Radio România Internațional

Tag: Romanian diaspora

December 22, 2022

REVOLUTION
– Events commemorating the anti-communist revolution of 1989 continue today in
Romania. Religious ceremonies and laying of flowers will be held in all major
cities across Romania. December 22, 1989 was the day when tens of thousands of
people took to the streets and forced dictator Nicolae Ceaușescu to flee the
country in a helicopter that took off from the building of the former Central
Committee. The revolution that toppled the communist regime broke out in the
capital city on December 21 with a huge rally staged by Nicolae Ceaușescu, who
thus hoped to appease the population and stay in power. The rally turned
violent and the memory of the heroes who were killed that day was honored
yesterday by means of ceremonies and laying of flowers in emblematic venues.
President Klaus Iohannis paid a floral tribute at the roadside cross in
University Square, also observing a moment of silence. We recall the spark that
ignited the 1989 anti-communist revolution was lit in Timișoara, western
Romania. The revolution quickly spread to Bucharest and other cities. Overall,
1,000 people were killed and some 3,000 wounded in clashes with the security
forces. Romania is the only country in Eastern Europe where the transition from
communism resulted in bloodshed.

VISIT -
The Romanian delegation comprising Prime Minister Nicolae Ciucă and Chamber of
Deputies speaker, Marcel Ciolacu, continues its visit to South Korea. Romania
seeks to develop major economic projects jointly with Korean businesses in key
fields such as transports, energy, defense, IT, ITNs( IT and Network Solutions)
and semi-conductors. In fact, more Korean corporations have invested in the
American project designed to develop modular reactors, which Romania is
expected to implement in a few years. The defense industry will be the focus of
today’s talks, after yesterday the officials discussed energy-related topics.
The two Romanian officials will also meet with the leadership of two companies,
Hanwha Aerospace, which offers defense solutions, and Hyundai Rotem,
specializing in the manufacturing of rolling stock, military equipment and
plant engineering. Yesterday, during their meeting with Prime Minister Han
Duck-soo in Seoul, the two officials exchanged views regarding ways of managing
the situation generated by the Russian aggression in Ukraine, regional security
and NATO’s cooperation with South Korea. Also yesterday, Marcel Ciolacu and
Nicolae Ciucă met with representatives of the Romanian community in South
Korea. The Romanian Prime Minister expressed his appreciation for the way
Romanians have succeeded in integrating in Korean society, while at the same
time preserving their Romanian identity, culture and values. On Friday, the
Romanian delegation, which comprises several ministers, will visit the
demilitarized zone separating South Korea from North Korea.

WAR IN
UKRAINE – Support for Ukraine is not an act of charity, but an investment
in global security and democracy, Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky said
in a speech before the US Congress. The Kyiv leader also called for maintaining
support for Ukraine. Washington is by far Ukraine’s most important weapons
supplier, and American equipment delivered to Ukraine, such as Javelin
anti-tank systems or HIMARS missile launchers, have been instrumental in
repelling Russian attacks. On this occasion, the United States have promised a
new assistance package worth 1.85 billion USD, which includes an anti-air
missile system, requested by Ukraine a while ago, considering that cities and
infrastructure are constantly targeted by Russian shelling. During his meeting
with president Joe Biden, Volodymyr Zelensky said it will take more Patriot
systems to fend off Russian attacks. Zelensky’s surprise visit to Washington occurred
300 days since the start of Russia’s invasion, and was his first visit abroad
since the start of the war on February 24.

DIASPORA
– Over December 22-23, Bucharest is hosting the conference titled Romania
beyond the borders, organized by the Alliance for the Union of Romanians
(AUR). The meeting with representatives of Romanian communities abroad is
designed to identify clear-cut and realistic solutions to some of the problems
facing the Romanian diaspora today. The conference will put up for debate a few
of the most important measures and decisions Romania needs to take with respect
to Romanians living abroad: boosting the number of polling stations abroad to
provide Romanians with real chances of casting their vote, providing
unconditional protection to every Romanian citizens abroad, introducing
dedicated classes of Romanian language, culture and history addressing children
and young people living abroad by cooperating with Bucharest authorities and
host countries, as well as making more consular staff available and providing
them with special training. Other measures include simplifying proceedings for
unlocking activities in Romania’s representative offices abroad or opening
community centers in the Diaspora that should hire qualified staff to provide
legal and administrative counseling. (VP)

