Radio România Internațional

Tag: presidential

  • Who runs for Romania’s presidential seat?

    Who runs for Romania’s presidential seat?

    The nominees of the Social-Democratic Party and of the National Liberal Party for the position of Romania’s president, Marcel Ciolacu and Nicolae Ciuca respectively, might run into the second round of voting due in December this year, says a survey conducted by the Center for Urban and Regional Sociology, CURS, over August 6 and 22.

    Ranking first among the electorate’s preferences is the PSD nominee with 32% followed by PNL with 19%. They are followed by the incumbent NATO Deputy Secretary General, Mircea Geoana, who runs as an independent with 15% and George Simion, the nationalist leader of the AUR political group, who would muster 14% of the votes.

    The two ladies who have made public their intention to run for the presidential seat, Elena Lasconi from the United Right Alliance could get 11% while the controversial Diana Şoşoacă from the SOS Romania party only 5% of the voting intentions.

    We recall that the first round of the presidential election in Romania is to take place on November 24 and the second on December 8. They will take place in the same period as those for the country’s Parliament, due to take place on December 1, Romania’s national day.

    The election campaign for the Parliament seats will be unfolding over November 1 and 30. In Romania voters will be able to cast their ballots on December the 1 between 7 and 21 hours whereas in the Diaspora voting will kick off on 30 November at 7 hours local time and end on 1 December, at 21 hours.

    Until then, according to the same CURS survey, the first two parties preferred by the voters would muster more votes than their nominees; PSD would get 34%, while PNL 24%. AUR would take 14% and the United Right Alliance 12%. SOS Romania will have 5% and so will UDMR.

    If the situation doesn’t change, the Romanians could be governed by the same two parties, which are making up the incumbent ruling coalition, the Social-Democrats and the Liberals, which are presently enjoying a comfortable majority in the Bucharest Parliament.

    So, Romania’s political stage would be dominated by the same figures who are presently ruling the country. And if the incumbent Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu won the presidential election, he would become the first Social-Democratic president in the past 20 years.

    And if Ciolacu won the race, he would take over the presidential seat from another liberal, Klaus Iohannis. So, the stake is high for both parties!

    In the end we should mention that it’s for the first time in Romania’s history when the country has seen four types of elections in a year; those for the local administration and the European Parliament were already held in June.

    (bill)

  • August 24, 2024

    August 24, 2024

     

    CONVENTION Romanian Social Democrats convene today to elect their new leadership and to appoint their candidate in the forthcoming presidential election. The party leader, PM Marcel Ciolacu, seeks a new term in office, backed by a team of 21 candidates. Ciolacu has also announced he will be running for president of Romania, and is to be validated by the party congress today. Another topic on today’s agenda is the election campaign, and the Social Democratic spokesman, Lucian Romaşcanu, said the party is able to mobilise so that in December Romania may have a Social Democratic president. The party last won a presidential race in 2000. The first round of the election is scheduled on November 24, and the second on December 8th.

     

    UKRAINE The president of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, sent a letter to his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, on Ukraine’s Independence Day. According to the Romanian presidency, Iohannis voiced his appreciation for the courage and resilience of the Ukrainian armed forces and civilians in defending their country’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity. He reiterated Bucharest’s firm commitment to provide constant, predictable and multidimensional support to Ukraine until its victory and further on in its reconstruction and European integration process. Iohannis emphasized that the security cooperation agreement signed by the 2 countries in July, on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Washington, proves that Romania’s support is not circumstantial, but long-standing, predictable and transparent. On Ukraine’s Independence Day, the Cotroceni Palace in Bucureşti, the headquarters of the Romanian presidency, will be lit tonight in Ukraine’s national colours.

     

    CROPS The European Union’s maize output will be smaller because of the drought and extreme heat in Romania, whose crops will be 30% lower. Estimates for the EU’s maize output were cut from 63 million tonnes, as reported last year, to 60-61 million tonnes, which is still above the level in 2022, when the drought affected the entire continent. Romania’s output is expected to drop from around 11 million tonnes last year to less than 8 million this autumn. In France, favourable humidity levels kept maize crops in a generally good condition, and the increase of the areas under crops should ensure higher output, namely over 14 million tonnes. In Poland, smaller areas under maize crops may lead to a 13% drop in output, while in Germany the crops are estimated to be 2% lower.

     

    PENSIONS The National Liberal Party, a junior member of the ruling coalition in Romania, proposes new amendments to the Pensions Law, so as to address the situation of pensioners whose benefits have been cut down in the latest revision. The Liberal leader and Senate speaker Nicolae Ciucă said the law should not have retrospective effect, and confirmed that the pensioners whose benefits have been cut down on paper will not benefit from cost-of-living adjustments for several years, although they will not be paid smaller amounts. According to official data, over 700,000 pensioners have received decisions by which their benefits have been cut down. These include workers in hazardous conditions, such as coal miners, engine drivers and nuclear industry personnel, who were able to stop working before the standard retirement age. Also at a disadvantage are people with disabilities, where the revised benefits are smaller by as much as 60%, for instance for the visually impaired. Hundreds of people are already asking for explanations from the authorities. They have until September 1 to appeal the decisions, and may even take the matter to court.

     

    SCHOOLS Students in secondary schools and high schools in Romania with final grades above 9.50 will receive merits scholarships, under the new School Regulations recently published in the Official Journal. Merit and resilience scholarships will be granted to at least 30% of the students in each class, including in professional and dual education units. Merit scholarships for 5th graders will be granted based on the average grades in the first two modules of the current school year. For 9th-graders, scholarships will be granted based on the high school admission results, which should be above 9.50. Scholarships in public secondary schools and high schools are financed by the education ministry, except for those in military high schools, which will be funded by the defence ministry. For the new academic year, the merit scholarship minimum amount is nearly EUR 90. This amount may be increased by school boards, depending on the budget earmarked by the local authorities. (AMP)

  • August 22, 2024

    August 22, 2024

     

    ELECTIONS In its Wednesday meeting the government of Romania set the calendar for the parliamentary election scheduled for December 1. The election campaign will begin on November 1 and end at 7 AM on November 30. The Romanians in the country will be able to vote between 7 AM and 9 PM. For the Romanian nationals in the diaspora, the voting will begin on November 30 at 7 AM and end on December 1 at 9 PM. The legislative elections will take place between the 2 rounds of the presidential election. Romania organised local and European elections on June 9.

