Radio România Internațional

Tag: playoffs

February 3, 2024

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

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

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

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

TENNIS The
Romanian player Marius Copil takes on Stefanos Tsitsipas, no. 10 in the world,
in Athens today, in the first match between Romania and Greece in the playoffs
for the Davis Cup World Group I. The second singles match will be pitting Nicholas
David Ionel against Aristotelis Thanos. The doubles match and 2 other singles
games are scheduled for Sunday. Romania and Greece played twice against each
other in the Davis Cup before, with one win each. Previously in this year’s competition,
in the first round of the World Group I, Romania lost to Taiwan and Greece was
defeated by Slovakia. (AMP)

3 February 2024
Sports Weekend

Two Romanian football clubs stand chances of playing in this years Europa Conference League group stage. Farul Constanţa and Sepsi Sfântu Gheorghe have qualified into the play-offs, after winning matches away from home.

In the return leg of the preliminary round 3, Farul beat Flora Tallinn 2-0, after 3-0 on home turf. In the play-off, Farul will take on the Finnish side HJK Helsinki. Sepsi Sfântu Gheorghe, the Romanian Cup winners, Friday defeated Kazakhstans vice-champions Aktobe, 1-0, after a draw, 1-1 in the first leg. They are facing the Norwegian team Bodø/Glimt in the play-off.

The 3rd Romanian team that played on Thursday in the Conference League qualifiers, FCSB, was kicked out of the competition after losing 0-2 away from home to the Danish side Nordsjælland, and a blank draw last week in the first leg.

Also in football, this weekend matches are scheduled counting for the 6th round of the Romanian SuperLeague. Two games on Friday, pitting Petrolul Ploieşti against FC U Craiova 1948 and Universitatea Craiova against UTA, will be followed on Saturday by Oţelul Galaţi vs Botoşani and Dinamo Bucharest vs FC Voluntari. Two more matches are scheduled for Sunday in Bucharest: Rapid vs champions Farul Constanţa, and FCSB vs Poli Iaşi. The round ends on Monday with the last 2 matches: Sepsi vs Hermannstadt and Universitatea Cluj vs CFR Cluj. Top of the ranking are currently FCSB, with 12 points out of 4 matches, followed by Universitatea Craiova, with 11 points in 5 games.

The World Athletics Championships begin on Saturday in Budapest. Romania takes part in the competition with 16 athletes, and the target set by the Romanian Athletics Federation is qualification in 3 finals. Last year, in the World Championships in Eugene, Oregon, Romanias best performances were a 6th place in hammer throw for Bianca Ghelber, and a 7th place in discus throw for Alin Firfirică.

Also on Satuday, Romanias rugby team play their last match ahead of the World Cup in France. The Romanians are facing Italy away from home, in San Benedetto del Tronto. In the first test matches this summer, Romania lost 31-17 to the US in Bucharest, and 56-6 to Georgia, in Tbilisi. The first match for Romania at the World Cup is against Ireland, in Bordeaux, on 9 September. (AMP)

18 August 2023
Sports flash

Romanian national womens handball team on Wednesday in Portugals Paredes secured a 28-24 win in the second leg of the playoff tie against Portugal. With 5 goals, Romanian national squads Lorena Ostase was the top scorer. Therefore, Romania succeeded a laid-back qualification to the 2023 edition of the World Championship. We recall that in the first leg Romania trounced Portugal, 35-20.

At the European Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Turkeys Antalya, Romanias womens national team came in 5th, a position that earned the Romanian teams qualification to the World Championships, to be hosted by the city of Antwerp in Belgium this coming fall. In Belgium, the first nine teams in descending order will secure their ticket to the 2024 edition of the Olympic Games. As part of the competition, Ana Bărbosu and Amalia Ghigoarţă have made it to all-around final, with the 9th and the 10th grade, respectively. With the second grade in the competition, Sabrina Voinea competes in the floor final, also competing in the vault final, with the fifth grade in the competition. Ana Barbosu has also qualified to the floor final, from the 7th position. With the 5th grade in the competition, Amalia Ghigoarţă has also qualified to the floor final.

