Radio România Internațional

Tag: NATO accession

  • Crucial meeting in Vilnius

    Crucial meeting in Vilnius

    Strengthening, in the long term, the allied posture on the eastern flank is the main stake of the participation of Romanias President, Klaus Iohannis, in the NATO summit in the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius. He also wishes to reiterate Romania’s robust support for neighboring Ukraine, invaded by the Russian troops, including in relation to Ukraines accession to NATO, as well as for the Alliance’s most vulnerable partners, especially the Republic of Moldova (an ex-Soviet state with a majority Romanian-speaking population). The Romanian president also wants to reflect the importance of the Black Sea region for Euro-Atlantic security in the allied documents and decisions that are to be adopted.



    Ahead of the summit, the NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced that most allies are expected to announce their commitment to increasing defense budgets to more than 2% of the gross domestic product starting in 2024. Only 11 member states, including Romania, have met this request starting this year. According to analysts, beyond the Ukrainian file, the North Atlantic meeting will be marked by the announcement of Sweden’s admission to NATO.



    On the eve, the NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg stated that the Turkish President, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, agreed to support the accession of the Scandinavian kingdom, a move that he opposed for months in a row. Stoltenberg described the day as historic. Asked about Hungary’s opposition to Sweden’s accession, Stoltenberg said that the problem was solved, because the authorities in Budapest had informed him that they did not want to be the last to ratify the protocol. At present, all 31 NATO member states want Sweden to join the Alliance, as does neighboring Finland, which was admitted on April 4. After the launch of the Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, the two Scandinavian countries renounced their strict neutrality, maintained for decades, and opted for joining NATO.



    Turkey had given the green light to Finland, but had blocked the accession of Sweden, which it accused of hosting Kurdish militants, described by Ankara as terrorists. President Erdogan would have wanted to condition the admission of Sweden on the negotiations regarding his country’s accession to the European Union. Turkey submitted its application for accession to the European Economic Community, the forerunner of the current community bloc, in 1987 and to the Union in 1999.



    Accession negotiations began in 2005 and, ever since, Brussels has not tired of repeating that Ankara does not meet the admission criteria. Admission to NATO and to the EU are two processes that have nothing to do with each other – repeated, on Monday, the EU deputy chief spokesperson, the Romanian Dana Spinant. The ECs latest communiqué on this topic dates to 2022 and stated that the European Union had serious concerns on the continued deterioration of democracy, the rule of law, fundamental rights and the independence of the judiciary in Turkey. (LS)


  • April 4, 2023 UPDATE

    April 4, 2023 UPDATE

    FINLAND – On
    Tuesday Finland became the 31st member of the North Atlantic Treaty
    Organization in a ceremony held at the NATO headquarters, where it submitted
    the accession instrument to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken. The final
    step before Tuesday’s ceremony was held on Tuesday at the NATO headquarters,
    where Turkey was the last country to ratify Finland’s accession. US Secretary
    of State Blinken hailed what he has described as a historic day for NATO,
    saying Finland’s accession was precipitated by the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
    In 2022, Finland and Sweden asked to become members of NATO shortly after the
    Russian Federation launched its war of aggression in Ukraine. While Finland
    received the approval of all NATO members, Turkey decided to postpone Sweden’s
    accession. Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg expressed confidence Sweden will
    shortly become a member of NATO. Finland’s accession coincides with the
    anniversary of 74 years since the signing of the Washington Treaty, the
    founding document of NATO, on April 4, 1949, a landmark celebrated in Brussels
    through a number of special events.




    NATO -
    Romania’s president, Klaus Iohannis, on Tuesday hailed Finland’s official
    accession to NATO, saying the North Atlantic Treaty Organization is stronger
    now. Our unity and solidarity will always prevail over the unprecedented
    challenges in our region, the president tweeted. In turn, Prime Minister
    Nicolae Ciucă welcomed Finland’s NATO accession and wished Romania’s new
    partner good luck. Nicolae Ciucă pointed out that Bucharest also expects Sweden
    to become a full member of NATO as soon as possible.




    LEGAL – The legal
    committee of the Chamber of Deputies on Tuesday issued a favorable opinion for
    the amendments to the Criminal and Criminal Procedure Codes tabled by the
    Justice Ministry. The bill eliminated all the amendments previously adopted by
    the Senate, including the introduction of a threshold for offenses that
    constitute abuse of office. Ruling coalition MPs originally proposed the
    elimination of wiretaps as evidence for corruption and tax evasion offenses,
    but the amendment was eliminated. The Chamber of Deputies is expected to vote
    the bill on Wednesday. From the opposition, USR deputy Stelian Ion criticized
    the fact that coalition MPs have eliminated all amendments modifying the
    Criminal Code and voted the form proposed by the government without introducing
    a threshold for offenses constituting abuse of office. Stelian Ion Claims the
    article in the bill will be declared unconstitutional and all such offenses
    will be written off.