     

    EUROPEAN COMMISSION While on a visit to Brussels, PM Marcel Ciolacu has talks today with the president of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen about the implementation of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan and the seat Romania will hold in the new Commission. According to a government spokesman, the Romanian PM is not making any nominations at this point, but he will indicate the European commissioner post Romania is seeking, more specifically one related to the economic field. Marcel Ciolacu is accompanied in Brussels by the finance minister, Marcel Boloş and by the official in charge with European projects, Adrian Câciu.

     

    BONDS The government passed an order enabling Romanian nationals living abroad to purchase treasury bonds online. The measure comes as the finance ministry is preparing the introduction of new technical solutions for the online purchase of such bonds. At present, people who want to purchase government bonds online must register on a special governmental platform. Government bonds are low-risk financial instruments through which the government borrows money from citizens to finance the budget deficit and refinance public debt.

     

    US ELECTION Tim Walz, Kamala Harris’s running mate in the campaign for the US presidential election, has today accepted officially the Democratic Party’s nomination for vice-president. On Tuesday night in Chicago, in the party’s national convention, the US Democrats officially confirmed Kamala Harris as their candidate for the November 5 presidential election. Delegates from all US states and territories once again expressed their support for Harris in a symbolic vote, after she had been already elected in an online ballot early this month. Vice-president Kamala Harris (60) is the second woman nominated by the Democrats for president since its establishment in 1828, and could become the first female president in the history of the US. The incumbent US president Joe Biden (81) withdrew his candidacy for a second term in office. The Republican candidate in the presidential race is the former president Donald Trump (78).

     

    TENNIS The Romanian tennis player Ana Bogdan has qualified for the quarterfinals of the WTA 250 tournament in Cleveland (Ohio), after defeating Greet Minnen (Belgium) 7-6 (7/3), 6-3. In the quarter-finals she is to play against Russia’s Anastasia Potapova. Another Romanian player, Gabriela Ruse, managed to reach the last qualifying round of the US Open main draw in New York. In the second qualifying round, Ruse defeated China’s Ye-Xin Ma 6-3, 6-3. And in the WTA 500 tournament in Monterrey (Mexico), Monica Niculescu (Romania) / Hanyu Guo (China) have today qualified into the semi-finals of the doubles competition, after winning against Ulrikke Eikeri (Norway) / Aldila Sutjiadi (Indonesia) 6-4, 5-7, 10-3. (AMP)

  • June 25, 2024

    June 25, 2024

     

    ELECTION The ruling coalition made up of the Social Democratic Party and the National Liberal Party is to make a decision today on the date of the presidential election. The two parties are considering 2 dates for the first election round, September 15th or 29th. The government has until early July to pass an emergency order on the calendar of the presidential election, if the vote is to be held in September. The Liberals insist however that the election should be organized towards the end of the year, although they had initially agreed with a date in September. They argue that holding the election in September would disrupt the start of the new school year, and the campaign would overlap the holiday season. The Social Democrats, on the other hand, rule out any change in the agreed calendar. The 2 ruling parties must also decide whether to have separate candidates for the presidential post. On June 9th, they had a common candidate list for the European Parliament election, but had separate candidates in the local elections.

     

    FOREIGN AFFAIRS The Romanian foreign minister Luminiţa Odobescu took part on Monday in the EU Foreign Affairs Council in Luxembourg. On this occasion, Mrs. Odobescu highlighted the importance of stepped-up military support for Ukraine and mentioned the decision of Romania’s Supreme Defence Council to transfer a Patriot system to Ukraine.

     

    FUNDING On Monday Romania received close to EUR 1.1 bln from the European Union for projects in the energy sector, particularly for renewable energy production. According to an EU news release, Romania and 9 other countries received total funding of EUR 3 bln, intended for 39 programmes. The largest amount was given to Romania, followed by the Czech Republic (EUR 835 mln) and Poland (EUR 700 mln).

     

    ACCESSION The ex-Soviet republics of Moldova and Ukraine today begin their official EU accession negotiations. The first talks are to be held in Luxembourg, and during this process Chişinău and Kyiv must align their national legislation to the bloc’s regulations. According to Radio Romania’s correspondent in Brussels, since their recognition as candidate countries, the two states have made general adjustments in key areas, proving their willingness to adapt to the EU legislation. Beginning with these inter-governmental conferences, Ukraine’s and Moldova’s progress in the implementation of relevant reforms will be assessed separately. Analysts believe this could be an advantage for Moldova, which according to the European Commission has made better progress than Ukraine so far.

     

    FORUM The Romanian interior minister Cătălin Predoiu takes part on June 25 – 27 in the Salzburg Forum Ministerial Conference in Laxenburg, Austria. According to the interior ministry, the event focuses on current and future challenges in the field of security and migration, including security and migration challenges for the EU in 2024 – 2029, security along the Danube in the context of digitization, as well as migration and migrant smuggling.

     

    THEATRE The Performing Arts Market opened today in Sibiu (central Romania) as part of the famous Sibiu International Theatre Festival. Currently in its 27th edition, the Performing Arts Market has, this year as well, face-to-face, hybrid and online components. More than 80 officials for cultural organisations and institutions in over 30 countries convene in Sibiu to establish contacts and implement joint projects. The Festival founder and president, Constantin Chiriac, says this is the only performing arts market in Romania and in Eastern and Central Europe.

     

    FOOTBALL In the European Football Championship hosted by Germany, the last matches in Group D and C are scheduled for tonight. In Group D, the Netherlands take on Austria and France play Poland, while in Group C, England plays against Slovenia, and Denmark against Serbia. Romania concludes its Group E matches on Wednesday in Frankfurt, with a game against Slovakia. In the same group, Belgium is scheduled to play against Ukraine. All 4 teams in the group have 3 points each, with Romania still first-placed in the group thanks to a better goal difference. A draw against Slovakia is enough for the team to move up into the eighth-finals. (AMP)

  • The registration of candidates for a new local administration has begun

    The registration of candidates for a new local administration has begun

    The super-election year in Romania, as newspapers have dubbed it, with presidential election in September and Parliamentary election in December, comes with a first on June 9th: the ballot for the European Parliament will be taking place concurrently with the election for the local administration.

