Radio România Internațional

Tag: quake

September 9, 2023 UPDATE

Drone. The identification by the
Romanian authorities on the Romanian territory, near the border with Ukraine,
of new drone parts similar to those used by the Russian army indicates that an
absolutely unacceptable violation has taken place of the sovereign air space of
NATO member Romania, posing real risks to the security of Romanian citizens
living in the area, said president Klaus Iohannis on Saturday. He again firmly
condemned Russia’s repeated strikes against Ukraine’s population and civilian
infrastructure, including against Ukraine’s Danube river ports, near the border
with Romania. He also said he spoke over the phone on Saturday with NATO
secretary general Jens Stoltenberg, briefing him on the latest developments,
with the latter reiterating full solidarity with Romania. Stoltenberg posted
on social media that there is no indication of Russian intent to hit NATO, but the
strikes are destabilising. The defence ministry in Bucharest announced
that parts of a drone
similar to those used by the Russian army were found on Saturday by Romanian
Navy military in Tulcea county, near the border with Ukraine. These attacks
are unjustified and gravely at odds with the rules of international
humanitarian law, being tantamount to war crimes, the defence ministry has
emphasised.

Finance.
Fitch rating agency affirmed Romania’s government debt rating at BBB-/F3 for
the long and short term hard currency debt and a stable outlook, said the finance
ministry. According to the agency, the decision is supported by the country’s
EU member status and the positive evolution of its GDP per capita. It also
highlights Romania’s stable public debt and the downward trend of the inflation
rate. Fitch also expects Romania’s economy to see a 2.9% growth rate this year
and 3.2% next year, as the country will benefit from considerable European
funds, both as part of the 2021-2027 multiannual financial framework and the
Recovery and Resilience Mechanism. The agency’s decision to affirm Romania
sovereign debt rating and maintain its stable outlook are, according to finance
minister Marcel Boloş, a strong signal that the country is on the right track
and that we have the trust of international investors and partners. The
announcement recognises our continued efforts to keep the budget deficit in
check, support business and promote sustainable economic development, Boloş
also said.

Earthquake. The Romanian authorities
are in close contact with the Moroccan authorities and are ready to provide
assistance, said prime minister Marcel Ciolacu. Thousands of people were killed
and injured in a strong quake that hit Morocco on Friday night, causing huge
damage and wreaking panic in Marrakesh, a popular tourist destination, as well
as in other cities. The quake measured 6.8 on the Richter scale. Sad about the
disaster in Morocco. Our thoughts go out to the families of those who lost
their lives in this tragedy. We wish the injured a speedy recovery, Romanian
president Klaus Iohannis posted on social media. The quake triggered a wave of
solidarity around the world, with many countries, including Israel, offering to
help the Moroccan authorities. Algeria offered to open air space, closed since September
2021, to allow humanitarian flights.

Rowing.
Romania won three medals in Satruday’s finals at the World Rowing Championships
in Belgrade: silver in the women’s four and bronze in the women’s pair and the
women’s lightweight double sculls. Romanian rowers will compete on Sunday in
three more finals: women’s double sculls, men’s eight and women’s eight. Last
year, Romania won four medals at the World Rowing Championships in Racice, in
the Czech Republic. (CM)

9 September 2023
February 5-11

Romanias president at the European Council in Brussels

At the European Council in Brussels, the President of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, welcomed, together with other European leaders, the presence of the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, as further proof of European solidarity and unity and close coordination in support of the Ukrainian people in the face of the war started by the Russian Federation. In this context, the head of state emphasized the importance of maintaining the European support for Ukraine. He highlighted, at the same time, the solidarity showed by Romania, as a neighboring and friendly state, which has contributed both at humanitarian and economic level, as well as in terms of increasing connectivity, facilitating grain transport or supporting Kyivs European aspirations.

Klaus Iohannis also defended the need to keep putting pressure on Russia, including by adopting additional sanctions. In another move, the head of state announced that he will continue the discussions regarding Romanias accession to the Schengen area and said that he would soon travel to Bulgaria, to start a series of joint actions at diplomatic level together with his counterpart.

Klaus Iohannis: “Joining the Schengen area is important to me, to Romania and to the Romanian citizens. I dont want to link the discussion to a specific date, because, as we saw in December, such things cannot be tied to a certain date, because there are many European considerations here. Unfortunately, however, the decisions are also linked to some domestic policy issues in some member states. I believe that this is not good, but its something that cannot be ignored either. I discussed this matter with the president Rumen Radev and yes, we will also take joint action.”

According to the head of state, Romania is not a source of migration and is not a transit country. Klaus Iohannis added, in Brussels, that the problem is a European one and Romania wants to participate in finding the best solutions. He also said that migration and Schengen are to different matters.