In the second leg as part of the womens volleyball CEV Cup final, Romanian title holders Volei Alba Blaj this past Wednesday in Florence sustained a nil-3 defeat by Italian opponents Scandicci. In Targu Mures a week ago, the latter team had also won the first leg of the tie 3-1. For Volei Alba Blaj it was the fourth European final they have played in the last six years. CSM can boast playing in the finals as part of all European Interclub competitions, in the Champions League, in 2018, in the CEV Cup, in 2019 and in the Challenge Cup, in 2021.

This coming weekend will see matches being played, counting towards the second round of the Group1/ Group2 stage as part of the Romanian Superleague. In Group 1 on Saturday, CFR Cluj play a home game against Sepsi Sfântu Gheorghe. On Sunday, Universitatea Craiova receive the visit of Rapid Bucharest. In Bucharest on Monday, FCSB play a home game against Farul Constanţa. Being 4 points clear of CFR Cluj, Farul continues to be the leader in the standings.

In Group 2 this coming Friday, FC U Craiova play a home game against FC Voluntari. In Arad, the local side UTA take on FC Botosani. On Saturday in Group 2, FC Hermannstadt play an away fixture against Dacia Mioveni. On Sunday, Petrolul Ploiesti play a home game against Universitatea Cluj. In Pitesti on Monday, FC Argeş play a home game against Chindia Târgovişte. According to Group 2 rankings, Petrolul Ploiesti are at the top of the table, with 27 points. They are followed by FCU Craiova, with 26. (EN)

13 April 2023
Sports flash

Romanian national womens handball team on Wednesday in Portugals Paredes secured a 28-24 win in the second leg of the playoff tie against Portugal. With 5 goals, Romanian national squads Lorena Ostase was the top scorer. Therefore, Romania succeeded a laid-back qualification to the 2023 edition of the World Championship. We recall that in the first leg Romania trounced Portugal, 35-20.

At the European Artistic Gymnastics Championships in Turkeys Antalya, Romanias womens national team came in 5th, a position that earned the Romanian teams qualification to the World Championships, to be hosted by the city of Antwerp in Belgium this coming fall. In Belgium, the first nine teams in descending order will secure their ticket to the 2024 edition of the Olympic Games. As part of the competition, Ana Bărbosu and Amalia Ghigoarţă have made it to all-around final, with the 9th and the 10th grade, respectively. With the second grade in the competition, Sabrina Voinea competes in the floor final, also competing in the vault final, with the fifth grade in the competition. Ana Barbosu has also qualified to the floor final, from the 7th position. With the 5th grade in the competition, Amalia Ghigoarţă has also qualified to the floor final.

In the second leg as part of the womens volleyball CEV Cup final, Romanian title holders Volei Alba Blaj this past Wednesday in Florence sustained a nil-3 defeat by Italian opponents Scandicci. In Targu Mures a week ago, the latter team had also won the first leg of the tie 3-1. For Volei Alba Blaj it was the fourth European final they have played in the last six years. CSM can boast playing in the finals as part of all European Interclub competitions, in the Champions League, in 2018, in the CEV Cup, in 2019 and in the Challenge Cup, in 2021.

This coming weekend will see matches being played, counting towards the second round of the Group1/ Group2 stage as part of the Romanian Superleague. In Group 1 on Saturday, CFR Cluj play a home game against Sepsi Sfântu Gheorghe. On Sunday, Universitatea Craiova receive the visit of Rapid Bucharest. In Bucharest on Monday, FCSB play a home game against Farul Constanţa. Being 4 points clear of CFR Cluj, Farul continues to be the leader in the standings.