    15 political formations have already submitted their lists of virtual MEPs adding to the already known seven independent candidates. Tuesday will also see the registration of those running for the seats of mayors, presidents of local and county councils, and for local and county councilors.

    Political parties, alliances, the citizens’ organizations belonging to national minorities and independent candidates can submit their candidacies at the election bureaus until April 30th.

    The documents, according to a decision of the Central Election Bureau must include a list of candidates, a list of supporters for each candidate, a copy of their ID documents, income and interest declarations, a declaration of accepting the candidacy, an affidavit that they didn’t work for or collaborate with the former political police of the communist regime, known as the Securitate.

    The election campaign for the European Parliament on the public and private radio and TV channels, starts on May 10, zero hour and ends on June 8, at 7 hours. The press expects a noisy and intricate campaign due to the unexpected overlapping elections. Analysts say that this risks to contaminate debates over Brussels’ policies, such as the famous and unpopular Green Deal, which stirred heated debates among the candidates over potholes on certain village roads. According to mass-media, the most bizarre is the situation of the PSD-PNL government coalition.

    When they decided to stage the two elections on the same day, the rulers invoked the idea of cutting expenses and the turnout, which is supposed to be higher when people must vote for their mayors then for MEPs.

    Furthermore, in another absolute first, the two ruling parties have drawn a joint list for the EU election, although they are part of different political families at European level, PSD belongs to the Socialists whereas the PNL to the People’s Party. In Romania, however, the Social-Democrats and the Liberals will have their own candidates in city halls and county councils and that promises a cut-throat election race. And although the election campaign hasn’t started yet, political debates on various TV channels are already fraught with mutual attacks between the representatives of the two ruling parties.

    (bill)

  • January 28, 2023 UPDATE

    January 28, 2023 UPDATE

    COOPERATION
    France and the Netherlands are eagerly waiting
    for Romania’s Schengen accession as soon as possible. This is one of the main
    elements in a joint statement on security cooperation signed in Bucharest on
    Friday by the foreign ministers of the 3 countries. The message was also
    highlighted by the Dutch diplomacy chief, Wopke Hoekstra, in the bilateral
    talks with his Romanian counterpart, Bogdan Aurescu. The 2 officials, together
    with the French foreign minister, Catherine
    Colonna,Friday visited the Getica National Joint Training Centre in
    Cincu, where French and Dutch troops are deployed as part of the NATO Battle
    Group created in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. In fact, after the
    trilateral talks concerning Moscow’s armed aggression, Catherine Colonna said
    Ukraine must be helped to defend itself, to regain its independence and
    sovereignty. In Bucharest, the foreign officials were also received by
    president Klaus Iohannis and PM
    Nicolae Ciucă.


    CINEMA Two
    Romanian films, ‘Metronome’ by Alexandru Belc and ‘M.R.I.’ by Cristian Mungiu, are
    in the competition of the Gothenburg International Film Festival in Sweden, which
    started on Friday. According to the Romanian Cultural Institute in Stockholm,
    the event brings together around 400 works from around the world every year,
    with 160,000 viewers attending. ‘Metronome’, the debut feature of the director Alexandru
    Belc, is a love story in 1972 communist Romania, and critics describe it as a
    social and historical analysis of a generation forced to live in a society
    marred by suspicion and distrust. Cristian Mungiu’s ‘M.R.I.’ is set in a
    Transylvanian village, where a small factory hires new workers, troubling the
    apparent peace of the locals. The over 40-year old
    film festival in Gothenburg is the most important such event in the
    region.


    SURVEY As many as 80% of Romanian consumers allow the use of their
    personal data for advertising purposes, according to a survey conducted on the
    European Data Protection Day. The latest data in the Survey on the usage of IT&C
    in households and by individuals indicate that 1 of 2 Europeans aged between 16
    and 74 do not allow the use of their personal data for advertising purposes
    when using the internet. As many as 46% reported having allowed only restricted
    access to their location or having denied access to their data altogether. The
    countries where the use of personal data for advertising is mostly denied by
    users include the Netherlands (73%), Finland (70%), Denmark and Germany (63%
    each), Spain (62%). At the opposite pole, the lowest rates were reported in
    Bulgaria (10%), Romania (20%), Greece (29%), Slovakia (30%) and Latvia (32%).


    ELECTION
    The president of Romania Klaus Iohannis Saturday
    congratulated the president elect of the Czech Republic, Petr Pavel, and
    pleaded for strengthening the relations between the 2 countries. Petr Pavel, a former
    chairman of the NATO Military Committee and supporter of military support for
    Ukraine, Saturday won the runoff of the presidential elections in the Czech
    Republic, with 57.4% of the votes, according to international news agencies,
    after over 90% of the
    ballots were counted. His opponent, ex-PM Andrej Babis, got around 42% of the
    votes. The turnout was 70%. Petr Pavel, a retired general aged 61, ran as an
    independent candidate with the support of the right-of-centre government. He
    will replace the controversial Milos Zeman, who had had close ties with Moscow
    before changing course during Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Petr Pavel vowed to
    be an independent president, without political bias, and to continue to support
    war-torn Ukraine and Kyiv’s bid for EU membership.


    SPORTS The Romanian
    athlete Laura Ilie won the bronze in the 10m air rifle women event of the ISSF
    World Championship on Saturday in Jakarta, Indonesia. The gold went to Eszter
    Meszaros (Hungary), who defeated Poland’s Aneta Stankiewicz in the final. Another
    Romanian, Roxana Sidi, came out 28th in the qualifiers. (AMP)

  • November 16, 2020 UPDATE

    November 16, 2020 UPDATE

    Fire – Inspections are underway in ICUs across Romania following the fire that killed 10 patients on Saturday evening at the Emergency Hospital in Piatra Neamt (Northeast). The patients, who had been diagnosed with COVID-19 and were receiving treatment in the ICU, could not be saved despite the efforts of the medical staff. The fire was caused by a short circuit, according to preliminary searches. Another 6 patients in a nearby room are in a serious condition. The management of the Public Health Directorate in Neamt said in that in order to treat more COVID-19 patients, the ICU of the County Emergency Hospital in Piatra Neamt was reconfigured on the day of the fire, without having previously asked for an approval in this sense. Prosecutors have opened a criminal investigation.