Romanian stands by Turkey after the quake

Romania has joined the international teams and sent two search and rescue crews to the areas heavily affected by the earthquakes that hit southern Turkey. There are almost 120 Romanian rescuers on the ground, accompanied by seven specially trained dogs, who have managed to save several victims so far. The head of the Department for Emergency Situations, Raed Arafat, has given assurances that the Romanian rescuers will help Turkey for as long as it takes.

Raed Arafat: “Theyll stay there as long as it takes. If we need to exchange personnel or send logistical support further, this will happen quickly, with the support of our colleagues in the Air Force, in the hope that we will be able to save as many people as possible and, of course, provide the necessary support to the colleagues who are faced with an unprecedented situation”.

Moreover, Bucharest has already approved support for Syria, which was also heavily affected by Mondays earthquakes. Romania will help with materials, clothing and food. In another move, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has repatriated several Romanian citizens who were in Turkey and who requested this after the earthquake. The Romanian Embassy in Ankara announced that it stays in contact with dozens other Romanians in that country.

The second Patriot system for Romania

This week, Romania has received the second Patriot system out of a total of four contracted under the Air Force equipping program. According to the Minister of Defense, Angel Tîlvăr, the Romanian military are taking part in an intensive training program to be able to use these anti-aircraft defense systems. The official has stated that equipping the Air Force with Patriot systems adds “a robust, credible, interoperable and flexible air defense capability, intended to help fulfill the missions of the Romanian Army”.

According to the Ministry of Defense, the latest generation of Patriot systems arrived in Romania for the first time in 2020, and this year the first stage of the equipping program will be completed. The delivery of the next two started last year and their testing and reception should be completed by the end of April. The first system delivered to the Romanian Air Force has performed, since 2021, specific anti-missile defense missions in the airspace of Romania and NATO.

7% key interest rate

After two years of record interest rates and 11 increases, the National Bank of Romania decided, like the other Central Banks in the region, to maintain the key interest rate at 7% per year. The Central Bank has also kept the current levels of the minimum reserve ratios for liabilities in lei and in foreign currency for credit institutions, i.e. those amounts that commercial banks are obliged to hold in the National Bank accounts. The National Banks decisions take place in the context in which the Bank expects the annual inflation rate to decrease faster than previously anticipated. The annual inflation rate fell slightly last December, reaching just over 16%. In addition, the Central Bank expects the indicator to reach a single digit in the third quarter of this year, amid the extension of energy price capping and compensation schemes. (MI)

11 February 2023
December 26, 2018 UPDATE

Justice — The Romanian justice minister Tudorel Toader announced he would finalize, on Thursday, December 27, the procedure for the dismissal of Romania’s prosecutor general Augustin Lazar, which was started in October. Toader accused Lazar of professional and managerial errors and Augustin Lazar took legal action against the justice ministry. The issue is to be judged by the High Court of Cassation and Justice. The opponents of the governing coalition claim that the dismissal of Augustin Lazar, which follows that of the former head of the National Anti-Corruption Directorate, Laura Codruta Kovesi, is a form of political vendetta and an attempt to stop the anti-corruption fight.

Trade statistics — In 2018 as well Romania continued to import more than it exported, show the latest data provided by the National Institute of Statistics. In the first 10 months of the year, the trade balance deficit rose by more than one and a half billion Euros as against the same period of 2017. From January 1st to October 31st exports rose by a little over 9%. At the same time, imports rose by almost 10%. Therefore the trade balance deficit reached almost 12 billion Euros. Around three quarters of Romania’s international trade exchanges were with partner countries from the EU.

Handball — Romania’s national men’s handball team will go to Poland on Thursday to participate in the 4 Nations Cup alongside the teams of Poland, the Czech Republic and Japan. After January 1st Romania’s national team trained by Spanish Manuel Montoya and the former Romanian-born international handballer Eliodor Voica will go on a training camp to Slovakia and then they will participate in a tournament also involving the participation of the host country and the Netherlands. We remind you that the Romanian handballers failed to qualify to the World Championship due next month, which is organized by Germany and Denmark. In exchange, Romania’s national women’s team has already qualified to the World Championships to be held next year in Japan, after in December they ended on 4th place the European Championship hosted by France.

Tourist statistics — Many Romanians wanted to spend the Christmas holidays in rural guesthouses across Romania, where the occupancy rate exceeded 90%. According to data made public by the Romanian Tourism Business Owners’ Federation, the most sought-after destinations in the rural areas were Bran, the area of Sibiu (in the center), Maramures (in the north) and Bukovina (in the northeast). Second in the top of tourist attractions were the spa resorts. Also some Romanians chose to spend the Christmas mini-holiday abroad, opting for city breaks to European countries or for trips to warm climate countries. Many tourists chose the ski resorts from Austria, Bulgaria, Switzerland and France where they also visited the Christmas Fairs. As for exotic destinations, most Romanians chose Dubai, Egypt and Morocco.