In Group 2 this coming Friday, FC U Craiova play a home game against FC Voluntari. In Arad, the local side UTA take on FC Botosani. On Saturday in Group 2, FC Hermannstadt play an away fixture against Dacia Mioveni. On Sunday, Petrolul Ploiesti play a home game against Universitatea Cluj. In Pitesti on Monday, FC Argeş play a home game against Chindia Târgovişte. According to Group 2 rankings, Petrolul Ploiesti are at the top of the table, with 27 points. They are followed by FCU Craiova, with 26. (EN)

13 April 2023
Sports weekend

Three Romanian football teams on Thursday proved their mettle in the in the first leg as part of the Conference League’s third preliminary round. Away from home, CFR Cluj played Shakhtar Soligorsk of the Belarus. As a result of a UEFA resolution to ban official matches hosted by Russia or Belarus, the game was hosted by the Turkish city of Adapazari. CFR Cluj had the upper hand all throughout the game, yet the Romanians were held to a blank draw, so CFR are the favorites to winning the tie. The return leg is scheduled in Cluj-Napoca this coming Thursday. If they outclass Shakhtar Soligorsk, CFR Cluj will play a playoff fixture ahead of the Conference League group stage, taking on the winner of the match pitting Slovenia’s NK Maribor against Helsingin Jalkapalloklubi of Finland, counting towards Europa League preliminaries. In the first leg this past Thursday, the Finnish team won 2-nil, away from home.

In Poland’s Lublin, Unversitatea Craiova sustained a nil-1 away defeat by Zarya Lugansk of Ukraine. With no official match on their record sheet so far, Zarya Lugansk had the upper hand all throughout the game and won, thanks to Denis Nahnoinyi’s goal in minute 56, so the decisive qualifying match will be next Thursday’s fixture in Craiova. If they advance to the competition’s next stage, in the playoffs Universitatea take on the winner of the match pitting Swiss team FC Lugano against Hapoel Beer-Sheva of Israel. In the first leg, the latter team grabbed a 2-nil win, away from home.

The only Romanian team to have played a home game this past Thursday, Sepsi Sfântu Gheorghe, sustained a 1-3 defeat by Djugaarden of Sweden. Scoring for the guests were Victor Edvardsen, who turned a penalty kick into a goal on 26 minutes and Joel Asoro, who scored in minutes 31 and 53. Sepsi’s Alexandru Tudorie on 79 minutes turned a penalty kick into a goal. Sepsi’s qualification chances are very slim, but if they outclass Djugaarden, Sepsi will play the winner of the match pitting APOEL Nicosia of Cyprus against FC Kyzyljar Petropavlovsk of Kazahstan. On Thursday APOEL Nicosia grabbed a 1-nil home win. On Wednesday in the Conference League’s third preliminary round, FCSB defeated Slovakia’s Dunajska Streda, 1-nil, away.

Matches counting towards Romanian football Superleague’s fourth round are played at the weekend. On Friday, Universitatea Cluj face Petrolul Ploiesti. On Sarturday, CS Mioveni play a home game against FCSB, while in Bucharest, Rapid take on FC Argeș. On Sunday, Sepsi Sfântu Gheorghe are pitted against UTA Arad, Chindia Târgoviște face CFR Cluj, while FC U Craiova take on Universitatea Craiova. The fourth round’s last two fixtures are scheduled this coming Monday, when FC Hermannstadt play FC Voluntari, while FC Botoșani go against Farul Constanța. Farul and FC Botoșani are at the top of the as-it-stands table, with 7 points each. (EN)

5 August 2022
Sports weekend

Three Romanian football teams on Thursday proved their mettle in the in the first leg as part of the Conference League’s third preliminary round. Away from home, CFR Cluj played Shakhtar Soligorsk of the Belarus. As a result of a UEFA resolution to ban official matches hosted by Russia or Belarus, the game was hosted by the Turkish city of Adapazari. CFR Cluj had the upper hand all throughout the game, yet the Romanians were held to a blank draw, so CFR are the favorites to winning the tie. The return leg is scheduled in Cluj-Napoca this coming Thursday. If they outclass Shakhtar Soligorsk, CFR Cluj will play a playoff fixture ahead of the Conference League group stage, taking on the winner of the match pitting Slovenia’s NK Maribor against Helsingin Jalkapalloklubi of Finland, counting towards Europa League preliminaries. In the first leg this past Thursday, the Finnish team won 2-nil, away from home.