    Covid -19 Romania – The city of Sibiu, in central Romania, introduced a 2-week lockdown on Monday, after the combined contamination rate in 14 days exceeded 12 cases per one thousand inhabitants. The people of Sibiu will need documents from their work places or sworn statements to be able to travel inside or between the localities in lockdown. Shops will be open until 10 p.m. and on Saturday and Sunday shops in shopping malls will be closed, except for pharmacies and food stores. People over the age of 65 can go shopping between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. and religious services will be held outdoors. Over 5,000 new cases of COVID-19 have been reported in the past 24 hours, along with 149 deaths, which takes the total death toll to over 9,000. The number of patients in intensive care is near 1,200. PM Ludovic Orban said, after talks with the health minister, that an increase of the ICU capacity by at least 200 beds is planned for this week.





    Moldova – The Romanian President Klaus Iohannis Monday had a phone conversation with the President elect of the Republic of Moldova, Maia Sandu, during which they have agreed on extending and deepening the strategic partnership for Moldovas European integration. A first step in this sense will be the official visit which the Romanian president is going to make to Chisinau in the coming period, reads a presidential administration news release. Klaus Iohannis said that Maia Sandus result represented a victory of democracy and marked a decisive step towards Moldovas irreversible European path, which Romania has permanently supported and will continue to support without reservation. In Brussels, the head of the European Council Charles Michel promised that the EU is ready to strengthen the partnership with Chisinau. In turn, the president of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen congratulated Maia Sandu, and said her victory was a clear call for fighting corruption and restoring the rule of law. The EU is prepared to support Moldova, Von der Leyen also said. The pro-European candidate Maia Sandu defeated the pro-Russian candidate Igor Dodon, in the 2nd round of the presidential election in Moldova.





    Gaudeamus – The 27th edition of the Gaudeamus Book Fair organized by Radio Romania started online on Monday. The event will end on Sunday and will take place exclusively online due to the new coronavirus pandemic. On the website of the event, gaudeamus.ro, you can find more than 100 companies, among which prestigious book publishers and distributors, music and educational games, with individual presentation pages dedicated to the fair. Book lovers can also access the participants virtual stands and readers can buy books online. As many as 200 events can be followed online. Writer Norman Manea, nominated several times for the Nobel Prize for Literature, is the honorary president of this edition of the Gaudeamus book fair.





    Covid-19 world – There are more than 55 million confirmed cases of Covid-19 around the world, with 1.3 million deaths reported, according to data provided by worldometers.info. The biggest number of cases and deaths from Covid-19 is reported by the US (over 11.3 million cases and around 1 million new cases in one week). India has so far reported 8.8 million cases and around 130 thousand deaths, and Brazil more 5.8 million cases with 165 thousand deaths. Europe is equally affected by the 2nd wave of the pandemic, with France and Russia having exceeded 1.9 million cases. Spain is nearing 1.5 million and Great Britain 1.4 million. Moderna announced on Monday its experimental vaccine had a 94.5% effectiveness rate in stage 3 trials. This is the second vaccine produced by an American company and having encouraging results, after Pfizers, produced jointly with BioNTech, which also reported over 90% protection in clinical trials. (tr. A.M. Popescu, L. Simion)

  • US mass media projection: Joe Biden wins the presidency

    US mass media projection: Joe Biden wins the presidency


    JUST IN: Joe Biden has declared victory in the US presidential
    election and made his first speech as President elect, pledging not to divide
    but unify the country.


    While speaking to supporters in his hometown of
    Wilmington, Delaware, Biden said: The people of this nation have spoken. They’ve
    delivered us a convincing victory. A clear victory.


    He vowed to be a president for all: I am a proud Democrat, but I will govern as
    an American president.


    Let’s give other a chance. It’s time to put
    away the harsh rhetoric, lower the temperature.



    The new president elect also made a call for unity: to make
    progress we have to stop treating our opponents as enemies (…) We must make
    the promise of the country real for everybody, no matter their race, their
    ethnicity, their faith, their identity, or their disability.


    Kamala Harris also thanked voters for choosing hope and unity,decency, science and truth,


    Incumbent president Donald Trump has still not
    conceded the election.

    ————————

    European and world leaders have congratulated the US President elect and Vice-President Kamala Harris on their victory. Here are some messages from Romanian leaders:


    The President of
    Romania, Klaus Iohannis, on Saturday congratulated Joe Biden on his
    victory, in a message posted on Twitter: I look forward to further consolidating our solid and dynamic Strategic
    Partnership in all its dimensions. Romania will continue to work to
    strengthen the security, prosperity and resilience of our transatlantic
    community.

    In turn, the President of the
    Social Democratic Party Marcel Ciolacu also congratulated the Democratic
    candidate Joe
    Biden: At the end of an election campaign that took place amid exceptional circumstances and with so much at stake, the American people have spoken. I welcome the election of Joseph Biden following a contest that
    has captured the attention of the entire planet and I wish the new
    President success with the important and difficult mission that awaits him! Democratic
    nations around the world and US allies need an America that is involved,
    vigilant and investing in its vital role as a global leader, strengthening the
    transatlantic relationship with NATO and reasserting the importance of its
    strategic partnerships, Ciolacu wrote on his Facebook page on Saturday.    The Social Democrat leader gave assurances
    that his party will continue to support the development and deepening of the
    Strategic Partnership between Romania
    and the USA,
    as an essential component of a strong transatlantic relationship, in permanent
    transformation and adaptation.

    Dacian Cioloş, co-president of the USR PLUS Alliance and leader of the Renew Europe group in the European Parliament, also congratulated Joe Biden on winning the US presidential election in a post on social media: The US president elect has earned a well-deserved victory in this election, based on a substantial policy program, which addresses priorities that I also share and support both at European level and in Romania: a better performing healthcare system, well-targeted social programs for vulnerable categories and special attention to the digital domain. It is precisely in these areas that we would like to expand our Strategic Partnership. (…) Congratulations, Joe Biden! Congratulations, Kamala Harris, the first female vice president of the United States! I have no doubt that the USA will continue to be the same reliable partner to Romania. Dacian Cioloş also expressed confidence that the Biden administration would be open to introducing a visa waiver program for Romanians.