Earthquake — A 3.1 magnitude quake took place on Tuesday night in Vrancea region, southeastern Romania, at a depth of 126 kms. The most powerful earthquake of 2018 in Romania measured 5.8 on the Richter scale and occurred on October 28 in the same area. The quake was felt in the capital Bucharest as well. (translation by L. Simion)

26 December 2018
“Earthquake 2018” national exercise comes to an end

“Earthquake 2018” the largest civil protection drill in recent years in Europe, has given the Romanian authorities the chance to test their response capabilities and cooperation in case of a strong earthquake. The decision of choosing Romania was not taken by chance as together with Spain, Italy and Greece, the country is considered one of the most vulnerable EU countries to earthquakes. In the past two centuries Romania has seen 7 earthquakes measuring more than 7 on the Richter scale. The drill brought together all the structures that should intervene in the aftermath of a 7.5 earthquake followed by aftershocks, which would cause numerous victims and would wreak havoc mainly on capital Bucharest.

Rescuers had to deal with difficult situations, with thousand of dead and wounded and people left without homes. The army mounted mobile hospitals and camps for the victims in the villages surrounding Bucharest. State-of-the art mobile hospitals have arrived from Israel, Italy and Norway, including Intensive Care Units, while Austria and Hungary sent in ambulances. According to Raed Arafat, head of the Department for Emergency Situations with the Romanian Interior Ministry, the drill was an investment in the training of rescue services to cope with real crisis situations. The exercise has also revealed a series of shortcomings that must be corrected.

Raed Arafat: “Bureaucratic procedures must be simplified, communications must be improved, the command center better organized and there is going to be a detailed report on that. Then it’s our turn, I mean the Department for Emergency Situations jointly with the Inspectorate to come up with an implementation plan, of course after getting the green light from the Ministry, the Government.”

The exercise was also attended by the EU’s Cypriote Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management, Christos Stylianides, who said he was impressed by the participants and resources deployed. In turn, the representative of the European Civil Protection Module, EU Modex, Bastian Harms, has evaluated positively both the professionalism of the Romanian rescuers and the readiness of the community partners to help Romania in case of a major earthquake. According to Bastian Harms we could never be ready enough to cope with situations like these, which means that we must continue our training at European level to get better at it, and a good example is what happened in Bucharest these days. It is difficult not only to provide assistance, Harms went on to say, but also to receive assistance, because you must be ready for it.

Reports on the results of the exercise are to be made public also by experts from the specialized structures of NATO and the EU.

18 October 2018
March 3, 2018 UPDATE

ELECTION – Over 51 million Italians are expected to cast their votes in Sunday’s general elections. The election campaign was feverish, with heated debates over immigration, security and the country’s struggling economy. Opinion polls have been banned in the past two weeks but analysts believe no party will manage to secure majority. Silvio Berlusconi’s centre-right Forza Italia, that seems to have made a comeback in people’s preferences, the anti-establishment party Five Star Movement and the centre-left Democratic Party, who led the ruling coalition from 2013 to 2018 are the main contenders.

COMMEMORATION — On Sunday Romania marks 41 years since the devastating earthquake of March 4, 1977, the most powerful that has ever hit Romania. Measuring 7.2 degrees on Richters scale, the earthquake killed 1,570 people, most of them in the capital Bucharest, and caused damages worth over $2 billion. Around 230,000 homes were destroyed or seriously damaged and 760 economic facilities became inoperative. The earthquake generated a severe economic and social crisis, which historians say the communist authorities never fully overcame before their demise in 1989. Specialists warn that hundreds of buildings in Bucharest are at risk in case of a powerful earthquake.

CONSULTATIONS – Minister Delegate for European Affairs, Victor Negrescu, has announced that the first stage of public consultations on the topics of interest for Romania’s EU Council Presidency has been completed. According to Negrescu, 500 relevant actors participated in the debates, in a bid to contribute to the preparation of a highly important project for the whole society and came up with a lot of constructive ideas that are to be analysed, in the upcoming period, by the public system representatives. Romania will hold the EU Council Presidency between January 1 and June 30, 2019.

MIGRANTS — Almost 3 thousand illegal migrants were caught at Romania’s western border in 2017. Most of them were from Iraq, Syria, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Libya. The migrants used several methods to get to the border, such as telephone apps to find the shortest route, or the guidance of other people. In most cases, the ones who guided the illegal migrants to the border were legal migrants who have been living in Romania for a long time.

