Radio România Internațional

Tag: News

  • August 11, 2021

    August 11, 2021

    Rectification — The ruling coalition in Bucharest continues negotiations on the draft budget rectification law, which is to be approved next week. On Tuesday evening, after a meeting of the ruling parties’ leaders, the Liberal Prime Minister Florin Cîţu announced that additional funds would go to the ministries of Health, Transport, Education, Justice and Energy. Discussions are still open at the Ministry of Development, the PM added, after the line minister, Cseke Atilla, presented a project for the launch of a national investment program, of 50 billion lei (about 10 billion Euros), on several components – roads, water, sewerage and natural gas infrastructure. It is a state investment in local infrastructure projects, correlated with the period of investments from European funds. Today, the Liberal Party leader, Ludovic Orban, has stated that the participants in the governing coalition meeting decided to start the new investment program for the local communities.



    Covid – 19 Romania — 326 news Covid-19 cases were reported in Romania on Wednesday out of more than 29 thousand tests. 8 people have died, and 710 are hospitalized, of whom 96 are in ICUs. The coordinator of the National Vaccination Campaign, Valeriu Gheorghiţă, stated that, although the number of new Covid cases is growing slowly, growth is progressive and sustained, therefore, in a pessimistic scenario, more than 1,500 daily cases might be registered in the second half of September. On the other hand, the governing coalition has agreed to grant meal vouchers to people who get both doses of the vaccine, to give vaccination a boost.



    Inflation — In Romania, the annual inflation rate went up to 5% in July as against 3.9% in June. Prices of non-foods have grown by 8%, of services by 2.74%, and of foods by 2.33%, the National Institute of Statistics- INS shows. Higher prices were reported for electricity, gas, fuels and edible oil. On Monday, Romania’s National Bank increased its inflation forecast to 5.6% for the end of this year, according to Governor Mugur Isărescu. Romania is no longer a country of those with low salaries — the PM Florin Cîțu replied, adding that more than 1% of employees have a net salary higher than the equivalent of 3,000 Euros, and the share of people who have net salaries of over 1,000 Euros is on the rise. According to the INS, the average net salary stands at 3,541 lei (about 700 Euros).



    Football — Romania’s football champions, CFR Cluj (northwest), have failed to qualify to the Champions League play-offs, after losing 3-1, away from home, the match against the Swiss team Young Boys Bern, in the decisive leg of the third preliminary round. In Cluj, the score was equal, 1-1. CFR will play in the Europa League play-off with Red Star Belgrade. If they are eliminated, the CFR Cluj will still play in the Europa Conference League groups.



    Fires – In Greece, the population affected by the fires of the past two weeks, accuses the authorities of not having acted efficiently in the fight against the fire. The causes of the unprecedented disaster are also being investigated by the general prosecutor, as there are suspicions of an organized criminal activity. As many as 600 outbreaks are active, and the situation does not seem to be improving despite the huge efforts of the Greek firefighters, who have also received international aid. The most dangerous situation is in Evia Island, where more than 100 Romanian firefighters are operating. The Romanian firefighters have received much appreciation from the press, the locals, and also from their Greek colleagues for their intervention manner and courage. The Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has admitted that the government could have done more. He has promised that 500 million Euros worth of aid will be sent to the Peloponnese, in the Attica region near Athens and on the island of Evia, that new trees will be planted to replace the burned forests and that those who lost their properties will receive compensations. The damage is difficult to estimate, but the flames have already destroyed 65,000 hectares of vegetation. Fires have not yet been put out in Italy, northern Macedonia and Siberia, and in California 200,000 hectares of vegetation have burned in recent weeks. (LS)

  • August 10, 2021 UPDATE

    August 10, 2021 UPDATE

    Immunity — Herd immunity against COVID-19 in Romania is around 50%, through vaccination or the development of antibodies following the disease – the president of the National Committee for Coordination of Vaccination Activities, doctor Valeriu Gheorghiţă said on Tuesday. He added that although the number of infections is on the rise, the situation is stable as compared to other European states. In another development, Valeriu Gheorghiţă specified that the authorities’ aim is to increase the number of vaccinated people, especially among the most vulnerable category, but that, at the moment, anti-Covid vaccination should not be mandatory, because the Romanian society is not prepared for this type of approach. Approximately 5 million Romanians, i.e. a quarter of the total population, have been fully vaccinated. More than 300 new cases of Covid 19 were reported on Tuesday in Romania, after processing more than 34,000 tests, this being the largest daily number reported since the end of May. Four deaths have also been announced. The number of hospitalized patients is also increasing, over 660, of whom about 80 are in intensive care.



    Humanitarian action — A Romanian Air Force aircraft transports, on Tuesday, to Egypt, 525,000 doses of Covid-19 vaccine, produced by AstraZeneca, for the management of the pandemic in that country. Romania has received a request for international assistance from the Cairo government through the European Civil Protection Mechanism, thus joining European and international efforts to support Egypt. Similar humanitarian aid would be sent to Albania and Vietnam. Already on Monday, the Romanian Air Force transported to Tunisia approximately 180,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccine, antigen tests and medical supplies, as well as a 13-strong medical staff team who will provide support to the Tunisian health personnel. In a statement, the Tunisian Embassy in Romania thanked the Romanian state for its action.



    Attack – Romania reiterated its strong condemnation of any acts of aggression that represent violations of the principles and norms of international law and voiced its concern over the negative effects of these actions on regional and international security. This view was shared on Monday at an open debate of the UN Security Council held in video-conference format discussing maritime security as an expression of international cooperation. The Romanian foreign ministry said the attack on the Mercer Street oil tanker is a threat to peace and a blatant violation of international law. The European Union also condemned the attack and called for compliance with the principles and norms of international law. The Romanian foreign ministry recalled that Romanias and Britains permanent representatives at the UN together with Liberias permanent representative (under whose flag the ship was sailing) signed a joint letter to the president of the UN Security Council and the UN Secretary General on the subject of the attack on the Mercer Street tanker, in which a Romanian was also killed. The US presented information that the drone that hit the vessel was an Iranian-made kamikaze drone.



    Climate — The Romanian president Klaus Iohannis promised to get actively involved in the processes aimed at solving the climate crisis following the stark warning issued by a major UN report on the accelerated pace of climate change caused by human action. The report notes that global warming may exceed by 1.5 degrees Celsius the levels recorded at the end of the 19th century by around 2030, ten years earlier than previously estimated. UN experts speak of a genuine red code for humanity and unprecedented disasters, including more heat waves and floods. In response to the UN report, the European Commission said it is not too late to stop this trend provided the countries of the world act immediately and do so together. The US said the world cannot delay ambitious climate action, and the UK said the transition to renewable energy must be made fast, an idea supported by France. Greenpeace insists that it is now up to the worlds governments to take measures and commit to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by 2030.