    The copresident of the USR Plus Alliance Dan Barna also welcomed
    the victory of Democrat presidential candidate Joe Biden. In a Facebook post,
    Barna said the Romanians have always been reliable allies of America in the endeavors
    to build a free, democratic and prosperous world. I am confident that under the
    Biden-Harris administration, the Strategic Partnership between our countries
    will acquire even more substance, something which will be reflected in an even
    closer relationship between our peoples and governments.

    ————————

    UPDATE: Democrat Joe Biden has defeated the incumbent US
    President Donald Trump to become the 46th President of the United States of America, according to international
    news agencies, after US media projections showed he would win Nevada,
    Arizona and
    Pennsylvania, surpassing the 270 electoral votes needed to win.


    The former vice president in the Obama
    Administration posted a message on Twitter, shortly after the US mass media
    projected him the winner of the November 3 election: America, I’m honored that
    you have chosen me to lead our great country. The work ahead of us will be
    hard, but I promise this: I will be a President for all Americans-whether you
    voted for me or not. I will keep the faith that you have placed in me, Joe
    Biden wrote on Twitter.


    The US incumbent
    president, Republican Donald Trump, on Saturday accused Biden of rushing to
    falsely pose as the winner and warned this election is far from over. Trump also
    said his campaign would start challenging the results in court as from Monday.




    The
    US
    saw the highest voter turnout in a century.

    —————
    Joe Biden is projected to win the race for the White House in a tight contest against incumbent president Donald Trump. Votes are still being counted, including in key battleground states, following the highest voter turnout in a presidential election since 1900. Also, a record number of Americans voted by post in these elections because of the coronavirus pandemic. Mr Biden said it was time for Americans to come together as a nation, to unite and to heal. His running mate Kamala Harris is to become the first woman to be elected vice-president.

  • Presidential elections in Moldova

    Presidential elections in Moldova

    Organised in special circumstances dictated by the coronavirus pandemic, Sundays presidential election in the Republic of Moldova, Romanias eastern neighbour and home to a sizeable Romanian-speaking population, brought a major surprise. The pro-Western Maia Sandu, a former prime minister running on behalf of Action and Solidarity Party in opposition, won the largest number of votes in the first round, coming out ahead of the incumbent president, the pro-Russian Igor Dodon by several percentage points.



    Eight candidates were in the race, but none of them got 50% of the votes, so a second round will be held on November 15. So the results announced by the Central Electoral Commission point to a rerun of the ballot held 4 years ago, when the same Igor Dodon and Maia Sandu competed in the second round.



    The former PM, who lobbies for closer ties with the European Union, won over voters by promoting the fight against corruption and accusing her challenger of having obstructed reforms in the judiciary.



    In turn, the incumbent president promises to defend and strengthen Moldovas statehood and a balanced foreign policy in relation to Russia and the European Union. He said Sundays election was fair, free and democratic, although Maia Sandu spoke about election fraud attempts.



    Ranking below were 2 candidates that are competing with Igor Dodon over Moldovas left-wing voters. The controversial mayor of Bălţi, Renato Usatyi, won around 17% of the votes, while Violeta Ivanov, backed by the hideaway businessman Ilan Shors party, got over 6%. The other 4 pro-European candidates, who are in favour of Moldovas uniting with Romania, only won a combined 8% of the votes.



    A record large number of Moldovan citizens, 146,000, voted abroad this year. Of them, nearly 13,000 cast their ballots in the 13 polling stations opened in Romania. In the Republic of Moldova, the turnout was over 1,214,000, including 14,700 from Transdniester.



    A number of incidents were reported in this breakaway region in the east, which has been technically outside Moldovan control since 1992, when an armed conflict killed hundreds of people and was ended by Russias troops moving in to support the separatists. The election day was marred by scandals and petitions filed by several candidates with respect to voters being bused to polls and vote buying in Transdniester. (translated by: A.M. Popescu)

  • November 23, 2019

    November 23, 2019

    ELECTIONS In Romania, the campaign for the second round of the presidential election, due on November 24, has come to a close this morning at 7 am. Competing are the incumbent president Klaus Iohannis, endorsed by the National Liberal Party now in power, and the former Social Democrat PM Viorica Dancilă. The Permanent Election Authority has announced that the Electoral Register has been updated and the total number of voters in the roll is 18,217,411. In the first round, in which 14 candidates took part, Klaus Iohannis got nearly 38% of the votes, and Viorica Dăncilă a little over 22%. The voter turnout was 51.19%. In the Romanian communities abroad, where the vote took place over 3 days, record-high turnout was reported, with over 675,000 people showing up in polling stations. For Sundays runoff as well, the 835 polling stations abroad are open for 3 days, Friday through Sunday, with the possibility for the vote to be extended until midnight on Sunday. The number of Romanians
    having voted abroad in the runoff suggests a higher turnout than in the first round. The vote rate increased in the
    past few hours, after polling stations reopened in all the countries in Europe,
    which host the largest Romanian communities in the world. First ranking are the
    Romanians in Italy, the UK, Germany, Spain and the Republic of Moldova.




    GAUDEAMUS 8,000 book stands have been put up as part of the Gaudeamus Book Fair organised in Bucharest by Radio Romania, in an edition devoted to the 30 years since the anti-communist revolution of 1989. During the 5 days of the Fair, 900 different events are scheduled, including book launches, debates and book signing sessions. Today, on the 4th day of the Fair, Prof. Thierry Wolton takes part in the launch of the second volume of his trilogy “A World History of Communism. In this volume, entitled ‘The Victims’, Thierry Wolton speaks about the tens of millions that suffered imprisonment, deportation, torture and even extermination for their anti-communist beliefs.




    COLECTIV After the Bucharest Court completed its investigations, on Monday the prosecution and the defence will present their closing statements in the case concerning the fire in Colectiv night club in Bucharest 4 years ago, in which 64 people died, one committed suicide further to the trauma and 200 others were injured. The Colectiv trial started in April 2016. After 2 years of deferrals over procedural matters, the judge assigned to the case retired, and during another year the new judge has heard the statements of scores of witnesses and victims.




    DiscoverEU Youth of over 18 years of age may enrol by November 28 in a programme called DiscoverEU, which enables them to travel free of charge in the European Union. Eligible applicants must be citizens of one of the member states and fill in an online form. This is an initiative of the European Parliament, designed to provide young people with new mobility opportunities. The selected candidates will be able to travel, especially by train, for max. 30 days between April 1 and October 31, 2020. Since the programme was launched in 2018, Romania offered nearly 2,000 such permits, out of a total of 50,000 issued in the EU.