ARMY – Romania’s Defense Minister Mihai Fifor, has announced that around 64 hundred people will be employed in the army, among whom soldiers, physicians and psychologists. Romania, Minister Fifor has said, needs to strengthen its military capabilities in order to continue to be the most important security supplier in the Black Sea. In this context, Mihai Fifor has announced that the procedure for the construction of four multifunctional corvettes has been launched. The minister also said that the winner of the auction would have to build all four corvettes in a Romanian shipyard.

FLU — The number of people who died of flu in Romania since the beginning of the cold season has reached 72, with three more deaths being reported recently. Almost all victims were also suffering from chronic diseases and had not been immunized. Over 800 people are currently being treated for flu. Most of them are in the capital Bucharest, but also in counties like Constanta, Olt, Brasov and Iasi. Health Minister Sorina Pintea says that for the time being we cannot speak about flu epidemic in Romania.

RUGBY — Romania’s national rugby team defeated Russia on Saturday on home turf, 25-15. The match counts towards the third round of the 2018 Rugby Europe International Championship. After losing to Spain in the previous match, Romania needed this win to keep alive its chances of qualifying to the 2019 World Rugby Cup hosted by Japan. The Romanians will also play against Belgium and Georgia on March 10th and 18th respectively.

TENNIS — The Romanian-Dutch team Horia Tecau /Jean Julien Rojer won the doubles’ final of the ATP tournament in Dubai after defeating on Saturday the team made up of Jamie Cerretani of the US and Leander Paes of India, 6-2, 7-6 (2). This is the second consecutive title in Dubai for Tecau and Rojer, seeded 2nd in the competition. For the Romanian tennis player this has been the 52nd doubles’ final of his career, of which he won 34 and lost 18. (Translated by Elena Enache)

3 March 2018
March 3, 2018

CONSULTATIONS – Minister Delegate for European Affairs, Victor Negrescu, has announced that the first stage of public consultations on the topics of interest for Romania’s EU Council Presidency has been completed. According to Negrescu, 500 relevant actors participated in the debates, in a bid to contribute to the preparation of a highly important project for the whole society and came up with a lot of constructive ideas that are to be analyzed, in the upcoming period, by the public system representatives. Romania will hold the EU Council Presidency between January 1 and June 30, 2019.

MIGRANTS — Almost 3 thousand illegal migrants were caught at Romania’s western border in 2017. Most of them were from Iraq, Syria, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Libya. The migrants used several methods to get to the border, such as telephone apps to find the shortest route, or the guidance of other people. In most cases, the ones who guided the illegal migrants to the border were legal migrants who have been living in Romania for a long time.

ARMY – Romania’s Defense Minister Mihai Fifor, has announced that around 64 hundread people will be employed in the army, among whom soldiers, physicians and psychologists. Romania, Minister Fifor has said, needs to strengthen its military capabilities in order to continue to be the most important security supplier in the Black Sea. In this context, Mihai Fifor has announced that the procedure for the construction of four multifunctional corvettes has been launched. The minister also said that the winner of the auction will have to build all four corvettes in a Romanian shipyard.

COMMEMORATION — On Sunday Romania marks 41 years since the devastating earthquake of March 4, 1977, the most powerful that has ever hit Romania. Measuring 7.2 degrees on Richters scale, the earthquake killed 1,570 people, most of them in the capital Bucharest, and caused damages worth over $2 billion. Around 230,000 homes were destroyed or seriously damaged and 760 economic facilities became inoperative. The earthquake generated a severe economic and social crisis, which historians say the communist authorities never fully overcame before their demise in 1989. Specialists warn that hundreds of buildings in Bucharest are at risk in case of a powerful earthquake.

FLU — The number of people who died of flu in Romania since the beginning of the cold season has reached 72, with three more deaths being reported recently. Almost all victims were also suffering from chronic diseases and had not been immunized. Over 800 people are currently being treated for flu. Most of them are in the capital Bucharest, but also in counties like Constanta, Olt, Brasov and Iasi. Health Minister Sorina Pintea says that for the time being we cannot talk about a flu epidemic in Romania.

RUGBY — Romania’s national rugby team are today taking on Russia at home turf in Cluj, northwestern Romania. The match counts towards the third round of the 2018 Rugby Europe International Championship. After losing to Spain in the previous match, Romania needs a win and a bonus point to keep alive its chances of qualifying to the 2019 World Rugby Cup hosted by Japan. Last year in Sochi Romania won 30-10 against Russia. The Romanian team is ranked 16, while Russia is in 20th position. (Translated by Elena Enache)

3 March 2018
November 14, 2017

GDP — In 2017 Romania’s real GDP went up by 2.6% in the third quarter as against the previous quarter, and by 8.8% as compared with the same period last year, according to the National Statistics Institute. In the first nine months this year Romania’s economy grew by 7%. Early this month the National Forecast Commission revised upwards the country’s economic growth prospects for this year, from 5.6% to 6.1%. Also, according to the European Commission, the Romanian economy could go up by 5.3% this year and by 4.2% in 2018. In October the IMF also revised upwards the Romanian economy’s growth estimations for this year, from 4.2% to 5.5%.