    Police — The Romanian Police on Tuesday launched a road safety campaign entitled “View from the hospital”, in order to reduce the accidents caused as a result of drivers’ failure to observe speed limits on national highways and roads. The policemen presented what is meant by aggressive driving and explained that the dangerous maneuvers for drivers will be defined in the new proposals for the modification of the Traffic Code. The Interior Ministry has proposed, among other things, to double the sanctions for wrong-way driving on highways, i.e. withholding driving licenses for 120 days, as compared to 60 days at present, and license suspension for 60 days for driving in the emergency lane on highways instead of fines, as the rule goes at present. In Romania, excessive speed is the main cause of traffic accidents in the summer season. Statistics show that in summer, many drivers go on holiday with their families and try to reach their destination as soon as possible.



    Senate — The Romanian Senate’s Permanent Bureau on Tuesday summoned a plenary extraordinary session to inform about the adoption by the government, on August 5, during the parliamentary break, of the Emergency Ordinance repealing provisions regarding the disconnection of customers that do not pay their natural gas and thermal energy bills. So far, during the state of alert, conveyance and distribution operators have ensured the continuity of service provision for all subscribers who have not paid their bills. According to the authorities, the number of final customers – domestic and non-domestic – who had not paid their electricity and natural gas bills recorded in the period for which disconnections were postponed, was, at the end of May, over 200 thousand, the amount of outstanding debts standing at almost 250 million lei (about 50 million Euros). (LS)

  • The state of alert has been extended

    The state of alert has been extended

    Romania will remain in a state of alert. On Thursday the government approved the extension of the state of alert by another 30 days starting on August 11, with the current restrictions being maintained. We recall that, since May 15 last year, after two months of state of emergency, Romania has been in a state of alert, which has been extended successively up to the present moment.



    On the other hand, Bucharest has updated the list of countries with an epidemiological risk. Thus, as of Sunday, France enters the red list, alongside Greece, Spain, Great Britain, Ireland and Portugal. Unvaccinated people arriving in Romania from these countries will be quarantined for 14 days. Exempted from the rule are children under 3 and also children between 3 and 16 years old, if they provide a negative Covid test.



    Turkey has been added to the yellow list which also includes Belgium and Israel. Italy and Germany remain in the green zone. Instead, the UK has included Romania on the green list of countries with an epidemiological risk, which means that, starting on Sunday, Romanians traveling to Great Britain will no longer have to be quarantined, regardless of whether they are vaccinated or not. Nevertheless, Romanian citizens arriving in the UK must present a negative PCR test performed ahead of their entering the British territory and take a second test two days after arrival.



    All these against the backdrop of an increasing number of new cases of infection in Romania! In the past days, the daily number of infections has exceeded 200. Around 500 Covid patients are hospitalized, of whom around 70 are in intensive care, a situation comparable with that reported at the end of June. Fortunately, the number of deaths caused by the novel coronavirus remains low. While waiting for the 4th pandemic wave, which might occur in September according to specialists, the authorities are calling on the population to get vaccinated, as vaccination is the safest way to avoid a serious form of the disease.



    The manager of the Infectious Diseases Hospital in Timişoara (west), Cristian Oancea, told Radio Romania that he expected the pressure on the healthcare system to no longer be that high — as during the 2nd wave when medical units had a hard time coping with the number of Covid cases. However, Romanians are still reticent about vaccination in comparison with other Europeans. The number of fully vaccinated people has exceeded 4.9 million. At least for the time being, the authorities say they are counting on raising people’s awareness of the importance of vaccination, and not on imposing restrictive measures that could lead to discrimination. (LS)

  • August 5, 2021

    August 5, 2021

    Covid Ro ▪ Secretary of state with the Romanian Interior Ministry, Raed Arafat, insists on the population’s vaccination and wearing protective masks to reduce the risk of infection with the novel coronavirus. Invited in Radio Romania’s studios, he explained that the risk of an increasing number of cases daily is real, but everyone can help limit the spread of the virus. Raed Arafat pointed out that no new restrictions are being considered, and reminded that if the threshold of 2 cases per thousand inhabitants was exceeded, the rules in force before August 1 would be re-applied, and if the threshold of 3 cases per thousand inhabitants is exceeded, the measures will be tightened. Meanwhile, the number of new cases of coronavirus is growing. On Thursday, 244 new cases were reported out of over 28,000 tests. At the same time, 2 deaths were reported. 72 people are hospitalized in intensive care. The UK has included Romania on the green list of countries with epidemiological risk, which means that Romanians traveling to the UK will no longer have to be quarantined, regardless of whether they are vaccinated or not. However, the Romanian citizens who travel to the UK must present a negative PCR test performed before entering the territory of this country and need to take a second test two days after arrival. The measure takes effect on Sunday.



    COVID world ▪ Covid cases worldwide exceeded 200 million on Wednesday, according to a Reuters report, as the more contagious Delta variant is threatening the areas with low vaccination rates and precarious healthcare systems. The global increase in Covid cases highlights the difference between vaccination rates in rich and poor countries. According to Reuters, the number of cases is on the rise in about a third of the worlds countries, many of which have not vaccinated even half of the population with a first dose. The World Health Organization is calling for a postponement of the administration of a third dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, at least until the end of September, so as not to widen the gap between vaccination campaigns in rich and poor countries. Meanwhile, in some European countries, such as the United Kingdom and the Netherlands, the number of new cases of COVID-19 is decreasing, while in others the 4th wave of the pandemic is in full development.



    Exercise ▪ More than 350 military divers from Romania, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, the US and Ukraine are participating in a multinational training exercise off the Romanian Black Sea Coast. The “Eurasian Partnership MCM Dive” exercise, which will last 4 days, is led by the Diving Center 39 within the Romanian Navy. The Romanian Navy also participates in the drill with the “Vice Admiral Constantin Bălescu” minesweeper ship, the “Captain Commander Alexandru Cătuneanu” Hydrographic Maritime Ship, as well as with an autonomous underwater vehicle. Ukraine participates with the rescue and recovery tug “Oleksandr Okhrimenko”. The purpose of the exercise is to consolidate the skills of military divers and to develop the participants’ interoperability in two domains, namely searching, identifying and destroying mines in historic mine dams and underwater activities with hydraulic tools.



    Fires ▪ The heat wave persists in several European countries, which have been fighting vegetation fires for more than several days. The authorities are on alert in Greece, where flames threatened the capital Athens on Wednesday. In Turkey, the damage is huge, and a thermal plant threatened by flames has been evacuated. Forest fires are spreading also in Bulgaria, where two forest rangers have died and a third one has been injured. Italy, Albania and northern Macedonia are also facing fires. The European Commission has said it will send planes, helicopters and firefighters to Italy, Greece, Albania and northern Macedonia to help these countries fight the fires.