In Poland’s Lublin, Unversitatea Craiova sustained a nil-1 away defeat by Zarya Lugansk of Ukraine. With no official match on their record sheet so far, Zarya Lugansk had the upper hand all throughout the game and won, thanks to Denis Nahnoinyi’s goal in minute 56, so the decisive qualifying match will be next Thursday’s fixture in Craiova. If they advance to the competition’s next stage, in the playoffs Universitatea take on the winner of the match pitting Swiss team FC Lugano against Hapoel Beer-Sheva of Israel. In the first leg, the latter team grabbed a 2-nil win, away from home.

The only Romanian team to have played a home game this past Thursday, Sepsi Sfântu Gheorghe, sustained a 1-3 defeat by Djugaarden of Sweden. Scoring for the guests were Victor Edvardsen, who turned a penalty kick into a goal on 26 minutes and Joel Asoro, who scored in minutes 31 and 53. Sepsi’s Alexandru Tudorie on 79 minutes turned a penalty kick into a goal. Sepsi’s qualification chances are very slim, but if they outclass Djugaarden, Sepsi will play the winner of the match pitting APOEL Nicosia of Cyprus against FC Kyzyljar Petropavlovsk of Kazahstan. On Thursday APOEL Nicosia grabbed a 1-nil home win. On Wednesday in the Conference League’s third preliminary round, FCSB defeated Slovakia’s Dunajska Streda, 1-nil, away.

Matches counting towards Romanian football Superleague’s fourth round are played at the weekend. On Friday, Universitatea Cluj face Petrolul Ploiesti. On Sarturday, CS Mioveni play a home game against FCSB, while in Bucharest, Rapid take on FC Argeș. On Sunday, Sepsi Sfântu Gheorghe are pitted against UTA Arad, Chindia Târgoviște face CFR Cluj, while FC U Craiova take on Universitatea Craiova. The fourth round’s last two fixtures are scheduled this coming Monday, when FC Hermannstadt play FC Voluntari, while FC Botoșani go against Farul Constanța. Farul and FC Botoșani are at the top of the as-it-stands table, with 7 points each. (EN)

5 August 2022
Radio Romania International Sports club

Edward Iordănescu has been appointed head-coach
of Romanian national football team. The President of the Romanian Football
Federation, Razvan Burleanu, made the announcement on Tuesday. Burleanu also stated the new head-coach has been tasked with getting the national squad regain its position among
the European football elite teams. Razvan Burleanu firmly believed Iordanescu had
the qualities and skills required to rebuild Romania’s national team from
scratch. The Romanian top-ranking sports official added that Iordanescu’s top
priority was to have the national squad qualify for Euro 2024.

Here is what Edward
Iordanescu has recently told a press conference.

Edward Iordanescu:

Honestly,
as far as I am concerned, the joy, the pride and the enthusiasm I feel are
literally overwhelming. By all means, when you get to represent the Romanians
and Romania, that also means a huge responsibility, and I am prepared for that.
I am dead positive that, jointly with the lads, with the Federation’s management
and, of course, with the support we can get from our fans and with the
confidence we can get from you all, we can build a team we can yet again be proud
of, a team that can arise and shine so we can deliver, in order to meet everyone’s
expectations.

The Romanian national
team had been without a head-coach for almost a year. We recall that on November 24, 2021, the outgoing head-coach Mirel Radoi announced he did not intend to carry on with his job any longer,
since the national team had failed to qualify for the 2022 World Cup playoffs. Radoi
had been appointed the Romanian national squad’s head-coach on November 26,
2019. Back then Radoi filled in a job vacancy created by Cosmin Contra’s
departure.

43-year-old Edward
Iordănescu had been free of contract also from November 2021. We recall that
back then he gave up on his job as a FCSB head-coach by mutual consent. Edi Iordanescu
was also a head-coach for CFR Cluj, ȚSKA Sofia, Astra Giurgiu or Gaz Metan
Mediaş. His record includes the winning of the domestic title with CFR Cluj, in
2021, and the winning of two editions of the Supercup, in 2019 and in 2021.