    UN The 15 members of the UN Security Council endorsed a declaration reaffirming the ban on chemical weapons. The Council has reached a consensus long undermined by the war in Syria, and the Skripal affair in the UK or Kim Jong-nam case in Malaysia, AFP reports. The Council reaffirms that the use of chemical weapons is a violation of international law, and declares its firm opposition to it. The declaration, proposed by Great Britain, was passed unanimously. The UN Security Council urges all states that have not yet done so to sign the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling and Use of Chemical Weapons, which was signed in 1993 and came into force in 1997. Syria joined the Convention in 2013, Israel has signed it, but is yet to ratify it, whereas North Korea, Egypt and South Sudan are not yet parties to this Convention.


    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • November 21, 2019 UPDATE

    November 21, 2019 UPDATE

    ELECTIONS The campaign ahead of the second round of Romania’s presidential elections on Sunday continues until Saturday morning at 7 am local time. The incumbent president Klaus Iohannis, who is endorsed by the National Liberal Party, now in power, is facing the former Social Democrat prime minister Viorica Dancila. According to the Permanent Election Authority, the total number of registered voters is 18,217,411. In the first round, which saw 14 candidates in the race, Iohannis won almost 38% of the votes and Dancila a little over 22%. Voter turnout stood at 51.19%. In the diaspora, where voting took place over three days, a record turnout was reported, with 675,000 people casting their ballots. The second round of voting is also taking place over three days abroad: on Friday between 12 am and 9 pm and on Saturday and Sunday between 7 am and 9 pm, with the possibility for the voting to be extended until midnight. The foreign ministry has already distributed the materials needed for the voting process abroad. 4,608,1754 ballots were distributed among the 835 polling stations set up abroad, 100,000 more ballots than was requested in the first round.



    EU The European Parliaments Conference of Presidents, including the EP president David Sassoli and the leaders of political groups in the EP, Thursday completed the hearings of the 26 Commissioners-designate and gave the green light for the last procedure before the new Commission may start its term in office on December 1, one month later than originally scheduled. The Conference of Presidents also authorised the publication of the evaluation letters. The vote on the investiture of the new European Commission headed by Ursula von der Leyen will be held during a plenary session in Strasbourg on November 27. On Monday the EP committee on foreign affairs approved the candidacy of Hungarys Oliver Varhelyi for European Commissioner for Enlargement, after on November 14 specialist committees also approved the candidates designated by Romania (Adina Valean for Transport Commissioner) and France (Thierry Breton for internal market).



    FAIR The 26th edition of the Gaudeamus Book Fair organised by Radio Romania is under way in Bucharest. Thursdays programme featured book launches and talks with writers, historians and experts from various fields, as well as debates on topics such as contemporary poetry in various interpretations and writers who opposed dictatorships. 900 different events are scheduled over the five days of the fair and 230 exhibitors are showcasing their products, from very diverse fields. This year’s edition of the fair is dedicated to the 30th anniversary of the anti-communist revolution of December 1989. The poet Mircea Dinescu and the actor Ion Caramitru, who were prominent figures of the revolution, are honorary co-presidents of the fair.



    MIGRANTS Six Algerian migrants, who caused a fire on the vessel on which they had illegally reached the Romanian Black Sea port of Constanţa, went missing on Thursday morning, the Coast Guard reports. The border police that were surveilling the Panamanian-flagged ship NORDIC Barents, which arrived from Turkey, were announced by a crew member that the illegal passengers were no longer aboard. The Coast Guard added that there are suspicions that the crew aided the illegal border crossing.

    INDICTMENT The Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu was indicted for bribery,
    fraud and breach of trust in 3 separate cases, Israel’s Attorney General
    announced on Thursday. Netanyahu has allegedly received luxury gifts from
    businessmen and is suspected of attempting to secure positive news coverage in
    Israel’s biggest daily, Yediot Aharonot,
    in exchange for measures against the rival publication Israel Hayom. Benjamin Netanyahu is also accused of trading government favours
    for positive coverage on the news website Walla.
    It is for the first time in the history of Israel that a sitting prime minister
    is charged with a crime.


    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu, Cristina Mateescu)

  • November 20, 2019 UPDATE

    November 20, 2019 UPDATE

    ELECTIONS The campaign ahead of the second round of Romania’s presidential elections on Sunday continues until Saturday morning at 7 am local time. The incumbent president Klaus Iohannis, who is endorsed by the National Liberal Party, now in power, is facing the former Social Democrat prime minister Viorica Dancila. The Standing Electoral Authority has announced that the electoral register has been updated and the total number of voters in the lists is 18,217,411. The total number of citizens residing abroad and entitled to vote in this election is 715,064. In the first round, which included 14 candidates, Iohannis won almost 38% of the votes and Dancila a little over 22%. Voter turnout stood at 51.19%. In the diaspora, where voting took place over three days, a record turnout was reported, with 675,000 people casting their ballots. The second round of voting is also taking place over three days abroad: on Friday between 12 am and 9 pm and on Saturday and Sunday between 7 am and 9 pm, with the possibility for the voting to be extended until midnight. The foreign ministry has already distributed the materials needed for the voting process abroad. 4 million, six hundred and eight thousand and 175 ballots were distributed among the 835 polling stations set up abroad, 100,000 more ballots than was requested in the first round.




    FINANCE The European Commission Wednesday recommended that Romania should implement an annual structural adjustment of 1% of the GDP in 2020, to ensure that the nominal increase in net primary government expenditure will not exceed 4.4%. Romania is also advised to use any exceptional revenues in order to reduce the deficit, with budget consolidation measures aimed at ensuring sustainable improvement of the government structural balance, able to encourage growth. Bucharest is also requested to present the Council with a report on the measures taken in this respect, no later than April 15, 2020.



    MEETING The Romanian Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu had a meeting on Wednesday with the US State Secretary Michael Pompeo, on the side-lines of the meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Brussels. The Romanian minister appreciated the US constant support for strengthening NATOs defence and deterrence posture on the eastern flank and pleaded for enhanced American military presence in Romania, given the volatile security context in the Black Sea region. He also reiterated the firm commitment of the new government in Bucharest for a fair sharing of responsibilities within NATO, confirming that Romania will continue to earmark 2% of its GDP to defence and to take part in foreign military missions. Also on Wednesday, Bogdan Aurescu had talks with his French counterpart, Jean-Yves Le Drian, on which occasion he mentioned the Common Declaration on the Strategic Partnership signed in 2018 by the presidents Klaus Iohannis and Emmanuel Macron, which re-launched the bilateral relation.