    Talks ▪ Romanias ambassador to the United States, Andrei Muraru, stressed the importance of strengthening security of NATOs Eastern Flank, during a phone conversation with Jake Sullivan, US National Security Adviser, together with the ambassadors to Washington of the Bucharest-9 Format states, the Romanian Embassy in the US announced on Thursday on its Facebook page. The phone conversation was meant to consult NATO allies on US policies and activities of interest to the region. The Bucharest Format is an initiative launched by the presidents of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, and of Poland, Andrzej Duda, which includes NATO member states on the Eastern Flank participate: Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Hungary. The American president Joe Biden also participated online in the summit organized in May this year in Bucharest.



    Meeting ▪ The Romanian government is meeting today for its weekly session. High on the executives agenda is the Emergency Ordinance repealing an article from a law regarding the impossibility of electricity and natural gas suppliers to cut off or disconnect bad payers during the state of alert period. The law established that disconnection could be done after the state of alert ended, but the Government wants to repeal this provision because they realized that the failure to collect money from final customers was felt by all parties involved in the processes of electricity and natural gas production and supply in Romania. The executive also discusses a decision that completes the methodological norms of the SME Invest program. This law is necessary because regulation is needed for some situations related to certain terms, to areas that can be supported through SME Invest and to areas that cannot be supported through this program. (LS)

  • August 4, 2021 UPDATE

    August 4, 2021 UPDATE

    Covid-19 Romania ▪ The Romanian President Klaus Iohannis on Wednesday stated that the COVID-19 pandemic could not be defeated by discrimination, by restrictive measures, but through vaccination, by raising public awareness, because immunization inhibits the development of the disease. According to Klaus Iohannis, the drop in the number of SARS-CoV-2 cases was possible due to vaccination, and Romanians must understand that, unless they continue to get vaccinated, there is a risk of a fourth pandemic wave, as it has already happened in other European states. In another move, the Education Minister, Sorin Câmpeanu, has stated that school will start on September 13 with pupils physically attending classes. He ruled out mandatory vaccination for the education staff, but encouraged them to get vaccinated. Minister Câmpeanu has stated that, this month, information campaigns on the importance of vaccination for the education staff will be run again, to help increase the level of immunization by the start of the new school year. The number of new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in 24 hours continues to rise. 271 new cases were reported on Wednesday in Romania, out of almost 30 thousand tests. The number of coronavirus patients in hospitals continues to increase. Of the 456 hospitalized people, 67 are in intensive care.



    Recovery ▪ Portugal, Luxembourg and Belgium are the first states to receive money under the National Recovery and Resilience Plans. This is a down-payment for amounts promised under the EUs post-pandemic recovery fund, totaling 800 billion Euros. According to a statement, this month, the European Commission will make payments to other member countries as well. All states, except the Netherlands and Bulgaria, have submitted their recovery plans to the European Commission for approval. Romania has not yet received the green light to benefit from the European money. Recently, the German publication Die Welt has written that Romanias plan is regarded with skepticism, and the Commission will decide on it by the end of September. The Romanian Prime Minister Florin Cîţu has stated, though, that 95% of the Plan was negotiated with the European Union.



    Fire ▪ New vegetation fires are breaking out in the north of the Mediterranean, despite the efforts made by firefighters, who have been battling the flames for more than a week. Greece, Turkey, Albania, Bulgaria and Italy are on the list of countries where fire has so far destroyed thousands of hectares of forest and vegetation. Hundreds of people have been evacuated almost daily. In Turkey, where 8 people have been killed by the fire, emergency services have managed to contain hundreds of fires, but new outbreaks are caused by the hot wind. In Greece, the fire reached a neighborhood on the outskirts of Athens, destroying many houses. The country is facing the worst heat wave in decades. The EU has sent planes, helicopters and firefighters to help these countries fight the fires.



    Moldova ▪ In the Republic of Moldova (an ex-Soviet state with a majority Romanian-speaking population), the future pro-European government is to be invested, on Friday, by the Parliament dominated by the Action and Solidarity Party (PAS), founded by President Maia Sandu. Last week, she nominated Natalia Gavriliţă for the position of prime minister, after being proposed by PAS, which, with 63 out of 101 deputy seats, has a comfortable majority in the Moldovan Parliament. The new Cabinet will have 13 ministries. Its immediate priorities include the efficient management of the health crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the reform of the judiciary and the fight against corruption, the increase of the populations income and the resumption of external financing.



    Attack ▪ The representatives of Great Britain, Romania and Liberia have informed the UN Security Council that it is “very likely” that the Iranian forces have used one or more drones to carry out a deadly attack on an oil tanker off the coast of Oman last week. “This act must be condemned by the international community,” the representatives of the three countries said in a letter to the council, which was obtained by Reuters. On Wednesday, Romania, the United Kingdom and the United States reiterated the “deliberate nature” of the attack on the Mercer Street ship, attributed to the Islamic Republic of Iran on the basis of available information, and warned that the incident was a “clear violation of international law.” The permanent missions of the three countries to NATO have agreed on a joint approach at NATO level, in this case. Two crew members, a Romanian and a Briton, died in the July 29 attack. The EU and NATO have strongly condemned the drone attack off the coast of Oman on an Israeli-operated oil tanker, and Washington has promised a “collective response” along with its allies against Iran. Also Wednesday, Israel accused that the head of the drone command of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards and the commander of the air force is behind the attack, according to the daily Haaretz, quoted by Agerpres. (LS)

  • The hottest day of the year in Romania

    The hottest day of the year in Romania

    On Monday Romania experienced the hottest day of 2021 so far, with temperatures reaching up to 41 degrees Celsius, in the south of the country. 16 counties and the capital Bucharest were under an orange code alert for persistent heat and particularly severe thermal discomfort, with the National Weather Service issuing a yellow code alert for 8 counties. The temperature-humidity index exceeded the critical threshold of 80 units, which considerably increased the discomfort. According to meteorologists, in the next two weeks, the heat will subside and there will be periods of very high temperatures alternating with periods of lower temperatures.



    The south of the country will remain the most affected, Meda Andrei, from the National Weather Service, explained to Radio Romania: “For the time being, we are not expecting extreme temperatures, but, in the next two weeks we expect intervals with slightly higher temperatures. This week, for instance, on Thursday, the southernmost parts of Romania could see very high temperatures again, around 39 degrees C, with 36-37 degrees C in Bucharest. The highest temperatures will be reported in the south. For the rest of the country, temperatures will be normal for this period, and after a short period of cooler weather, when temperatures will drop below 35 degrees, at the end of the week, on Sunday and at the beginning of next week, temperatures will rise again above 35 degrees. But for now, we do not expect a persistent heat wave with temperatures ​​exceeding 40 degrees C.”