Edward Iordanescu
is the son of Anghel Iordanescu, one of the greatest Romanian footballers
and one of the most accomplished head-coaches.

(EN)

26 January 2022
Radio Romania International Sports club

Edward Iordănescu has been appointed head-coach
of Romanian national football team. The President of the Romanian Football
Federation, Razvan Burleanu, made the announcement on Tuesday. Burleanu also stated the new head-coach has been tasked with getting the national squad regain its position among
the European football elite teams. Razvan Burleanu firmly believed Iordanescu had
the qualities and skills required to rebuild Romania’s national team from
scratch. The Romanian top-ranking sports official added that Iordanescu’s top
priority was to have the national squad qualify for Euro 2024.

Here is what Edward
Iordanescu has recently told a press conference.

Edward Iordanescu:

Honestly,
as far as I am concerned, the joy, the pride and the enthusiasm I feel are
literally overwhelming. By all means, when you get to represent the Romanians
and Romania, that also means a huge responsibility, and I am prepared for that.
I am dead positive that, jointly with the lads, with the Federation’s management
and, of course, with the support we can get from our fans and with the
confidence we can get from you all, we can build a team we can yet again be proud
of, a team that can arise and shine so we can deliver, in order to meet everyone’s
expectations.

The Romanian national
team had been without a head-coach for almost a year. We recall that on November 24, 2021, the outgoing head-coach Mirel Radoi announced he did not intend to carry on with his job any longer,
since the national team had failed to qualify for the 2022 World Cup playoffs. Radoi
had been appointed the Romanian national squad’s head-coach on November 26,
2019. Back then Radoi filled in a job vacancy created by Cosmin Contra’s
departure.

43-year-old Edward
Iordănescu had been free of contract also from November 2021. We recall that
back then he gave up on his job as a FCSB head-coach by mutual consent. Edi Iordanescu
was also a head-coach for CFR Cluj, ȚSKA Sofia, Astra Giurgiu or Gaz Metan
Mediaş. His record includes the winning of the domestic title with CFR Cluj, in
2021, and the winning of two editions of the Supercup, in 2019 and in 2021.

Edward Iordanescu
is the son of Anghel Iordanescu, one of the greatest Romanian footballers
and one of the most accomplished head-coaches.

(EN)

26 January 2022
Sports Weekend

On Thursday, Vienna hosted the drawing of the Euro 2020 European Womens Handball Championship groups. The matches are scheduled to take place in December in Norway and Denmark.

Romanias team is playing in Group D, alongside Norway, Germany and Poland. Group D matches will be played in Trondheim, Norway, and so will Group C matches, with the defending world champions Netherlands, and Hungary, Serbia and Croatia as protagonists.

Groups A and B matches will take place in Denmark. The defending European champions, France, will play in Group A, in Herning, against Denmark, Montenegro and Slovenia. Olympic champions Russia are the stars in Group B, scheduled to play in Frederikshavn, opposite Sweden, Spain and the Czech Republic.

The top 3 teams in each group will move forward into the main groups. Romanias womens handball team qualified straight into the EHF EURO 2020 after the remaining matches were cancelled by the Executive Committee of the European Handball Federation in March, over the coronavirus pandemic.

Four legs in the qualifying series were outstanding at that point, and Romania had won 2 matches out of 2, in a group that also included Poland, Ukraine and the Faroe Islands. In the previous edition of the European Championship, held in 2018, Romania came out 4th. In the history of the competition, Romania only won one medal, a bronze one, in 2010, an edition hosted once again by Norway and Denmark.

We move on to football now. This week saw the 4th round of the Romanian League One playouts. On Tuesday, FC Voluntari won 2-1 away from home against Sepsi Sfântu Gheorghe. On Wednesday, in Ploiesti, Chindia Târgoviște also won 2-1 against Viitorul Constanța. On Thursday, Academica Clinceni outperformed Poli Iași, 1-0 away from home. The match pitting FC Hermannstadt against Dinamo will be rescheduled.