    ARREST The owner of the Romanian company that provided pest extermination services to 2 apartment buildings in Timişoara, western Romania, was taken in pre-trial custody for 30 days, under accusations of manslaughter, bodily harm and trafficking in controlled substances. Three people died, including a 9-day baby, over 40 others, mostly children, are hospitalized, and the buildings have been evacuated. The tragedy caused panic among the locals, with scores of people requesting medical check-ups. Investigations have revealed that the substances used for pest extermination had been purchased on the black market and contained a highly toxic compound. Concurrently with the criminal investigation, new decontamination operations were conducted on Wednesday, and a Health Ministry team is running on-site tests.


    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • November 19, 2019

    November 19, 2019

    ELECTION In Romania, the campaign for the second round of the presidential election continues. The vote is scheduled for Sunday, November 24th. Competing are the incumbent president, Klaus Iohannis, backed by the National Liberal Party in power, and the former Social Democrat PM Viorica Dancila. According to data made public by the Central Electoral Bureau and validated on Friday by the Constitutional Court, in the first round Klaus Iohanis got 37.82% of the votes and Viorica Dăncilă 22.26%. The turnout was 51.19%. Abroad, where Romanian citizens were able to vote Friday through Sunday, record-large numbers of voters showed up in polls (over 675,000). In the runoff as well, the Romanians living abroad will have 3 days to cast their ballots, between noon on Friday and Sunday at 9 PM, with a possible extension to midnight.




    AUTOMOTIVE In October Romania was the most dynamic automobile market in Europe, the European Automobile Manufacturers Association announced. Last month, around 11,000 vehicles were registered in Romania, up 58.1% since the same month last year. In the first 10 months of 2019, around 135,000 automobiles were registered in Romania, accounting for an annual growth rate of 18.9%, whereas the European automobile market saw a 0.7% decline. Dacia reported a 7.8% rise in sales in Europe in October, to 40,687 units. The Romanian carmaker Dacia was taken over by Renault in 1999. Relaunched in 2004 with the new Logan model, Dacia turned into a major player in the European automobile market.




    TRAGEDY The owner of the Romanian company that provided pest extermination services for 2 apartment buildings in Timişoara, western Romania, was arrested for 24 hours this morning, under charges of manslaughter, bodily harm and trafficking in controlled substances. The court will decide whether he will be kept in pre-trial arrest. Recently, 3 people died following a pest and rodent extermination operation—a 9-day baby, a 3-year old and his mother, while 20 other people, adults and children, are hospitalised. The 2 buildings have been evacuated. Preliminary investigations reveal that the intoxication was caused by neurotoxins. The tragedy caused panic among the locals, with scores of people requesting medical check-ups.




    STATISTICS Over one-quarter (27.7%) of the population of Romania were living in 2018 in households without indoor toilets. The figure is down from the 29.7% reported in 2017, but still more than 10 times above the EU average of 2.1%, according to data made public today by Eurostat, on World Toilet Day. In as many as 19 member states, the percentage of people living in housing without indoor toilets in 2018 was below 1%, including Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Sweden where the figure is very close to zero. At the opposite pole, Romania is preceded by Bulgaria with 15.3%, Lithuania (10.6%), Latvia (9.9%) and Estonia (5.3%). Still, the number of people living without proper sanitation services in the EU dropped from 3.3% in 2010 to 2.1% last year, and in Romania it fell from 40.9% to 27.7%.




    THEATRE The Government of Japan awarded the Order of the Rising Sun to the actor Constantin Chiriac, director of the Radu Stanca National Theatre in Sibiu and president of the Sibiu International Theatre Festival, in recognition of his contribution to promoting the Japanese culture in Romania and the cultural exchanges between the 2 countries. The Order of the Rising Sun was established in 1875, and is one of the most important decorations bestowed by the Japanese government, second to the Order of the Chrysanthemum, and is the highest awarded to foreign citizens, for distinguished achievements in international relations, for the promotion of the Japanese culture and of projects aimed at preserving the environment.




    FOOTBALL Romanias Under-21 football team are playing tonight away from home against Northern Ireland in the 2021 European Championship qualifying Group 8. With 3 wins and a loss in previous matches, the Romanians rank second in the group, after Denmark. The senior team Monday lost to Spain, 0-5 away from home, in Group F of next years European Championship qualifiers, and finished 4th in the group. After the defeat, manager Cosmin Contra announced his resignation. The only chance left for Romania to qualify into the final tournament is the Nations League playoff due in March. The draw for Euro 2020 will take place in Bucharest on November 30. The Romanian capital city will also host 3 group matches and an eighth-final.


    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • November 18, 2019

    November 18, 2019

    ELECTION Romania sees the last week of the campaign for the presidential runoff. Competing are the incumbent president Klaus Iohannis, backed by the National Liberal Party in power, and Viorica Dăncilă, the leader of the Social Democratic Party. In the first round, Iohannis got nearly 38% of the votes, and his challenger little over 22%. In the country, the vote will be held on Sunday, November 24, whereas the Romanians living abroad have 3 days to vote, namely Friday, Saturday and Sunday.




    AGRICULTURE The Romanian agriculture minister, Adrian Oros, is taking part on Monday in Brussels in the meeting of the EU Agriculture and Fisheries Council. The main topic on the agenda is the reform of the Common Agricultural Policy as of 2020. According to the line minister, the participants will discuss the Regulation on the funding, management and monitoring of the CAP, as well as a Regulation on the common organisation of agricultural markets. Last month, the agriculture minister told the Romanian Parliament that his top priority was to prepare the national strategic programme, because in the coming 7 years the main financing source for the Romanian agriculture is the annual 20 billion euros granted under the CAP.