    Physicians are drawing attention to the risks that people are running during the heat wave, especially those suffering from chronic diseases. According to the manager of the Bucharest Ambulance Service, Alice Grasu, the human body can adapt to not very big temperature variations, of 4-5 degrees, in about two weeks.



    Alice Grasu: “When the temperature variations are big from one hour to another, from one day to another, from day to night, there is an aggression on the body, which is forced to adapt to these big temperature variations in a very short time. Therefore, some people with chronic conditions are at risk of having their symptoms exacerbated, so they need to take additional protective measures during this period. The vulnerable categories are the infants, young children, people with disabilities, people with chronic diseases and the elderly and they are advised not to travel long distances in the heat between 11 a.m. and 6 p.m., not to make physical effort in the sun and not to sunbathe.”



    Doctors also recommend people to drink water at room temperature and to avoid alcoholic drinks and caffeinated beverages because they dehydrate the body. (LS)

  • Anti-COVID measures

    Anti-COVID measures

    The most contagious strain of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus detected so far, the Delta variant, which is at the origin of the devastating wave of COVID-19 cases in India, is spreading, which has prompted world authorities to take action to counter a 4th wave of the pandemic. In Israel, for instance, vaccination with the 3rd dose has been launched for people with immunity problems, and, in France, the most important measure to fight the Delta variant, announced by President Emmanuel Macron, refers to compulsory vaccination for healthcare and non-healthcare workers in hospitals, clinics and nursing homes, as well as for professional and voluntary staff involved in the care of the elderly, including at home.



    After France, Greece has announced the same measure for the medical staff, starting on September 1. In Romania, the Delta variant appeared a few weeks ago, and the first death associated with it was registered in the second half of June. Meanwhile, the number of such cases and associated deaths has slightly increased, and the authorities continue to call for the peoples vaccination. The medical staff that refuses to be vaccinated against COVID could pay for the tests from their own pockets, Prime Minister Florin Cîțu said on Tuesday, when answering the question whether the executive is considering the measure of compulsory immunization of the medical staff or of the employees involved in the care of the elderly.



    Florin Cîțu: “Romania has the lowest infection rate in Europe. Regarding vaccination of the medical staff, we propose to test those who do not want to be vaccinated and have them pay for the test. This is the proposal I made to the Health Ministry officials.”



    The move is caused by fears regarding the possibility of a 4th wave emerging in Romania, even if, at present, the positive test rate stands somewhere around 0.3% and the medical system no longer has to work under the pressure of a very large number of infected people.



    In another move, as of Tuesday, passengers arriving at the Henri Coandă Airport from countries on the yellow list and holding a EU digital COVID certificate or a PCR test can use the green flow corridor, without being checked by the Public Health Directorate employees. The same corridor can be used by those who come from the red-list countries but hold a certificate. The Bucharest Airports National Company specified that the digital certificates issued by Great Britain or by non-EU countries are not valid and recommends passengers arriving from countries on the red or yellow lists to fill in, in due time, the form requested by the Romanian health authorities. The form can be downloaded from the airlines websites or from the website of the Romanian Foreign Ministry. (LS)

  • July 9, 2021 UPDATE

    July 9, 2021 UPDATE

    Covid -19 ▪ 54 new cases of SARS-CoV-2 infection have been registered in the past 24 hours, out of more than 24,500 tests, the Strategic Communication Group reported. Also, only one person has died of COVID-19 in the mentioned period. Most of the newly confirmed cases were registered in the counties of Dolj, Iaşi and Satu Mare. In Bucharest, 4 new cases were reported. 311 infected people are still in hospital, of whom 58 in intensive care. At the same time, 21,992 people are in home quarantine and 34 in institutionalized quarantine, and 2,024 are in home isolation while 670 in institutionalized isolation. The Romanian government approved the extension of the state of alert across the country for another 30 days, starting with July 12. On the other hand, the head of the vaccination campaign, Valeriu Gheorghiţă, pointed out that, as of mid-August, the number of COVID-19 cases in Romania might increase, due to the new Delta virus strain. Since the beginning of the vaccination campaign in Romania, in December last year, almost 4.8 million people have been vaccinated, of whom about 4.6 million with both doses.



    Summit ▪ “Romania remains firmly committed to the Three Seas Initiative, through pragmatic action, and it will support concrete solutions to reduce gaps and strengthen resilience in the region,” the Romanian President Klaus Iohannis stated at the organization summit held in Sofia. He attended the summit, which brings together 12 EU member states, located between the Baltic Sea, the Adriatic Sea and the Black Sea. President Iohannis spoke about the special attention that Romania attaches to the projects Rail-2-Sea and Via Carpathia, which are concrete initiatives with a major economic importance and with a real strategic value for the region. The Three Seas Initiative’s development at parliamentary, local and regional levels, which adds to the initiative’s intergovernmental dimension, is quite welcome. The final target of all these efforts, however, remains the rigorous implementation of the Initiative’s priority strategic interconnection projects in three basic areas – transport, energy and digitalization, the Romanian president pointed out. The participants adopted a joint statement which reiterates ‘the firm commitment’ to the Three Seas Initiative and hails the progress made at the summits so far. The participants also welcomed ‘the strong and uninterrupted support of the organization’s partners: the United States, Germany and the European Commission.



    Festival ▪ The Sibiu International Theater Festival (FITS), one of the largest festivals in the world and the largest event dedicated to the performing arts in Romania, will present, between August 20-29, over 600 events performed by artists from 37 countries, from all continents. According to the organizers, this is going to be the most complex edition held so far. This years edition of the Sibiu Theater Festival, whose theme is “Building hope together” – will have a threefold dimension: physical, hybrid and online. The event is aimed at building hope together with its audience which will watch a genuine feast of the performing arts, with theater, dance, circus, film, musical and opera productions as well as book launches, conferences, exhibitions, performance, music, and street shows. Israel Galván Company, Charlotte Rampling, Tokyo Metropolitan Theater, Kibbutz Contemporary Dance Company, María Pagés Compańía are some of the world’s great artists and companies that will participate in the 2021 Sibiu International Theater Festival.



    Baccalaureate ▪ The Baccalaureate exam pass rate in Romania, after the resolution of appeals, is almost 70%, the Romanian Education Minister Sorin Câmpeanu announced. He showed that over 50 thousand marks were modified, some even with 3 or 4 points. A number of almost 2,500 students have passed the Baccalaureate after the resolution of appeals. The total number of candidates who passed the exam stands at around 89 thousand, from both the current and previous year.