22 December 2022
September 8, 2019 UPDATE

SCHOOL YEAR – Over 2.8 million school and
pre-school children start a new school year on Monday, together with over
215,000 teaching staff. As regards schoolbooks, interim Education Minister
Daniel Breaz said textbooks will be ready in time, with the exception of those
for 6th and 7th
graders. Over half of the number of schools don’t have fire safety certificates
at present, according to inspections carried out by the General Inspectorate
for Emergency Situations. A large number of schools don’t have health safety
permits either.

TALKS – Teheran must fully cooperate
with international inspectors, director general of the International Agency for
Atomic Energy, Cornel Feruta, said on Sunday upon his visit to Iran. He pointed
out these interactions entail the full and timely cooperation of Teheran.
During his meetings with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, the
chief of the Iranian Nuclear Agency Ali Akbar Salehi and other high-ranking
officials, Cornel Feruta was informed
about Iran’s latest efforts to intensify the development and research of
enhanced uranium. Talks follow after Saturday Teheran announced Iran would be
using two new centrifuge models to boost its uranium enrichment. This is the
third stage as part of Teheran’s commitment to the 2015 nuclear deal signed in
Vienna. The US withdrew from the deal in 2018, reinstating harsh sanctions on
Iran.

DIASPORA – Two events devoted to
Romanians in the Diaspora and in historic regions came to a close on Sunday.
The debate titled Diaspora, Romanians in historic communities and the
ReUnification goal was organized by the Commission for Communities of
Romanians outside the country’s borders and the Romanian World Council. MP
Constantin Codreanu, the Commission chairman, said that Romanian Diaspora has
played a vital role in the development of the country in the last 30 years. The
Romanian World Council is an NGO militating for the rebirth of nationalism,
preserving national identity and rebuilding the unity of the Romanian people.
Also on Sunday the Forum for Romanians Worldwide came to an end. The event
brought together 120 representatives of Romanians living in the diaspora and in
historic regions. The topics focused on education, project financing
opportunities, tourism, consular services and the vote abroad.

FEAST DAY – Orthodox, Eastern Catholic
and Roman-Catholic Christians in Romania on Sunday celebrated the Nativity of
the Blessed Virgin Mary. Over 2 million Romanians celebrated their name day on
this occasion.

NEGOTIATIONS – US President Donald Trump
announced he would end peace negotiations with the Taliban in Afghanistan,
although Washington had announced an agreement was soon to be closed after 18
years of conflict. The White House leader made the announcement after the
latest attack in Kabul which killed and American soldier. Trump also said he
cancelled Sunday’s secret meeting he was supposed to have with the Afghan president
and the Taliban leadership. Thursday’s attack in Kabul claimed by the Taliban
also killed two Romanians.

TENNIS – Romanian-born Canadian tennis
player Bianca Andreescu won her first Grand Slam title after defeating Serena
Williams of the United States in the US Open final on Saturday. Andreescu had
an excellent year in the WTA circuit, winning the Indian Wells, Toronto and US
Open tournaments. As of Monday, she will be ranked 5 in the WTA standings,
outranking Romania’s Simona Halep. This was the 10th US Open final
for Serena Williams, who matched the performance previously held by another
American, Chris Evert.

TABLE TENNIS – Romania’s national women’s
table tennis team on Sunday defeated Portugal 3-nil in the European
Championship final hosted by Nantes, France. On Saturday, in the semi-finals,
Romania defeated Poland 3-1, while Portugal defeated Hungary 3-1. The Romanian
men’s team failed to advance to the quarterfinals after losing to Sweden in its
last Group 2 fixture.