    COMMISSIONERS The European Parliament is to make a decision by Thursday regarding the latest commissioner nominations made by Romania, France and Hungary. The UK, which declined appointing a commissioner, will have to provide an official answer by Friday, Radio Romanias correspondent in Brussels reports. The president of the European Parliament and the floor group leaders will make a final assessment of the 3 candidates and will decide the closure of the hearings on November 21. The commissioners nominated by Romania and France, Adina Vălean for transport commissioner and Thierry Breton for the internal market commissioner, respectively, have already been given the green light by the specialist committees. Hungarys nominee for enlargement and neighbourhood policy commissioner Olivér Várhelyi, had to answer additional questions from MEPs. A second rejection of Hungarys candidate will force a new postponement of the validation of the Commission as a whole. Further questions have to do with the UK, whose unwillingness to nominate a candidate is against the EU Treaty. However, the president elect of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, may go forth with an executive team of 27 members, as long as the legal affairs experts decide that the absence of a British commissioner does not prevent the activity of the new Commission.




    POLITICS The members of Save Romania Union, the third-largest party in Parliament, are voting online until Wednesday on Dan Barnas prospective resignation as party president. Barna said he was ready to step down, following the discontent triggered by his performance in the presidential election, in which he failed to qualify into the runoff. He got 15% of the votes, although half a year ago in the elections for the European Parliament the USR-PLUS alliance had carried 22% of the votes.




    NAVY The King Ferdinand frigate is taking part in an international anti-submarine warfare exercise organised by the Turkish Navy in the Mediterranean Sea and which is under way until November 20, the Navy Chief of Staff has announced. The Romanian crew will be carrying out specific training activities in Turkey’s territorial waters and neighbouring international waters alongside colleagues from Bulgaria, Canada, Greece, Jordan, Italy, Mexico, Pakistan, Spain, the United States and Turkey. According to the Romanian Navy Forces, the participation of King Ferdinand frigate in this exercise contributes to enhancing the interoperability of the Romanian and partner forces, and to promoting the professionalism of the Romanian Army.




    TOURISM Romanias largest travel fair came to a close on Sunday in Bucharest. The event brought together travel agencies, tour operators and tourist regions represented by trade associations or by county councils. 230 companies from 16 countries came up with offers for all seasons and all tastes, with discounts going up to and even over 50%. The offers include Christmas and New Years holidays in the country and abroad, summer packages in Romanian and Bulgarian Black Sea resorts, in the Danube Delta, in spa resorts, or in traditional regions.


    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • The Week in Review, 10-15 November 2019

    The Week in Review, 10-15 November 2019

    The right and left face each other in presidential runoff


    On Sunday, November 10, Romanians went to polls in the first round of the presidential election. Out of the 18.2 million voters, 51.19% showed up in polling stations and decided that facing each other in the second round, due on November 24, would be the Liberal candidate, the incumbent president Klaus Iohannis, who got 37.82% of the votes, and the ex-PM and Social Democrat leader Viorica Dancila, who got 22.26%. An outspoken opponent of the Social Democratic Party, which he blames for damaging reforms in the judiciary and economy, Klaus Iohannis warned that a victory is not yet certain, and urged people to come to polls in the runoff as well:



    Klaus Iohannis: “As for the runoff, I call all those who were with me in the street to defend the rule of law to come to polling stations so that your efforts may not be in vain! To those who want hospitals, schools, motorways, I tell you, come to polling stations to remove the Social Democrats from power completely, and to build all these things together! To those who no longer want to see their children and grandchildren leave the country, I tell you, come to polls, because now is the time to change things! And to the many people who are already away, I tell you, come to polls, because now you can make a difference!



    In turn, the Social Democrats chief voiced confidence in her victory:



    Viorica Dancila: “The votes cast today help us to carry on our campaign, a campaign in which we will tell Romanians both what we have achieved so far, and, more importantly, what we intend to do for them once we win the presidential election. Our fight is not against a political party, we dont try to dismantle a political party because democracy means that any party must be allowed to present its view. Our fight will be, as it has been so far, a fight for Romanians, for Romania, for balance and consensus, for unity, for a dignified representation of Romania both in the country and abroad.



    Whereas the turnout in the country in the first round was rather modest, the Romanians living abroad mobilized and went to polls in record numbers, reaching 675,000 people.




    Strategies for the second round of the presidential election


    Although the first day of the campaign for the presidential runoff is November 15, the competition between the 2 candidates started shortly after the first round and is already tougher than ever. The decision taken by President Klaus Iohannis and his campaign staff not to participate in any direct debate with Viorica Dancila is surprising for many people. On Tuesday, the President, who made no secret out of his goal to remove the Social Democrats from power, has written in a post that there can be no debate with a candidate of a party that ruled against the Romanians and which only goes through the motions of democracy. Dancila, who repeatedly asked for a debate ahead of the first election round, has reacted by saying that a debate would help her dismiss all “dirty accusations levelled against her and her party in the past few years. In a press conference on Wednesday, Klaus Iohannis pointed out:



    Klaus Iohannis: “Mrs. Dancila is the representative of an anti-democratic, unreformed party, which has governed against Romanians’ best interests. In the current election campaign, she pretends to be a democratic candidate, expecting due respect from everyone, as if she had been defending Romanian democracy and Romanians all along.



    Viorica Dancila was quick to retort:


    Viorica Dancila: “Mr. Iohannis speaks of a disastrous government. If disastrous government means increasing salaries and pensions, investing in local communities, making Romanian economy second at EU level in terms of growth, then the President is either dishonest or misinformed. Moreover, disastrous governing wouldn’t have been praised by Member States and third-party states for the good handling of the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union.



    The campaign is due to conclude on Saturday, November 23, at 7.00 AM.




    Romanias nominee for Transport Commissioner, approved by the EP


    Adina Valean, designated by Romania for the post of European Commissioner for Transport, Thursday got the green light from the specialist committee in the European Parliament. Her priorities include an environment-friendly, fair and transparent transport network and fewer road accidents, in which respect Romania has the poorest figures in the EU. The president elect of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen will present the full commission and its programme to the European Parliament on November 27.



    A new political crisis in the Republic of Moldova


    The Republic of Moldovas pro-Russian president Igor Dodon Wednesday entrusted one of his advisers, Ion Chicu, with the formation of a new government. The nomination comes after the Cabinet headed by the pro-European PM Maia Sandu was dismissed in a no-confidence vote initiated by Dodons Socialists, although they were part of the ruling coalition. On Thursday the new Cabinet was endorsed by the Moldovan Parliament and shortly after that they were sworn in.


    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)