    Olympics – Postponed by a year due to the coronavirus pandemic, the 2020 Olympic Games in Japan will be the first in history to take place largely behind closed doors. The move follows the Japanese governments decision to restore the state of emergency, the 4th since the beginning of the pandemic, in Tokyo until August 22, as the Games begin on July 23 and end on August 8. A little over 15% of Japans population has been fully vaccinated so far, and experts fear that the Delta variant might bring about another wave that could overwhelm Japanese hospitals. The Olympic flame arrived in Tokyo on Friday for a ceremony held on an empty stadium. It was carried in a lantern and symbolically handed over to Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike. (LS)

  • July 8, 2021

    July 8, 2021

    Covid – 19 ▪ The Romanian government has approved, at the proposal of the National Committee for Emergency Situations, the extension of the state of alert across Romania for another 30 days, starting with July 12. The prevention and control measures in force at the moment will continue to be applied, with some changes. The most important is the extension from 90 to 180 days of the period of exemption from these measures for those persons who have already had the infection. On the other hand, the head of the vaccination campaign, Valeriu Gheorghiţă, has drawn attention to the fact that, as of mid-August, the number of COVID-19 cases in Romania will increase due to the new ‘Delta’ virus strain and he has again called for the population to get vaccinated. Since the beginning of the vaccination campaign in Romania, in December last year, almost 4.8 million people have been vaccinated, of whom about 4.6 million with both doses. 30 new cases of contamination and 3 deaths have been reported in the past 24 hours, and 57 patients are in ICUs.



    Covid world ▪ Tens of new cases of infection with the ‘Delta’ strain of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and one case of ‘Beta’ variant infection have been identified in Bulgaria, Romania’s neighbor. In Japan, the government has today confirmed its intention to introduce a new state of emergency during the Tokyo Olympics, a competition that is set to begin in two weeks time, given that the number of new cases of contamination continues to rise. The Delta variant of the novel coronavirus, first identified in India, continues to spread rapidly around the world. The Australian city of Sydney on Wednesday recorded the highest number of new cases this year, South Korea reported the highest rate since the onset of the pandemic, and a study published in London shows that the number of infections in England has increased 4 times since June until now. In Spain there has been an increase in the number of new cases: 17,000 yesterday, especially among young people. 1% of young people between 20 and 24 who have been infected should be hospitalized – the Spanish authorities have warned. Globally, more than 185 million cases of infection have been reported so far and at least 4 million people have died, according to wordlmeters.info. Most cases and deaths were recorded in the United States, India and Brazil.



    Dismissal ▪ Romanias Liberal Prime Minister Florin Citu announced on Thursday that he had submitted to President Klaus Iohannis the request for the dismissal of the Finance Minister, Alexandru Nazare. PM Citu pointed out that he had informed the leaders of the PNL – USR PLUS – UDMR governing coalition about his decision. The PM explained that, upon evaluating the activity of the finance ministry, he discovered delays of some important projects which are aimed at eliminating tax dodging and attracting European funds. Meanwhile, PM Citu will be the interim finance minister.



    Summit ▪ Sofia, in Bulgaria, is hosting as of today the 6th summit of the Three Seas Initiative. The summit will assess the progress made so far in the main areas of interest and will equally tackle the functioning of the Investment Fund of the Three Seas Initiative. The organization is a flexible, informal political platform at presidential level, bringing together the 12 EU member states located between the Baltic Sea, the Adriatic Sea and the Black Sea. Romania is represented by President Klaus Iohannis, who will emphasize the importance of implementing priority strategic interconnection projects, with a focus on projects of high interest for Romania, namely Rail2Sea ​​and Via Carpatia. From Bucharests standpoint, these projects are essential for the Initiative to really bring about long-term economic development, and to make the economy of the participating states more strategically resilient, also in the context of post-pandemic economic recovery efforts. Alongside the leaders of the Initiative countries, this years summit will be attended by representatives of the US, Germany, the European Commission and the IMF, as partners, and by Greece’s representatives as guests. The initiative is meant to develop the economies of the participating states by boosting digital interconnectivity in transport and energy fields, by increasing real convergence between EU member states and also by strengthening the transatlantic relationship, including by stimulating the US economic presence in the region. We recall that Bucharest hosted the Three Seas Initiative summit in September 2018.



    Football ▪ England and Italy will play in the final of the European Football Championship to take place on Sunday. On Wednesday evening, in the second semifinal, England defeated Denmark 2-1 after extra time. Previously Italy had outclassed Spain 4-2 after the penalty shoot-out, after a 1-all score in 120 minutes. Both semifinals and the finals have been scheduled in London. Bucharest hosted four games from the final tournament, three in the groups’ stage and one in the Round of 16. After a mediocre run in the preliminaries, Romania failed to qualify for the EURO. In exchange, Romanias Under-23 team has qualified for the Tokyo Olympics. Romania is playing in Group B and will face Honduras on July 22, South Korea on July 25 and New Zealand on July 28. The Romanian footballers have qualified for the Tokyo Olympics after having reached the semifinals of the European Under-21 Championship in 2019, hosted by Italy and San Marino. Romania has not participated in the Olympic football tournament since 1964, when it ranked 5th also in Tokyo. Before 1964, Romania had participated only in the European Championships of Paris in 1924 and of Helsinki in 1952. (LS)


  • July 7, 2021 UPDATE

    July 7, 2021 UPDATE

    Brussels ▪ Romanias economy will grow by 7.4% in 2021 and by 4.9% in 2022, after in May estimates showed a 5.1% growth rate this year and 4.9% next year, according to the interim summer forecasts, published on Wednesday by the European Commission (EC). The performance of the Romanian economy was solid in the first quarter of 2021. The GDP grew by 2.8% quarterly, its growth being supported mainly by private consumption and investment. On the other hand, net exports were significantly negative, showing a weak external demand and supply chain disruptions, the EC shows. Private consumption is expected to remain extremely robust, boosted by the lifting of restrictions, especially in sectors severely affected by the pandemic, such as the performing arts and entertainment, restaurants and hotels, as well as by the relatively solid wage increase in the first months of the year he EC estimates. At the same time, investments will remain solid in the period 2021-2022, being supported by both the public and private sectors. Within the EU, the economy is expected to expand by 4.8% in 2021 and by 4.5% in 2022.



    Covid ▪ The vaccination rate across Romania among the eligible population over 12 years is about 28% – Valeriu Gheorghiţă, the head of the vaccination campaign announced. He has pointed out that, as of mid August, the number of COVID-19 cases will increase in Romania, due to the new Delta virus strain, and he has again called on the population to get vaccinated. Since the beginning of the vaccination campaign, in December last year, almost 4.8 million people have been vaccinated in Romania, of whom about 4.6 million with both doses. On the other hand, 60 new cases of infection with the novel coronavirus were announced on Wednesday for the last 24 hours and 2 new deaths. The entire territory of Romania is in the so-called green scenario regarding the spread of the new coronavirus. 56 people are still in intensive care.