(Translated by V. Palcu)

8 September 2019
August 19, 2018 UPDATE

PROTEST – On Sunday, the
Romanian Interior Minister held a press conference concerning the events that
occurred during the anti-Government protest on August 10th in
Bucharest. Carmen Dan apologized to all those who suffered, both civilians and
military. The Interior Minister said that she had received the report on the
events and voiced her availability to present the data before Parliament.
According to the minister, 21 criminal records have been opened, 3 people have
been arrested and 2 have been placed under judicial control. As regards the
tear gas used, Carmen Dan said that the substances used are authorized, have
certificates of conformity and are sold by authorized manufacturers. She also
explained the gendarmes’ violence with the fact that the peaceful protesters
did not disassociated themselves from the violent ones. Until Sunday night, the
Army Prosecutor’s Office in Bucharest had registered approximately 300 criminal
complaints against gendarmes, filed by participants in the protest. 130 people
have been heard so far. Army prosecutors have initiated criminal proceedings
for abusive behavior and professional misconduct in relation to the
intervention of the gendarme forces during the protest. Ionel Corbu, Chief
Prosecutor of the Army Prosecutor’s Office with the Bucharest Military
Tribunal, has stated that the aggression displayed was not justified, as there
were other means that could have been used instead.

ITALY – The search
operation for those missing after the Morandi motorway bridge collapsed in
Genoa ended overnight after the last bodies were found, bringing the official
death toll to 43. Two of the dead are Romanian citizens. We recall that a
200-meter section of the bridge gave away in busy traffic on Tuesday, plunging
vehicles, concrete and twisted metal to the ground, 50 metres below. The
viaduct was part of the A10 motorway and was managed by the private operator
Autostrade per l’Italia. The Italian
government blames Autostrade for the disaster, though the company denies any
negligence on its part. On Friday, the Government launched a procedure to
revoke the concession agreements with
Autostrade, which allow the latter to operate toll roads.

DIASPORA – The Romanians who
live and work abroad and spent their summer holidays in the country are now
going back to work, so border crossing points, especially in the west of the
country, are extremely crowded. Official data show that, in the past few days,
the Romanian border has been crossed by more than 1,300,000 people, both
Romanian and foreign citizens. In another development, Romanian police and its
foreign partners discovered some 20,000 people reported in the Schengen
Information System or wanted by INTERPOL in the first six months of the year.
Also, more than 400 wanted by the Romanian authorities at international level
were brought to the country, and more than 360 people wanted by Romania’s
international partners were handed over to the countries wanting them.

CYBER ATTACK – The Romanian
Intelligence Service has announced that it possesses intelligence according to
which large-scale cyber attacks were perpetrated against financial institutions
in Romania in the June-August 2018 period. The American banks too had received
warnings from the FBI that certain hackers were prepared to attack ATMs and
payment processing devices. The Romanian Intelligence Service has stated that
the hackers use several attack methods, including the Cobalt Strike arsenal,
associated with a cyber-crime group in Eastern Europe.

TALKS – The German chancellor
Angela Merkel and the Russian President Vladimir Putin have made no real
progress with the talks regarding the conflicts in Syria and Ukraine, the relations with
Iran and the North Stream 2 gas pipeline, the issues that the two officials
discussed on Saturday night, Reuters reports. The two leaders met in a formal
bilateral meeting for the first time since the annexation of Crimea by Russia.
After the talks, the Kremlin spokesperson Dmitri Peksov told the press that no
agreement was reached following the discussions held at the Meseberg castle, north
of Berlin. He stated that both Merkel and Putin believed the North Stream 2
project was purely commercial, despite opposition from both the US and Ukraine.
The pipeline should be rendered operational in late 2019, and would supply Europe
with Russian natural gas, going round Ukraine. This project, initiated by
Moscow, is being implemented despite the EU’s energy strategy to reduce the
dependence on gas imported from Russia.

TENNIS – The Romanian tennis
player Simona Halep, world’s no.1, has qualified for the final of the WTA
tournament in Cincinnati, Ohio, with approximately 3 million dollars in prize
money, after defeating on Friday 6-3, 6-4 Arina Sabalenka of Belarus. The
Romanian player, who is the tournament’s first seed, will play the final match
against the Dutch Kiki Bertens, no 17 in the WTA rankings. To Simona, the
Cincinnati final will be the 33rd in her career, whose record
includes 18 titles won so far. In another move, the pair made up of the
Romanian Horia Tecau and the Dutch Jean-Julien Rojer failed to qualify for the
final of the doubles competition of the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 in
Cincinnati. They were defeated on Saturday by the British-Brazilian pair Jamie
Murray – Bruno Soares.

