII.


    ARREST -Three Romanian nationals were taken into custody in Hungary on Saturday, on suspicion of human trafficking. They are detained by the Budapest police, the Romanian Foreign Ministry has announced. The ministry also says that 26 Romanian citizens have been arrested in Hungary, on human trafficking charges, since August the 26th. None of them has requested consular assistance so far.


    BOOK FAIR – Romania has recently participated for the first time in the Beijing International Book Fair, having its own stand organised by the Romanian Cultural Institute. According to the organisers, the Romanian Cultural Institute designed the events so as to cast light on the Romanian literary heritage and to provide a fresh perspective on the current literary and editorial developments in Romania. Now, in its 22nd edition, the International Book Fair in Beijing is the largest event of its kind organised by China. According to the Director General of the General Department of Romanian Cultural Institutes Abroad, Ioana Dragan, on August 31st, the Foreign Language University in Beijing will host two much awaited events, a conference devoted to the Romanian Language Day and the announcement on the official opening of the Beijing-based Library of the Romanian Cultural Institute.

    WEATHER – The counties of Satu Mare, Bihor, Arad, Timis, Caras-Severin, Mehedinti, Botosani, Iasi, Bacau and Vaslui will further be under code orange alert on Monday and Tuesday. The heat wave will also sweep all the regions of the country placed under code yellow alert, where temperatures will range between 35 and 37 degrees Celsius. Meteorologists warn temperatures in the ten counties placed under code orange alert will range between 37 and 38 degrees, with a high temperature- humidity index.

  • August 30, 2015

    August 30, 2015

    KIDNAPPING – The Romanian authorities confirm the information on the existence of a video footage featuring a Romanian citizen who claims to have been kidnapped by a Jihadist group in Burkina Faso and asks to be saved. The Foreign Ministry has announced that a crisis sell is currently investigating the authenticity of the video recording and is also analysing all possible ways to solve the situation of the Romanian national taken hostage in Burkino Faso. According to media sources, the mining company the Romanian was working for announced his being kidnapped in April, but the first images showing proofs of life were released on Saturday. The crisis cell is made up of representatives of the Foreign Affairs and Defence Ministries, respectively, of the intelligence services and of the Presidential Administration.



    RAILWAY TRANSPORTATION – Fresh from an emergency meeting held in Paris, French interior minister, Bernard Cazeneuve, has made a thorough presentation of the measures agreed upon by the EU member states in an effort to improve railway transport safety and security, in the wake of last weeks attack on a high speed train running from Amsterdam to Paris. He referred to a thorough control of the passengers identity, with visual checks being likely to be introduced again. Furthermore, luggage will be verified both in stations and on board the train. Joint patrols, made up of security officers from various countries will be set up to assure transport security, the French minister has underlined. The perpetrator of the attack on the Thalys train, Moroccan Ayoub El Khazzani, was charged with attempted murder last week. Carrying a Kalashnikov assault rifle, nine chargers, a Luger automatic pistol and a cutter, the 26 year old Moroccan bought a ticket for the Thalys train without problems. Later on, he opened fire on board the train, being immobilised by passengers.



    DEMOGRAPHY – The total population residing in Romania remains under 20 million people, according to preliminary data from the National Statistics Institute. On January 1, 19,861,000 people were residing in Romania, down 85,900 since the beginning of the previous year. The urban and female population account, respectively, for 53.8%, and 51.1% of the total, and the ageing phenomenon is deepening, the difference between the population over 65 and the young population of up to 14 years of age having widened to more than 300,000 people. The survey also indicates that Romania remains an emigration country, with a number of emigrants 42,000 higher than the number of immigrants last year.



    MUSICAL FEAST – In the following three weeks, Bucharest is hosting Romanias most important cultural event, the “George Enescu International Festival, which has reached its 22nd edition. Nearly 3,000 foreign and Romanian artists will take part in this years edition of the Festival. The participating orchestras include the San Francisco Symphony, Israel Philharmonic, conducted by the world famous Zubin Mehta, the Vienna Philharmonic, the Bavarian State Orchestra, Staatskapelle Dresden, London Symphony Orchestra, Saint Petersburg Orchestra, Monte Carlo Philharmonic, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam. According to the organisers, the 2015 edition of the worlds leading promoter of the works of the great Romanian composer George Enescu, will consist in 58 indoor concerts and many other outdoor events. Radio Romania will broadcast 36 live transmissions. The rest of the concerts will be recorded and broadcast in the following days. Furthermore, the Casa Radio Publishers launches five albums to mark this edition of the festival.



    BEIJING BOOK FAIR – Romania has recently participated for the first time in the Beijing International Book Fair, having its own stand organised by the Romanian Cultural Institute. According to the organisers, the Romanian Cultural Institute designed the events so as to cast light on the Romanian literary heritage and to provide a fresh perspective on the current literary and editorial developments in Romania. Now, in its 22nd edition, the International Book Fair in Beijing is the largest event of its kind organised by China. According to the Director General of the General Department of Romanian Cultural Institutes Abroad, Ioana Dragan, on August 31st, the Foreign Language University in Beijing will host two much awaited events, a conference devoted to the Romanian Language Day and the announcement on the official opening of the Beijing-based Library of the Romanian Cultural Institute.



    WEATHER – Meteorologists have issued a code yellow alert against heat valid today for 12 counties in the west, south-west and the east of the Romanian territory, where the temperature- humidity index exceeds the 80 unit critical threshold. An orange code warning valid for Monday and Tuesday has been issued for 10 counties in the west. The rest of the territory will further be under code yellow alert. The highs of the day range between 29 and 36 degrees C. The noon reading in Bucharest was 32 degrees.