CELEBRATION — Romania celebrates today 139 years since the southeastern province of Dobruja was unified with the country. The province had been, up to that point, under Ottoman rule. In 1878, following the Russian-Romanian-Turkish war, the International Peace Congress in Berlin recognised Romania’s independence and the province of Dobruja together with the tiny Snake Island in the Black Sea as part of its territory. Authorities in the counties of Tulcea and Constanta are staging ceremonies to celebrate this historic event.

NO-CONFIDENCE MOTION – The National Liberal Party, the main right wing opposition party in Parliament, is today starting negotiations with representatives of other parliamentary parties to support the no-confidence vote against the coalition government made up of the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats and headed by Mihai Tudose. The Liberal President Ludovic Orban has announced that information campaigns will be organised across the country and protest rallies will be staged in the country and abroad. The Liberals also requested the Ombudsman to challenge the tax reform promoted by the government in the Constitutional Court. Rallies were staged in Bucharest and other cities to protest against the governments new measures and the bills on the amendment of the laws governing the justice system. Both the prime minister Mihai Tudose and the Social Democratic leader Liviu Dragnea said they would not reconsider their planned changes to the tax code, which they say would bring in more revenues to the budget and the pension fund, while also simplifying procedures for businesses.

QUAKE – Iran has declared a day of mourning for the victims of Sunday’s quake. According to the authorities’ latest report, over 450 people lost their lives after the earthquake struck the country near its Iraki border. The US Geological Survey said the epicentre was about 32 kilometers southwest of the city of Halabjah and measured 7.2. On the Iraqi side, the most extensive damage was in the town of Darbandikhan, in the semi-autonomous Kurdistan Region. Iran is prone to near daily quakes as it sits on many major fault lines. In 2003, a 6.6 magnitude destroyed the historic city of Bam, killing 26,000 people.

TENNIS – The Romanian-Dutch pair Horia Tecau and Jean-Julien Rojer today face the Finnish-Australian pair Henri Kontinen and John Peers in their second match at the ATP World Tour Finals in London. In their first match on Sunday, Tecau and Rojer lost to the all-French pair Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut. This is the fifth time Tecau plays in the World Tour Finals doubles after 2011, 2012, 2014 and 2015, the last time he was there winning the title together with Rojer.

FOOTBLALL – The Romanian national football squad today take on the similar team of the Netherlands, in a friendly game in Bucharest. On Thursday, November 9, in the city of Cluj, Romania outclassed the national team of Turkey in a test game, 2-nil. Today’s match is the fourth for the Romanian team with Cosmin Contra as head coach, who replaced in September the German Cristoph Daum.

(Translated by Elena Enache)

14 November 2017
September 8, 2017 UPDATE

UPDATE (21.00):

The Romanian-Dutch pair made up of Horia Tecau and Jean Julien Rojer has won the finals of the men’s doubles of the US open, defeating the all-Spanish pair Feliciano Lopez and Marc Lopez, 6-4 ,6-3. 12th-seeded Tecau and Rojer had previously defeated the first seeds Henri Kontinen of Finland and John Peers of Australia 1-6, 7-6, 7-5. Tecau and Rojer’s opponents came after a 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 win against twins Bob and Mike Bryan of the USA.

Budget – Romanian Finance Minister Ionut Misa announced on Friday a positive budget revision. Misa said that following the economic results reported in the first eight months of the year, the budget structure would take into account a 5.6% economic growth instead of an initial 5.2%. Based on this modification, the budget revision brings more money to the agriculture, health, labour, justice and home affairs ministries and to the Romanian Intelligence Service. On the other hand, the regional development, transport and communication ministries will receive less money due to delays in the execution of EU funded projects.

UKRAINE – Minister for Romanians Worldwide, Andreea Păstîrnac on Friday had a meeting with the Ukrainian Ambassador to Bucharest, Oleksandr Bankov, during which she voiced discontent with the new education law passed in Ukraine. The new law provides for exclusively Ukrainian-language teaching in high-schools and universities, while restricting teaching in the mother tongue in kindergartens and elementary schools. According to Minister Păstîrnac the new law violates the right of the Romanian ethnic community in Ukraine to study in their mother tongue and is against the previous commitment by the Kiev authorities to support education for Romanian ethnics and to strengthen bilateral cooperation in the field of education. Almost half a million Romanian ethnics live in Ukraine, most of them along the common border, on the eastern Romanian territories annexed by the USSR in 1940, following an ultimatum, and taken over in 1991 by Ukraine, as successor state.