19 August 2018
July 29, 2017 UPDATE

DIASPORA
– Prime Minister Mihai Tudose has decided to grant the Romanian Minister for
Romanians Abroad more prerogatives to act so that no Romanian citizen abroad is
discriminated against. Governmental sources have stated for Radio Romania that
the Prime Minister will meet with the Spanish Ambassador to Bucharest Ramiro
Fernandez Bachiller and the Romanian Minister Adreea Pastarnac for talks on
this matter. On Friday, the Association of Romanians in Europe called on the
Prime Minister to take urgent measures to protect the Romanians who are working
abroad and are abused. This week alone, authorities in Spain and Italy have
discovered thousands of Romanians exploited by employers in those countries.

ROMANIAN ARMY– Romania’s Higher Defense Council will convene in Bucharest
on Tuesday to discuss the plan for equipping the Romanian army in the 2017 -
2026 period. The plan was built taking into account the commitment that all
political parties made in 2015 to allocate 2% of the GDP to defense, for a
period of ten years, starting this year. We recall that the latest meeting of
the Defense Council was held on July 4th, when the Plan was removed from the
agenda of talks, because of a lack of political consensus on the matter.

NATIONAL ANTHEM DAY– Garrisons across the country and theatres of operations
abroad celebrated on Saturday Romania’s National Anthem Day. In a message
conveyed on this occasion, Romania’s President Klaus Iohannis says that the
national anthem, titled ‘Awaken, thee, Romanian!’ symbolizes the efforts
made by Romanians to build a strong and prosperous country. The anthem became
official in 1990, but it was sung for the first time during the revolution of
1848 and then in crucial moments in Romania’s history, during the first and the
second world wars, the War of Independence and the Great Union of 1918. The
value of this anthem is embedded in the Constitution of Romania, alongside the
national flag, emblem and seal, Klaus Iohannis has also said. He has called on
all Romanians to honor this national symbol and to sing it with pride, as a
gesture of solidarity and a means of affirming their national identity, unity
and patriotism. Romanian embassies, consulates and cultural institutes abroad
also held events occasioned by National Anthem Day, alongside other events
aimed at promoting Romanian traditions and culture.

ROMANIAN PARLIAMENT – The permanent bureau of the Romanian Chamber
of Deputies will convene next week to discuss the request for an extraordinary
parliamentary session on August 2-4. Recently, the Social Democrat Prime
Minister Mihai Tudose has stated that a special parliamentary session is needed
to endorse the passing of ELCEN, a producer of electricity, under the
subordination of the Bucharest municipality. The leader of the opposition
National Liberal Party Ludovic Orban has stated that, if the meeting is held,
he will also ask for the hearing of Finance Minister Ionut Misa on the budget
implementation in the first six months of the
year, which, according to the liberals, has been catastrophic.

INCIDENT– Romania’s decision to deny access to its airspace for a
plane which had the Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitri Rogozin on board was a
provocation, which put passengers in danger and which will seriously affect
bilateral relations, warns the Russian Foreign Ministry, which has presented a
protest note and has called for explanations. The Romanian National Defense
Minister Adrian Tutuianu has termed as ‘inappropriate’ the Russian official’s
reaction. We recall that on Friday, the regular flight Moscow – Chisinau was
denied access to Romania’s air space as on board the plane there was a person
on the list of people subject to EU sanctions. The plane eventually landed in
the capital of Belarus, Minsk. Dmitri Rogozin was supposed to meet on Friday
with the president of the Republic of Moldova Igor Dodon and with the leader of
the separatist regime in Transdniestr, Vadim Krasnoselski.

NORTH KOREA– The Romanian Foreign Ministry has firmly
condemned the latest ballistic test conducted by North Korea. In a communiqué
issued on Saturday, the Romanian diplomacy describes the action as a fresh
escalation of tension in the Korean Peninsula and a major threat to global
peace. The Romanian Foreign Ministry calls again on the Pyongyang regime to observe
the international regulations in force and to take concrete measures to
denuclearize the Korean Peninsula, completely and irreversibly. Previously, the
EU had too condemned the latest missile test conducted by North Korea,
describing it as a threat to world peace and security. The ballistic missile
launched by North Korea flew 45 minutes and landed in the Japanese waters, 200
miles from the country’s coast line.