The 4th round of the playoffs will take place over the weekend. One match on Friday, Universitatea Craiova vs Astra Giurgiu. On Saturday FC Botoșani takes on CFR Cluj, while on Sunday in Bucharest FCSB plays against Gaz Metan Mediaș.

Top of the current standings are Cluj, with 33 points, followed by FCSB and Craiova, with 26 points each.

(translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

19 June 2020
Sports Weekend

On Thursday, Vienna hosted the drawing of the Euro 2020 European Womens Handball Championship groups. The matches are scheduled to take place in December in Norway and Denmark.

Romanias team is playing in Group D, alongside Norway, Germany and Poland. Group D matches will be played in Trondheim, Norway, and so will Group C matches, with the defending world champions Netherlands, and Hungary, Serbia and Croatia as protagonists.

Groups A and B matches will take place in Denmark. The defending European champions, France, will play in Group A, in Herning, against Denmark, Montenegro and Slovenia. Olympic champions Russia are the stars in Group B, scheduled to play in Frederikshavn, opposite Sweden, Spain and the Czech Republic.

The top 3 teams in each group will move forward into the main groups. Romanias womens handball team qualified straight into the EHF EURO 2020 after the remaining matches were cancelled by the Executive Committee of the European Handball Federation in March, over the coronavirus pandemic.

Four legs in the qualifying series were outstanding at that point, and Romania had won 2 matches out of 2, in a group that also included Poland, Ukraine and the Faroe Islands. In the previous edition of the European Championship, held in 2018, Romania came out 4th. In the history of the competition, Romania only won one medal, a bronze one, in 2010, an edition hosted once again by Norway and Denmark.

We move on to football now. This week saw the 4th round of the Romanian League One playouts. On Tuesday, FC Voluntari won 2-1 away from home against Sepsi Sfântu Gheorghe. On Wednesday, in Ploiesti, Chindia Târgoviște also won 2-1 against Viitorul Constanța. On Thursday, Academica Clinceni outperformed Poli Iași, 1-0 away from home. The match pitting FC Hermannstadt against Dinamo will be rescheduled.

The 4th round of the playoffs will take place over the weekend. One match on Friday, Universitatea Craiova vs Astra Giurgiu. On Saturday FC Botoșani takes on CFR Cluj, while on Sunday in Bucharest FCSB plays against Gaz Metan Mediaș.

Top of the current standings are Cluj, with 33 points, followed by FCSB and Craiova, with 26 points each.

(translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

19 June 2020
January 10, 2020

EU The Romanian foreign minister Bogdan Aurescu is taking part in Brussels today in a special meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council, convened by the vice-president of the European Commission Josep Borrell, the EU high representative for foreign affairs and security policy in the wake of the recent developments in the Middle East. According to a news release issued by the Romanian Foreign Ministry, European officials will exchange opinions and assessments on the situation in Iraq and will identify ways for the EU to contribute to easing the tensions in the region. The developments in Libya will also be tackled.

ELECTIONS In Bucharest, PM Ludovic Orban announced after todays talks with President Klaus Iohannis, that together they decided to initiate procedures for early parliamentary elections. The PM added that a work group has been put together to handle negotiations with the parliamentary political parties for support in this initiative. Ludovic Orban said that the Social Democratic Party, which has a relative majority in Parliament, hinders the Governments initiatives and that the only solution is to have snap parliamentary elections as close as possible to the local elections scheduled this May. Meanwhile, the Social Democrats are considering a motion of no-confidence.

UN Romanias representative at the United Nations, Ambassador Ion Jinga, addressed the Security Council as part of a ministerial debate on “Maintenance of international peace and security upholding the UN Charter. The Romanian diplomat mentioned that 2020 marks the 75th anniversary of the UN, which remains the most adequate platform for collectively tackling threats to international peace and security, and that the UN Charter remains the reference document in this respect. He emphasised that the recent developments in the Middle East and North Africa prove once again the responsibility of the international community in facilitating political solutions able to support long-lasting peace. Ambassador Jinga also spoke about Romanias contribution to peacekeeping, proven among other things by its participation in 2019 in 10 UN peacekeeping missions.