Visit – EU Commissioner for Regional Policy Corina Cretu said on Friday in Bucharest that investments in the field of transportation were vital and that the situation was worrisome. She mentioned that one of the topics of her meeting with Transport Minister Razvan Cuc was the project of the subway line connecting the capital Bucharest to Henri Coanda International Airport. This project is particularly important given that Romania will host some of the European Football Championships matches in 2020.

Moldova – Moldovas President, the pro-Russian Igor Dodon, who is also supreme commander of the countrys armed forces, signed a decree on Friday that forbids Moldovan military to take part in any activity abroad, without his consent. Also, Dodon asked the pro-Western Prime Minister Pavel Filip to dismiss the deputy defense minister Gheorghe Galbura and ordered an investigation in trying to find out who was to blame for his previous order, that banned Moldovan soldiers from taking part in military exercises in the neighbouring Ukraine, being disobeyed.

Celebration – Orthodox, Greek Catholic and Catholic believers in Romania celebrated on Friday the birth of St. Mary, the first important celebration of the new liturgical year that started on September 1st. The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary also marks the transition from summer to autumn. Over two million Romanians celebrated their name day on Friday.

Education – Romania ranks third in the EU in terms of school dropout, according to the latest Eurostat report. The highest school dropout rates have been reported in Malta, 19.6%, Spain, 19% and Romania 18.5%. Croatia, Lithuania and Slovenia, on the other hand have the smallest school dropout levels. According to Eurostat, in the past 10 years the school dropout figures have decreased in all member states except from the Czech Republic, Romania and Croatia, where they went up. The target for 2020 is to reduce the school dropout rate in the EU to less than 10%.

Quake – A crisis cell of the Romanian Foreign Ministry (MAE) has been activated after the earthquake in Mexico. Romanian citizens affected by the quake can require consular assistance at Romanias Embassy in Ciudad de Mexico. A 8.1 magnitude quake took place off the southern coast of Mexico late on Thursday, the most powerful such earthquake to hit the country in decades. The quake, which was stronger than the devastating 1985 one that killed thousands, tore through buildings, forced mass evacuations and triggered alerts as far away as Southeast Asia.

(Translated by E. Enache, updated by D. Vijeu)

8 September 2017
March 4, 2017 UPDATE

REPORT – Corruption continues to be one of Romania’s major problems, according to the US Department of State’s Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2016. According to the report, bribe giving and taking continues to be a widespread practice in the public sector, the laws are not always enforced effectively and the officials, including judges, are sometimes corrupt and are not being punished. The report also mentions that the immunity held by former and current ministers, who are also parliament members, has sometimes blocked criminal investigations. The report denounces discrimination against the Rroma minority, prison overcrowding and the media politicisation. Politicians and political groups own or control indirectly numerous national or local press groups and the news often reflect the owners’ political convictions, the reports also reveals.

QUAKE — Romania commemorated on saturday 40 years since the devastating quake of March 4, 1977, measuring 7.2 degrees on the Richter scale, that killed 1,570 people. The quake also caused material damage worth over 2 billion dollars. About 230 thousand homes were seriously damaged and 760 economic units became unfunctional. The earthquake generated an economic and social crisis that, according to historians, the communist dictatorship of that time was unable to overcome. Experts have warned that hundreds of buildings risk collapsing in the capital Bucharest in case of an earthquake of an equal magnitude.

PNL – The National Coordination Council of the right-of-centre National Liberal Party, the main opposition party in Romania, on Saturday decided on the roadmap, procedures and manner of electing its president. Although many Liberals favoured the idea of the partzzy president to be elected directly, by all party members, this will only be the prerogative of the delegates at the Congress due in June. Until then, Raluca Turcan will continue to be the party’s interim president, after being validated by most members. So far, former ministers Ludovic Orban and Catalin Predoius have voiced their intention to run for party president, after Alina Gorghiu resigned this position following the defeat in the parliamentary elections.

JUSTICE — Romania’s new justice minister, Tudorel Toader, announced that in about six weeks he would present the Government a draft law that would modify the criminal law in keeping with the Constitutional Court’s decisions. In an interview on Radio Romania, the minister said the law would be debated and adopted in Parliament. Tudorel Toader was appointed at the helm of the justice ministry in February, following the serious political crisis triggered by the government’s attempt to change the criminal laws through emergency decrees.