    Project ▪ President Klaus Iohannis announced that the government would assume next week, through a memorandum, the targets and objectives of the ‘Educated Romania’ project launched in 2016 for public debate. He also showed that, following the discussions of the past days, the governing coalition expressed support for the project and is to establish a clear cut action plan with responsibilities and deadlines for implementation. President Iohannis had talks with the social dialogue partners in the education field and with the representatives of NGOs involved in the project. The reforms are to be financially supported through the National Recovery Plan, from the state budget and other European money. The ‘Educated Romania’ project benefits from a ‘historic financial aid’ worth about 4 billion Euros, said the Romanian President.



    Justice ▪ The leaders of the governing coalition in Bucharest met, on Wednesday, to discuss the parliamentary agenda for dismantling the controversial Special Section to investigate crimes committed by magistrates (SIIJ). The coalition functions very well on all topics, except for justice, the justice minister Stelian Ion said. He explained that the National Liberal Party and the Save Romania Union PLUS Alliance have the same opinion, namely that next week an extraordinary session should be called for dismantling the Special Section and reassigning competences, as the Venice Commission says and as the government project stipulates. According to Stelian Ion the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania is trying a different version, namely to somehow deceive the voters in the sense of pretending to dismantle the special section but recreating it in the form of a new section within the General Prosecutor’s Office.



    Explosion — A powerful explosion followed by a fire occurred last night at the Azomureş Chemical Plant (in central Romania). A man in his 50s was injured. The company management said the incident occurred when an ammonia production unit was started. The Mureş Inspectorate for Emergency Situations sent a RO-Alert message informing the population in the neighboring area of the blast. The company representatives say the situation is being monitored by the authorities, the installation where the fire occurred being completely stopped. We recall that, on Friday, an explosion followed by a fire also occurred at the Petromidia Refinery in Navodari (southeastern Romania), when one man was killed and five injured. (LS)


  • July 6, 2021

    July 6, 2021

    Covid RO ▪ 51 new cases of people infected with SARS-CoV-2 have been registered in the last 24 hours, out of over 27,800 tests, the Strategic Communication Group reported. Also, 4 people lost their lives due to COVID-19 during the same period. Most newly confirmed cases were registered in Cluj – 6 and Bucharest – 4, while no new cases were registered in 21 counties. The entire territory of Romania is in the green scenario, the highest incidence per thousand inhabitants being reported in the counties of Prahova – 0.11, Ilfov and Dolj – 0.07. 392 infected people are still in hospital, of whom 61 in intensive care. At the same time, 19,677 people are in home quarantine and 37 in institutionalized quarantine, while 1,853 are in home isolation and 705, in institutionalized isolation. Since the beginning of the vaccination campaign in Romania, on December 27, 2020, almost 4.6 million people have been fully vaccinated.



    Coronavirus world ▪ Concern is growing in several European countries over the spread of the new Indian ‘Delta’ variant of the SARS-COV-2 virus. Consequently appeals for immunization have intensified, immunization being mandatory for certain categories of employees. According to Radio Romania’s correspondents, in Spain the contamination incidence exceeded 640 cases per hundred thousand inhabitants in the 20-29 age group, but no serious cases were reported. In France, the Health Minister warned of a new rise in the number of newly detected cases. As everywhere in Europe, France is debating the idea of ​​imposing compulsory vaccination on medical and healthcare staff from hospitals and senior citizen centers, where the vaccination level is below expectations. Worldwide, nearly 185 million cases of coronavirus infection have been reported and more than 4 million people have died, according to wordlmeters.info. Most contamination cases and deaths have been recorded in the United States, India and Brazil.



    Justice ▪ Romanian politicians in power and opposition have reacted to the Venice Commission’s opinion according to which it is appropriate to disband the Special Section to investigate crimes committed by magistrates (SIIJ). The opinion of the Venice Commission is not surprising, as the setting up of a section to investigate the criminal offenses committed by magistrates had been criticized from the very beginning by all of the European institutions. Dealing with corruption cases should be the responsibility of the National Anticorruption Directorate, and the amendments brought to the law should be eliminated — the USR PLUS Alliance (in the ruling coalition) says. They hope that the draft law initiated by the Justice Minister, Stelian Ion, will be adopted by Parliament as soon as possible. The opinion of the Venice Commission confirms that the Liberals move regarding the elimination of super-immunity for magistrates was right, the president of the Senate’s legal commission, the Liberal Iulia Scântei, also said. The opposition Social Democratic Party PSD continues to be opposed to any change in the justice laws, in the absence of a large consensus among magistrates over the protection of judges against pressure and abuse of any kind. The Social Democrats want the magistrates’ position to be respected.



    Football ▪ The Romanian football champions, CFR Cluj, is meeting, this evening, on home ground, the Bosnian team Borac Banja Luka, in the first leg of the Champions League first preliminary round. Also today, Italy and Spain play the first semifinal of the European Football Championship, which will be followed, on Wednesday, by the match pitting England against Denmark. Both semi-finals and the final will be played in London. Bucharest hosted four games from the final tournament, three in the groups stage and one in the Round of 16. After a mediocre run in the preliminaries, Romania failed to qualify for the EURO. In exchange, Romanias Under-23 team has qualified for the Tokyo Olympics. Romania is playing in Group B and will face Honduras on July 22, South Korea on July 25 and New Zealand on July 28. The Romanian footballers have qualified for the Olympics after having reached the semifinals of the European Under-21 Championship in 2019, hosted by Italy and San Marino. Romania has not participated in the Olympic football tournament since 1964, when it ranked 5th also in Tokyo. Before 1964, Romania had participated only in the European Championships of Paris in 1924 and of Helsinki in 1952.



    Visit ▪ The Bulgarian Chief of the Defense, Admiral Emil Eftimov, is paying an official visit to Romania as of Tuesday until Thursday, at the invitation of his Romanian counterpart, Lieutenant General Daniel Petrescu. According to the Romania Defense Ministry, the talks of military officials will focus on increasing cooperation through joint participation in a series of regional initiatives and exercises in bilateral and multinational formats, as well as on strengthening, in the Black Sea region, the measures within the NATO Enhanced Presence. The program includes meetings at the headquarters of the South-East Multinational Brigade in Craiova (southwest), the South-East Multinational Division in Bucharest, the 8th Tactical Operative Missiles and 282nd Armored Brigades in Focsani (east) and the 74th PATRIOT Regiment in Mihai Bravu. The visit also includes meetings of Admiral Emil Eftimov with the Bulgarian military in the allied structures deployed in Romania. (LS)

  • July 5, 2021 UPDATE

    July 5, 2021 UPDATE

    Covid ▪ Romania’s entire territory remains in the green scenario regarding the spread of the novel coronavirus. 28 new cases of contamination were reported on Monday out of almost 12 thousand tests made in the past 24 hours. 45 deaths were also announced of which 44 are from previous months. 65 patients are currently in ICUs. Since the onset of the vaccination campaign in Romania on December 27, 2020 almost 4.6 million persons have been fully vaccinated.