AIR CRASH The USA, Canada and Britain said that information from multiple sources indicates that the Ukrainian aircraft that crashed on Wednesday near Tehran has been taken down by Iranian armed forces. 176 people died. Iran may have accidentally shot down the plane in which 63 Canadian citizens were traveling, among other nationals, Canadas PM Justin Trudeau said. The US president Donald Trump and British PM Boris Johnson confirmed the hypothesis. All parties now ask Iran to initiate a detailed and thorough investigation. The Iranian authorities dismissed the latest intelligence as ridiculous and part of an American psychological manoeuvre. The Ukraine International Airlines flight to Kiev crashed shortly after taking off from the Tehran airport, just hours after Iran had launched ballistic missiles against 2 US military bases in Iraq, with the Iranians subsequently on alert for prospective American retaliation. According to American intelligence, the infrared signature from two suspected missile launches was identified, followed shortly afterwards by the infrared blip from the burning Boeing 737-800. On Thursday Irans Civil Aviation Organisation said the 3-year old plane faced technical problems shortly after take-off.

HANDBALL Romanias mens handball team plays tonight in Benevento, Italy, against Georgia, in its first match in Group 3 of the qualification phase for the 2021 World Championship in Egypt. On Saturday Romania will play against Kosovo, and on Sunday they will take on the host country. The group winner qualifies into the second qualification phase, scheduled for mid-April. Manager Rares Fortuneanu, who also coaches Saint Raphael, in Frances top handball league, says he is confident Romania can qualify into next years final tournament, the first with 32 teams taking part. In the womens competition, Romania reached the main groups of the World Championship held last month in Japan.

(translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

10 January 2020
Football Flash

No Romanian football teams will be playing in the Champions League this season either. FCSB, formerly known as Steaua Bucharest, failed to qualify into the group stage, after it lost the playoff against the Portuguese side Sporting Lisbon. A week ago, in Lisbon, the first leg of the playoff ended in a goalless draw, but the Romanians categorically lost this weeks leg in Bucharest.

On the National Arena, in the Romanian capital city, FCSB only managed to cope with the pressure for 60 minutes. Sporting scored very early, on 13 minutes, thanks to their Ivory Coast player Seydou Doumbia. FCSB fought back and within 7 minutes the Brazilian international Junior Morais scored the equaliser. More opportunities to score followed, on both sides, in a quite balanced first half of the game, which ended 1-1.

The Romanians started the second half on the right foot, but it was again the Portuguese to take the lead, on 60 minutes. This second goal was followed by a half-hour nightmare on the pitch for FCSB, with three more goals scored by the guests thanks to deplorable individual errors on the Romanians part. The match ended 1-5, a result that keeps FCSB out of the Champions League group stage and sends them instead into Europa League. The drawing for the group stage is scheduled to take place on Friday in Switzerland.

As of next year, Romania will only have one team in the Champions League preliminary stage, more precisely the team that wins the League One championship. In Europa League, the second-tier European competition, there will be 3 Romanian teams, namely the winner of the Romanian Football Cup and the teams finishing 2nd and 3rd in the championship.

(translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

24 August 2017
Football Flash

No Romanian football teams will be playing in the Champions League this season either. FCSB, formerly known as Steaua Bucharest, failed to qualify into the group stage, after it lost the playoff against the Portuguese side Sporting Lisbon. A week ago, in Lisbon, the first leg of the playoff ended in a goalless draw, but the Romanians categorically lost this weeks leg in Bucharest.

On the National Arena, in the Romanian capital city, FCSB only managed to cope with the pressure for 60 minutes. Sporting scored very early, on 13 minutes, thanks to their Ivory Coast player Seydou Doumbia. FCSB fought back and within 7 minutes the Brazilian international Junior Morais scored the equaliser. More opportunities to score followed, on both sides, in a quite balanced first half of the game, which ended 1-1.