TENNIS — The team made up of the Romanian Horia Tecau and the Dutch Jean-Julien Rojer won on Saturday the men’s doubles final of the Dubai tournament with 2.4 million dollars in prize money. Tecau and Rojer defeated the Indian-Polish tem Rohan Bopanna/Marcin Matkowski, in three sets 4-6, 6-3, 10-3. Horia Tecau has so far won 30 ATO tournaments in men’s doubles and lost 17 finals. The Romanian won 13 titles together with Jean-Julien Rojer.

RUGBY – Romania’s rugby team on Saturday defeated Russia away from home, 30-10. The match played in Sochi and counts for the third round of Rugby Europe Championship. In the first game, the Oaks lost 38-41 to Germany, and then they defeated Spain, 13-3. Romania’s next fixtures are the match against Belgium away from home on March 11 and the home game against Georgia, scheduled for March 19.

WOMEN’S HANDBALL – European champions CSM Bucharest qualified to the Champions League’s quarterfinals after defeating on Friday evening, on home turf, the Slovenian team Krim Ljubljana, 28-26. In the last match of the group CSM Bucharest will be up against the Danish team Ebsjerg. Most probably, the Romanian team’s opponent in the quarterfinals will be the Macedonian side Vardar Skopje.

(Translated by Elena Enache)

4 March 2017
February 8, 2017 UPDATE

CENSURE MOTION – The first censure motion filed by the National Liberal Party and the Save Romania Union, in opposition, against the sitting coalition Government made up of the Social Democratic Party (PSD) and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats (ALDE), was rejected by the Romanian Parliament in a plenary session held on Wednesday. 161 yeas and 8 nays were registered. At least 233 votes were needed for the motion to be adopted. PSD, ALDE and the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania abstained from voting. The motion titled the Grindeanu Government-Government of national defiance. Do not legalise theft in Romania was tabled last week and read out on Monday, in a plenary session of Parliament. The initiators of the motion called on the Social Democratic Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu to assume responsibility for the error of adopting the emergency decree amending the Criminal Codes and of drawing up a pardon bill. Also, the signatories to the motion called on the cabinet to resign, accusing it of having committed institutional abuse. We recall that the adoption of the emergency decree amending the criminal law, later repealed, triggered wide-scale protests across Romania and among the Romanian communities living abroad.

CONSTITUTIONAL COURT – Romanias Constitutional Court on Wednesday ruled there is no legal constitutional conflict between the state powers following the adoption by the Government of an emergency decree amending the Criminal Codes. The Court drew that conclusion after having discussed the requests made by the countrys president, Klaus Iohannis, and the head of the Higher Council of Magistracy, Mariana Ghena. Earlier, the Government had rescinded the emergency decree and had announced it temporarily abandoned the idea of amending the Criminal Codes. On Tuesday, President Iohannis attended a plenary session of Parliament, calling on the left wing Government to come up with solutions to the crisis it generated by adopting the emergency decree amending the Criminal Codes.

PROTESTS – Protests against the Government continued in Bucharest and other cities across the country, for the ninth day in a row, against the backdrop of changes being brought to the criminal law. The protesters, who gathered in a lower number than in the previous days, called for the resignation of the left-wing Government. The largest number of protesters was registered on Sunday, when half a million people protested in Bucharest and other big cities across the country and abroad, against an emergency decree amending the Criminal Codes, even though the emergency decree had been rescinded earlier on that day. Also on Wednesday, President Klaus Iohannis tried to start a dialogue with the protesters calling for his resignation in front of the Cotroceni Palace. It is for the fourth day that people gather near the offices of the Presidential Administration to back the Grindeanu Government.

EXCLUSION – The Department for Judges with the Higher Council of Magistracy, CSM, on Wednesday decided to exclude judge Camelia Bogdan from magistracy. Camelia Bogdan is the judge who, back in 2014, sentenced tycoon Dan Voiculescu to 10 years in prison in the case of the fraudulent privatisation of the Food Research Institute (ICA) in Bucharest. CSMs ruling is not final and can be appealed at the High Court of Cassation and Justice. Judge Camelia Bogdan is accused of committing the disciplinary offence of violating the legal provisions on incompatibilities and interdictions regarding judges and prosecutors. She was accused of attending a specialisation course in Romania, sponsored by the Agriculture Ministry, which was a damaged party in the ICA case, at the time.

JOINT DRILLS – The 500 US ground troops to be deployed in Europe, who left Poland on Monday, heading for Romania, are being stationed these days at the Mihail Kogalniceanu air base in Constanta county, in the south-east of Romania, a communiqué issued by the Romanian Defence Ministry shows. The American soldiers of the Fighting Eagles Battalion 1 will participate in joint drills alongside Romanian soldiers, as part of the US commitment to ensure the security of NATOs eastern flank, a component of the Atlantic Resolve Operation.