    Tarom ▪ The European Commission announced on Monday that it opened an in-depth investigation to assess whether the aid granted by the Romanian authorities to the TAROM airline comply with EU rules on state aid granted to companies in difficulty. TAROM, the Romanian government-owned airline, has been facing financial difficulties for many years. In February 2020, TAROM received from the Romanian state a temporary rescue loan of about 36.7 million Euros, after approval by the Commission, under EU state aid regulations. On May 28, 2021, the Romanian authorities notified the Commission about a restructuring plan for TAROM, which they want to restructure through public funding worth approximately 190 million Euros. This aid is to be provided in the form of a capital injection, a subsidy and through the elimination of debts corresponding to the amount of the rescue aid (approximately 36.7 million Euros) and the related interest. The opening of an investigation offers Romania and interested third parties the opportunity to submit comments and it does not anticipate the investigation’s outcome.



    Justice ▪ The Romanian Justice Minister, Stelian Ion, has announced that Parliament could meet in an extraordinary session to discuss the project aimed at dismantling the Special Section to investigate crimes committed by magistrates (SIIJ), after receiving a favorable opinion in this regard from the Venice Commission. He said that he expected the Senate to put this bill on the agenda next week. Minister Ion reminded that, in the government program, the disbanding of the controversial special section is the first measure in the Justice chapter that was supposed to be taken, but the project was blocked in Parliament. The dismantling of the Special Section to investigate crimes committed by magistrates is opportune – says the Venice Commission which also recommends the elimination of articles from the bill that could create super-immunity for magistrates. The European Justice Forum also welcomed the intention of the Romanian authorities to reform the judiciary.



    Exams ▪ In Romania, the final results of the National Evaluation exams have been released. After solving the appeals, the percentage of candidates with average results higher than or equal to 5 is about 77%. A special session was held on Monday for students who, due to medical reasons, were unable to attend the first stage of the exam. On the other hand, the results of the Baccalaureate exam have been released. The cumulative graduation rate, before appeals, at country level, is almost 68%, on the rise by about 5% as compared to the same release stage in the June-July session of 2020 — the Education Ministry shows. High school graduates dissatisfied with the grades received at the Baccalaureate exam can appeal against them, with the final results being released on July 9.



    Football ▪ Romanias Under-23 team continues training for the Tokyo Olympics. Romania is playing in Group B and will face Honduras on July 22, South Korea on July 25 and New Zealand on July 28. The Romanian footballers have qualified for the Olympics after having reached the semifinals of the European Under-21 Championship in 2019, hosted by Italy and San Marino. Romania has not participated in the Olympic football tournament since 1964, when it ranked 5th also in Tokyo. Before 1964, Romania had participated only in the European Championships of Paris in 1924 and of Helsinki in 1952.



    Education ▪ On Monday, President Klaus Iohannis started a series of consultations with the political parties and the social partners on the Educated Romania project, in the context of finalizing the public debate. He met at the Cotroceni Palace with Prime Minister Florin Cîţu, the Education Minister and the leaders of the governing coalition. On Tuesday, Klaus Iohannis will discuss with the Parliament leadership and with members of the Parliament’s education committees, and on Wednesday with the social dialogue partners in the field of education and with the representatives of the NGOs involved in the project. The Presidential Administration announced last week that the main areas of reform and lines of action of the Educated Romania project would be presented during the discussions, in order to achieve a social and political consensus, which should guarantee its implementation and cross-party commitment. ‘Educated Romania’ was launched by the Romanian President in 2016 and went through several stages of public debates, without having so far produced any change in the education system. (LS)

  • July 4, 2021 UPDATE

    July 4, 2021 UPDATE

    Covid ▪ Romania’s entire territory remains in the green scenario regarding the spread of the novel coronavirus. 33 new cases of contamination were reported on Sunday out of more than 17 thousand tests made in 24 hours. 2 more deaths were announced besides another one reported from the previous months. Since the start of the pandemic, a total of 33,928 diagnosed with COVID-19 have died in Romania. 67 patients are currently in ICUs. Around 12 thousand people were vaccinated on Sunday, of whom almost half with the first dose. Since the onset of the vaccination campaign on December 27, 2020 over 4.7 million persons have been fully vaccinated.



    Independence Day ▪ President Klaus Iohannis on Sunday conveyed a message on the occasion of the United States Independence Day wishing Romanias American friends and partners “a happy 4th of July”. At the party hosted by the American Embassy in Bucharest on Thursday, on the occasion of the 245th anniversary of Independence Day, President Iohannis stated that Romania was promoting a solid transatlantic relationship and would continue to support a robust and indivisible North Atlantic Alliance, as well as the cooperation between NATO and the European Union. Allies within NATO, Romania and the United States are also linked by a strategic partnership.



    Justice Day ▪ The Romanian Justice Minister, Stelian Ion, encouraged all magistrates who want to change the justice system to courageously assume leadership positions. In a Facebook post on Justice Day, minister Ion said that the reform of the judiciary could no longer wait. “Many of those who sometimes criticize justice have taken to the streets to protect justice and the independence of magistrates. The latter should not be discouraged by criticism, they should understand the message given by society and respond by giving correct solutions according to the law”, minister Ion added. He reiterated his objectives at the helm of the justice ministry, which include increasing the pace of courts’ digitalization and interconnecting institutions that have common fields of activity. In another development, the National Anticorruption Directorate leadership has conveyed a message which shows that corruption lingers on in many areas of the Romanian society and for prosecutors to be efficient in their work, guarantees of independence must be preserved and reconsolidated.



    Football ▪ Italy vs. Spain, on Tuesday, and England vs. Denmark, on Wednesday, are the two semifinals matches of the European Football Championship. On Saturday night, in the last quarterfinals, Denmark defeated the Czech Republic 2-1, in Baku, and England outclassed Ukraine 4-0, in Rome. Both semi-finals and the final will be played in London. Bucharest hosted four matches from the final tournament, three in the groups stage and one in the Round of 16. After a mediocre run in the preliminaries, Romania failed to qualify for the Euro. Instead, Romanias Under-23 team has qualified for the Tokyo Olympics. Romania has been assigned to Group B and will face Honduras on July 22, South Korea on July 25 and New Zealand on July 28. Romanian footballers have qualified for the Olympics after reaching the semifinals of the European Under-21 Championship in 2019, hosted by Italy and San Marino. Romania has not participated in the Olympic football tournament since 1964, when it ranked 5th also in Tokyo. Before 1964, Romania’s team had participated only in the European Championships of Paris in 1924 and of Helsinki in 1952.