The Romanians started the second half on the right foot, but it was again the Portuguese to take the lead, on 60 minutes. This second goal was followed by a half-hour nightmare on the pitch for FCSB, with three more goals scored by the guests thanks to deplorable individual errors on the Romanians part. The match ended 1-5, a result that keeps FCSB out of the Champions League group stage and sends them instead into Europa League. The drawing for the group stage is scheduled to take place on Friday in Switzerland.

As of next year, Romania will only have one team in the Champions League preliminary stage, more precisely the team that wins the League One championship. In Europa League, the second-tier European competition, there will be 3 Romanian teams, namely the winner of the Romanian Football Cup and the teams finishing 2nd and 3rd in the championship.

(translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

24 August 2017
The Week in Review July 31 – August 5

A heat wave hits Romania

This week, temperatures have been extremely high, way above the average for this time of the year. The entire country was under a code yellow and orange alert, going up to a code red alert in the west of the country. This is the second time this summer when meteorologists issued a code red, the first being in early July. Temperatures exceeded 40 degrees Celsius, and the heat index exceeded the critical threshold of 80. In every major city first aid stations were set up for people affected by the swelterin heat. Trains ran at lower speeds, resulting in long delays. Traffic restrictions were instituted on most major roads, and vehicles over 7.5 metric tons were banned from circulating.

The Higher Defense Council issues the budget for the Romanian armed forces

The Higher Defense Council of Romania has issued the budgeting plan for the next decade for the Romanian armed forces, worth almost 10 billion Euro. The document has been revised from its July 4th version, which did not comply with the National Political Agreement to allocate 2% of the GDP to defense, an agreement signed by all political parties in early 2015. The new version of the plan provides for reforming and equipping the armed forces until 2026. According to the Presidential Administration, the Romanian army should be provided by a coherent and sustained supply of resources, as underfinancing would affect gravely its ability to carry out its base missions and operational effectiveness. In May, Parliament approved contract negotiations for eight programs to supply the military, worth over 100 million Euro each. One program will supply Patriot surface to air missiles, another will provide for the purchase of 36 F-16 fighter jets. These programs will also develop the domestic arms industry, allowing it to modernize and develop its manufacturing ability.

The biggest electronic music festival in Romania begins in Cluj

The third edition of the Untold electronic music festival, the largest of its kind in Romania, kicked off on Thursday in Cluj. For four days, almost 200 artists will perform on 10 stages, with over 100 hours of music. The main stage, nicknamed The Dragon’s Den, and is the biggest in the country, with 100 meters in width and 35 meters in height. It features a ferris wheel 40 meters in diameter, called The Dragon’s Eye, which spectators can climb for a better view of the events. The festival is held in multiple locations, featuring cosplay and fantasy make-up. Romanian fashion designers will have on display special limited editions of their couture. The event will feature street performers, stilt walkers, acrobats and magicians. Untold has been a worldwide phenomenon since its inception in 2015, and was designated European festival, and in 2016 it was attended by over 300,000 people.

FCSB, formerly known as Steaua Bucharest, has qualified for the Champions League play-offs

Five Romanian football teams have played in the European cups. In the Champions League, FCSB, formerly known as Steaua Bucharest, have managed to qualify for the play-offs, after defeating the Czechs from Viktoria Plzen. In Bucharest the score was 2-all, after a 4-1 victory away from home. The second Romanian representative in the competition, FC Viitorul Constanta, was eliminated after two games against APOEL Nicosia, which ended 1-nil and nil-4 respectively. Although lacking experience in big confrontations, the team coached by the former great player Gheorghe Hagi remains in the European competitions and will compete in the Europa League play-offs. Another three Romanian teams, Dinamo Bucharest, Astra Giurgiu and CSU Craiova have been eliminated from Europa League. They lost their matches against Athletic Bilbao of Spain, AC Milan and the Ukranian FK Oleksandria respectively.

(translated by: Mihaela Ignatescu, Calin Cotoiu)

5 August 2017