QUAKE – An earthquake measuring 5 degrees on Richters scale rocked Romania at 17:08:20 local time, on Wednesday, according to the National Institute for Earth Physics. The tremor, with the epicentre in Buzau County, eastern Romania, was felt in Bucharest, too. This is the second quake registered on the same day, after a first tremor measuring 4.2 degrees, with the epicentre in Vrancea County, in the east, rocked Romania at 11:52:06. The quake registered on Wednesday at 5.08 PM is the most powerful this year.

WEATHER – It is getting colder in Romania, particularly in the south-eastern half of the country. It will snow lightly in the south, south-east and the mountains. Rain and sleet are reported in the west and the centre. Gale force wind is reported, in places, in the south and south-east and on mountain crests. The highs will range between minus 8 and plus 7 degrees Celsius. (Translated by D. Vijeu)

8 February 2017
August 27, 2016

ITALY QUAKE – A day of national mourning has begun in Italy for those over 290 people who died when a powerful earthquake hit the country’s mountainous central regions. Country officlas will attend state funerals in the regional capital, Ascoli Piceno, for 50 of the victims from the town of Arquata. No survivors have been found since Thursday. Italian authorities say they will continue to search until they are certain everyone is accounted for. Over 1,000 aftershocks have been reported and many of the buildings still standing risk collapsing, which makes rescue operations even more difficult. Most victims were Italian, but several foreigners were among those killed, including 10 Romanians. Also, 16 Romanians are reported missing. A consular team from Bucharest travels today to the affected areas to support the Romanian diplomatic missions in Rome and Bologna, the Romanian Foreign Ministry announced.

GOVERNMENT – Romanian Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos has met today in Suceava, north-eastern Romania, with his Polish counterpart, Beata Szydlo. After the meeting, PM Ciolos has said that the relations between Romania and Poland are very intense and that there are excellent premises for them to be strengthened. The two officials tackled bilateral ties in the context of the Strategic Partnership between the two countries, and also topics on the European agenda, such as Brexit’s impact on the EU, the EU budget and the revision of the Multiannual Financial Framework. Also approached was cooperation in the field of defense and the developments at the EU’s eastern border. The two officials will also have a meeting with representatives of the Polish community in Romania.

MOLDOVA – Romania reaffirms its full support for Moldova’s bid for the European Union and the process of democratic reforms and modernisation of the state, in keeping with the expectations of the neighbouring country, the Romanian Foreign Ministry said in a release on Saturday. Chisinau marks today 25 years since gaining its independence. Ceremonies devoted to this event will be more modest than in previous years, due to the economic crisis the country is going through. On August 27, 1991 the Republic of Moldova proclaimed its independence from the USSR. Romania was the first country to recognise Moldova’s independence.

CELEBRATION – Romania marks today one hundred years since the country entered WWI. At the end of this war, on December 1st, 1918, the process of setting up the Romanian unitary nation state was finalized, following the union of all Romanian provinces with a majority Romanian-speaking population previously included in the neighbouring multinational empires. On August 27, 1916, Romania declared war on Austro-Hungary and the army crossed the Carpathians to Transylvania, which at the time was part of the Kingdom of Hungary. Over 330 thousand soldiers died in this war and as many as 76 thousand were crippled. Ceremonies devoted to this day are held in Fundata, in central Romania, where the first Romanian officer was killed, but also in Curtea de Arges, at the tomb of King Ferdinand. On this occasion, the Romanian Royal House conveyed a message that reiterates the role that King Ferdinand played in Romania’s participation in WWI and the setting up the Romanian unitary nation state.

TENNIS – The Romanian-Indian team made up of Monica Niculescu and Sania Mirza, WTA’s seed no. 2 in women’s doubles, defeated on Friday night the Slovenian team Andreja Klepac and Katarina Srebotnik in the semi-finals of the tennis tournament in New Haven, the US, with 695,900 dollars in prize money. In the final, Niculescu and Mirza will be up against Katerina Bondarenko of Ukraine and Chia-Jung Chuang of Taiwan. The US Open, the last grand slam of the year, kicks off on Monday. Niculescu, seed no. 57, will play against the Czech Barbora Strycova, seed no. 19. In the first round of the competition, Romanian Simona Halep, no. 5 in the world, will play against Belgian Kirsten Flipkens WTA’s 68th seed, while another Romanian, Irina Begu , seeded 22nd, will be up against Ukrainian Lesia Tsurenko, seed no. 80. In the same competition, Romanian Patricia Maria Tig, seed no. 129 will be up against Laura Siegemund of Germany, while Ana Bogdan, seed no. 117, will play in the first round against another Romanian, Sorana Cirstea, WTA’s 88th seed.

(Translated by Elena Enache)

27 August 2016