    Rugby ▪ Romania’s national rugby team was defeated, on Saturday evening, on home turf, 17-24, in a test match, by Argentina’s national team. The match that officially inaugurated the Arch of Triumph National Rugby Stadium in Bucharest was an opportunity for the Romanian players to face a top team – said the Romanian teams English coach, Andrew Robinson. Argentina is ranked 9th in the world classification, while Romania is ranked 18th. Romanian’s team was to play another test match, against Scotland, on July 10, also in Bucharest, but the match was canceled, due to several COVID-19 contaminations in the British team. (LS)

  • July 4, 2021

    July 4, 2021

    Covid ▪ Romania’s entire territory remains on the green list regarding the spread of the novel coronavirus. 33 new cases of contamination were reported on Sunday out of more than 17 thousand tests made in 24 hours. 2 more deaths were announced besides another one reported from the previous months. Since the start of the pandemic, a total of 33,928 diagnosed with COVID-19 have died in Romania. 67 patients are currently in ICUs. Around 16 thousand people were vaccinated on Saturday, of whom more than 7,700 with the first dose. Since the onset of the vaccination campaign on December 27, 2020 over 4,750,000 persons have been fully vaccinated.



    Independence Day ▪ President Klaus Iohannis on Sunday conveyed a message on the occasion of the United States Independence Day wishing Romanias American friends and partners “a happy 4th of July”. At the party hosted by the American Embassy in Bucharest on Thursday, on the occasion of the 245th anniversary of Independence Day, President Iohannis stated that Romania was promoting a solid transatlantic relationship and would continue to support a robust and indivisible North Atlantic Alliance, as well as the cooperation between NATO and the European Union. Allies within NATO, Romania and the United States are also linked by a strategic partnership.



    Justice Day ▪ The Romanian Justice Minister, Stelian Ion, encouraged all magistrates who want to change the justice system to courageously assume leadership positions. In a Facebook post on Justice Day, minister Ion said that the reform of the judiciary could no longer wait. “Many of those who sometimes criticize justice have taken to the streets to protect justice and the independence of magistrates. The latter should not be discouraged by criticism, they should understand the message given by society and respond by giving correct solutions according to the law”, minister Ion added. He reiterated his objectives at the helm of the justice ministry, which include increasing the pace of courts’ digitalization and interconnecting institutions that have common fields of activity.



    Football ▪ Italy vs. Spain, on Tuesday, and England vs. Denmark, on Wednesday, are the two semifinals matches of the European Football Championship. On Saturday night, in the last quarterfinals, Denmark defeated the Czech Republic 2-1, in Baku, and England outclassed Ukraine 4-0, in Rome. Both semi-finals and the final will be played in London. Bucharest hosted four matches from the final tournament, three in the groups stage and one in the Round of 16. After a mediocre run in the preliminaries, Romania failed to qualify for the Euro. Instead, Romanias Under-23 team has qualified for the Tokyo Olympics. Romania has been assigned to Group B and will face Honduras on July 22, South Korea on July 25 and New Zealand on July 28. Romanian footballers have qualified for the Olympics after reaching the semifinals of the European Under-21 Championship in 2019, hosted by Italy and San Marino. Romania has not participated in the Olympic football tournament since 1964, when it ranked 5th also in Tokyo. Before 1964, Romania’s team had participated only in the European Championships of Paris in 1924 and of Helsinki in 1952.



    Rugby ▪ Romania’s national rugby team was defeated, on Saturday evening, on home turf, 17-24, in a test match, by Argentina’s national team. The match that officially inaugurated the Arch of Triumph National Rugby Stadium in Bucharest was an opportunity for the Romanian players to face a top team – said the Romanian teams English coach, Andrew Robinson. Argentina is ranked 9th in the world classification, while Romania is ranked 18th. Romanian’s team was to play another test match, against Scotland, on July 10, also in Bucharest, but the match was canceled, due to several COVID-19 contaminations in the British team. (LS)

  • July 3, 2021 UPDATE

    July 3, 2021 UPDATE

    Covid – The entire territory of Romania remains in the so-called green scenario related to the spread of the new coronavirus. 401 infected people are still in hospital, of whom 66 in intensive care. The authorities on Saturday announced 58 new cases of COVID-19, out of more than 23,000 tests performed in 24 hours. 4 deaths were reported in the same interval, besides another 27 from the past months.



    Vaccines — Ireland has agreed in principle to buy one million doses of COVID-19 vaccine from Romania – a spokesman for the Irish government said, days after Romania sold another million doses of the vaccine to Denmark. The doses available in Romania exceed the demand for vaccination from the Romanian population, where vaccination reticence is spreading due to rooted distrust in state institutions, misinformation campaigns and lack of public awareness – international media report. Ireland currently has one of the highest COVID-19 vaccination rates in Europe. About 45% of its adult population of 3.8 million people was fully vaccinated and 65% with at least the first dose. The Irish government hopes that its decision to speed up youth vaccination will slow the spread of the highly contagious Delta variant of the coronavirus and will allow for the reopening of the lagging economy.



    National register — The Romanian police have launched a national register with the names of those who have committed sexual crimes or exploited people. The information in the register can reach courts, authorities, schools, health and social protection institutions, as well as organizations whose activity involves direct contact with children, the elderly and people with disabilities. Such a register had been requested for several years by NGOs involved in victim protection. On the other hand, criminal liability for crimes of trafficking and exploitation, sexual assault, and torture of children is no longer prescribed in Romania — according to a law promulgated on Thursday by President Klaus Iohannis. The law amends articles of the Criminal Code and also stipulates that the punishment for failing to report such crimes is increased and criminalizes the failure to report such crimes as trafficking and exploitation of vulnerable persons or crimes against the freedom and sexual integrity of a child or resulting in the death of a child.



    Tennis — The Romanian player Sorana Cîrstea (45 WTA) was defeated on Saturday by the British player Emma Răducanu (338 WTA), whose father is Romanian, in the third round of the Wimbledon tennis tournament, the year’s 3rd Grand Slam tournament. Cîrstea was the last Romanian woman left in the womens singles. In the doubles, the Romanian-Ukrainian pair Raluca Olaru / Nadia Kichenok, reached the eighth finals, where they will take on the pair Storm Sanders / Caroline Dolehide.



    Explosion – The blast at the Petromidia Refinery in Năvodari, in southeastern Romania, following which one man died and five were injured, was allegedly caused by faulty equipment – says the management of ROMPETROL, the owner of the refinery. The fire at the largest refinery in the country broke out on Friday and was put out following the firefighters’ difficult intervention. The cloud of smoke caused by the fire and the noxious emissions in the atmosphere moved towards the Black Sea. The Interior Minister, Lucian Bode, who went to the fire site, said that the inhabitants of Năvodari and the tourists on the Seaside, in full summer season, have not been in danger during the fire. Prosecutors have opened a criminal file for manslaughter, physical injury through negligence, and damage caused by negligence. According to them, the situation in this case is more complicated, requiring technical knowledge to clarify the causes. On the other hand, a fire broke out, on Saturday afternoon, at an aluminum warehouse of a factory in the industrial area of ​​Constanţa (also in southeastern Romania). (LS)