    DISTINCTION – The Turkish
    writer Orhan Pamuk on Tuesday was awarded the Doctor Honoris Causa title from the West University of Timișoara.
    In his acceptance speech, Orhan Pamuk spoke about the role of literature today,
    but also referred to a number of problems in his country, including the
    February 6 quakes. The writer said Istanbul has evolved from a city with a
    million inhabitants to a metropolis totaling over 16 million people, boasting a
    huge library. The Turkish writer said the February quakes made him identify
    with the suffering of Turkey. Orhan Pamuk is the recipient of the 2006 Nobel
    Prize for Literature. His books have been translated in over 60 languages. Pamuk is one of the five laureates of the
    Nobel Prize who are expected to visit Timișoara, the European Capital of
    Culture in 2023.




    ACADEMY – Romania’s highest
    cultural and scientific forum, the Romanian Academy on Tuesday opened its doors
    to visitors to mark its 157th anniversary. On this occasion, its
    most representative venues such as the Academy Hall, the Academy Club or the
    Memorial Museum, were opened to visitors who were also offered a guided tour of
    the Library. The Romanian Academy boasts 14 sections, covering several domains
    such as literature, linguistics, history, philosophy, mathematics, physics,
    chemistry, biology, geonomics, technical sciences, science and IT, agronomy,
    medicine, economic and legal sciences, art and architecture. The Romanian
    Academy presently boasts 181 members and corresponding members as well as 135
    honorary members. (DB & VP)

  • Interview with Finland’s Ambassador in Romania, HE Marjut Akola

    Interview with Finland’s Ambassador in Romania, HE Marjut Akola

    Since the outbreak of the war in Ukraine,
    Finland has been threatened directly on more than one occasion by Russia to
    stay away from NATO and not to provide any assistance to Ukraine.




    Finland’s Ambassador to Romania, HE Marjut
    Akola spoke about Finland’s response to the invasion of Ukraine and explained
    what Finland’s contribution has been so far.




    HE also provided an overview of
    Romania-Finland relations, with a focus on cooperation in the fields of
    education, business and culture.




    The full interview is available here


    https://soundcloud.com/radioromaniainternational/interview-with-marjut-akola



  • April 3, 2016 UPDATE

    April 3, 2016 UPDATE

    ANNIVERSARY – Security challenges in the region and
    across the world have evolved in a direction that confirms the need to tighten
    NATO’s conflict deterrence and defence capacity, on the eastern flank, too,
    Romanian Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos said in a message launched on NATO Day in
    Romania. Earlier, in a similar message, President Klaus Iohannis said NATO accession
    is one of the most remarkable successes of Romania’s contemporary foreign
    policy. Bucharest, to which NATO’s increasing relevance and efficiency as a
    fundamental pillar of Euro-Atlantic security is a major goal, capitalises on
    its well-defined strategic profile and actively contributes to NATO’s missions
    and operations, the president also said. On Sunday, Romania celebrated 12 years
    since it became a full-fledged NATO member.




    BRUSSELS – Flights were resumed on Sunday, on the
    Zaventem international airport in Brussels, 12 days since the bloody attacks
    which hit Belgium’s airport and subway, killing 32 people. The resumption of
    flights was possible after the airport police officers’ trade unions reached an
    agreement with the government. Trade unionists had threatened to go on strike
    in the absence of additional security measures in the wake of the attacks. Over
    23 million people transit Zaventem airport every year. The airport’s closure
    following the March 22 attacks incurred daily losses of 5 million Euros.




    CONFLICT –
    Azerbaijan on Sunday announced a unilateral but conditional cease-fire in
    Nagorno Karabakh, a region which re-became, on Friday and Saturday, the stage
    of violent clashes between the Azeri and Armenian forces since the conflict was
    frozen, back in 1994. Armenia announced, however, the clashes continued. The
    two sides point an accusatory finger to each other for the resumption of
    hostilities. The situation in Nagorno-Karabakh will be high on the agenda of
    next week’s meeting of the OSCE’s Minsk group for solving the separatist
    conflict in the region, a group co-chaired by Russia, the United States and
    France. Since the late 1980’s Azerbaijan and Armenia have fought for
    the region of Nagorno-Karabah, with a predominantly Armenian population, but
    annexed to Azerbaijan. The area was the stage of a war, which killed over
    30,000 people and left hundreds of thousands destitute, between 1988 and 1994.




    NAVAL EXERCISE – Three warships belonging to the Turkish Fleet,
    which are taking part in a naval exercise in the Black Sea, on Sunday arrived
    in the port of Constanta. According to Radio Romania’s correspondent, the
    Turkish commander will meet with representatives of the Romanian Naval Forces
    and the local authorities. The Turkish military, who will stay in Constanta
    until Monday, will visit the Romanian Navy Museum and other tourist objectives
    in the region. Also, a cooperation protocol will be signed between Turkish and
    Romanian firms active in the defence industry.





    SPORTS – The women’s volleyball
    team CSM Bucharest on Sunday won the Challenge Cup, after outperforming the
    Turkish team Trabzon Idman Ocagi. After a 3-1 win secured on Wednesday on home
    turf, in the first leg of the finals, the Romanian volleyball players managed a
    3-1 win in the away match, too. It is for the first time that a Romanian
    women’s volleyball team wins a European trophy.

  • April 3, 2016

    April 3, 2016

    ANNIVERSARY – Romania is today celebrating 12 years since it became a full-fledged member of the North Atlantic Alliance. On this occasion, the Romanian Defence Ministry headquarters are opened to the public and visitors are invited to attend a military ceremony devoted to Romanias joining NATO. A weapons handling exercise will be organised for the public and various themed exhibitions will also be mounted. NATO accession is one of the most remarkable successes of Romanias contemporary foreign policy, President Klaus Iohannis said in a message conveyed on this occasion. Romania, to which NATOs increasing relevance and efficiency as a fundamental pillar of Euro-Atlantic security is a major goal, capitalises on its well-defined strategic profile and actively contributes to NATOs missions and operations, the president also said.



    PROTEST – The protest by family physicians will continue in Romania on Monday. They warn they will not issue prescriptions, nor referrals to specialists, just like Friday. Some of the family doctors have announced they will not make free of charge medical check-ups, either. The situation is generated by the delayed signing of this years framework agreement and by the fact that the document does not provide for optimal funding for basic medical assistance. Doctors state their refusal to retroactively sign contracts, as has happened so far, the more so as in some cases they had to pay for the prescribed medication. They warn to go on a token strike in the following days, if their requests are not met. Last week, family doctors picketed the Health Ministry headquarters



    BRUSSELS– The Zaventem airport, the largest in Brussels, is being partially reopened today, approximately two weeks since the attacks that made scores of victims and reduced to rubble the entrance to the departures terminal. The resumption of flights is possible after the airport police officers trade unions reached an agreement with the government. The trade unionists threatened to go on strike in the absence of additional security measures in the wake of the attacks. All passengers will now be thoroughly checked before entering the airport building, and only passengers with tickets and IDs will be allowed access in the check-in hall. Also, the luggage will be checked before being brought into the building. Furthermore, the airport will no longer be connected to the city by common transportation means. Access will be possible only by taxis and personal cars. Over 23 million people transit the Zaventem airport every year. The airports closure following the March 22 attacks incurred daily losses of 5 million Euros.



    CONFLICT-The heaviest clashes in the past 20 years started in the Caucasian region of Nagorno-Karabach, leaving over 30 people dead so far. The two sides point an accusatory finger to each other for the start of violence. Russian president Vladimir Putin has expressed deep concern about the situation and launched an appeal to the two sides to immediately halt the hostilities. The resumption of clashes in Nagorno-Karabakh will be high on the agenda of next weeks meeting of the OSCEs Minsk group for solving the separatist conflict in the region, a group co-chaired by Russia, the United States and France. Since the late 1980s, Azerbaijan and Armenia have fought for the region of Nagorno-Karabah, with a predominantly Armenian population, but annexed to Azerbaijan. The area was the stage of a war, which killed over 30,000 people and left hundreds of thousands destitute, between 1988 and 1994.



    NAVAL EXERCISE – Three warships belonging to the Turkish Fleet, which are taking part in a naval exercise in the Black Sea, are today arriving in the port of Constanta. According to Radio Romanias correspondent, the Turkish commander will meet with representatives of the Romanian Naval Forces and the local authorities. The Turkish military, who will stay in Constanta until Monday, will visit the Romanian Navy Museum and other tourist objectives in the region. Also, a cooperation protocol will be signed between Turkish and Romanian firms active in the defence industry.



    SPORTS – The womens volleyball team CSM Bucharest is today meeting, away from home, the Turkish team Trabzon Idman Ocagi, in the second round of the Challenge Cup finals. On Wednesday, the Romanian volleyball players secured a 3-1 win, on home turf, in the first round of the finals. So, they will need only two sets to grab the trophy, the first in the history of Romanian womens volleyball. In the last but one round of the competition, CSM, led by an Italian coach, secured a double victory against another representative of Turkey, Bursa BBSK, the defending holder of the trophy. It is for the first time that a Romanian womens volleyball team plays a European cup final.


    (Translated by Diana Vijeu)