PASSEX– The Ukrainian Naval Forces are these days taking
part in PASSEX drills in the Black Sea, alongside ships from NATO member
countries: Great Britain, Turkey and Romania. The drills are carried out by the
Ukrainian frigate ‘Hatman Sahaidacini’, the British destroyer ‘Duncan’, the
Turkish frigate ‘Yildirim’ and the Romanian frigate ‘Regele Ferdinand’ (King
Ferdinand). These drills are aimed at improving the participants’
interoperability. Ukraine and NATO set up a partnership in 1991, shortly after
Kiev won its independence from the former Soviet Union. Ukraine cooperates
closely with the Alliance and plays and active part in NATO’s Partnership for
Peace program.

29 July 2017
21 July, 2017

MOLDOVA – The
Moldovan Prime Minister Pavel Filip has thanked Romania for the constant
support this country has provided to the Republic of Moldova, a former Soviet
state with a predominantly Romanian-speaking population. He made the statement
after meeting in Chisinau his Romanian counterpart Mihai Tudose, with whom he
discussed means of boosting bilateral cooperation. The agenda of the Romanian
PM’s visit does not include a meeting with the pro-Russia socialist president
Igor Dodon. The visit to Chisinau is Tudose’s second official visit as prime
minister after his investiture in mid June. Last week he paid a visit to
Brussels, where he told EU officials that Romania bears a huge responsibility
with regard to safeguarding Moldova’s pro-European path.

SABER GUARDIAN 17
– In a communiqué issued on Friday, the Romanian Defense Ministry has announced
that Saber Guardian 17, the largest military exercise ever held in Romania has
reached its end. Saber Guardian 17 unfolded simultaneously on Romanian, Bulgarian
and Hungarian soil, following a fictional scenario involving the participation
of 25,000 military and some 3,000 pieces of equipment, including 90
fire-fighters and carriers. According to the scenario, they carried out
operations to free part of a territory occupied by a hostile force. Previously,
the Foreign Ministry too had hailed Romania’s hosting this exercise led by the
US Army Europe, saying the exercise was firm evidence of solidarity and
confirmation of the strength of the trans-Atlantic alliance and of the
strategic partnership between Romania and the US, which started 20 years ago.

ROMANIAN DIASPORA
– The Romanian Government has changed the procedure of granting
non-reimbursable funding for activities carried out by Romanians outside the
country’s borders. According to the Government, besides improving and rendering
the funding system more flexible, funds will also be available for projects
that are aimed at maintaining the ties between Romanians in the Diaspora and
the mother land and at promoting their interests. The Minister Delegate for
Romanians Abroad Andreea Pastarnac has stated that the bill changes provisions
that have been in place for 11 years, and which now meet the expectations of
the Romanian communities abroad . She has also announced the
launch of an information campaign, for the Romanians who want to work, study
and live abroad, called Informed at home, safe in the world!. The campaign
will start next month and is aimed at bringing to the attention of all
stakeholders their rights, but also the risks they are faced with, when taking
the decision to work abroad.

EARTHQUAKE – The
Romanian Foreign Ministry has announced that there have been no Romanian
citizens requesting assistance in the aftermath of the earthquake that shattered
the south-west of Turkey on Friday morning. The Romanian Embassy in Athens and
the General Consulate in Izmir have called on the local authorities to provide
them with information regarding the consequences of the earthquakes and
potential Romanian victims. The quake, measuring 6.7 on the Richter scale was
felt especially in the city of Bodrum and in the neighboring Greek islands in
the Aegean sea and claimed at least two lives.

FOOTBALL – The
Romanian football squad Astra Giurgiu has qualified for Europa League’s third
preliminary round, after ending 0-0 the match against the Azerbaijani team Zira
FK, the decisive leg of the second round. In the first leg, on home turf, in
southern Romania, Astra had won 3-1. Next week, Astra Giurgiu will take on the
Ukrainian team FK Oleksandria. Also in the third preliminary round of Europa
League, CS Universitatea Craiova will play against the famous AC Milan, and
Dinamo Bucharest will take on Athletic Bilbao. In the Champions League, the new
holder of the national title, FC Viitorul Constanta, will play against APOEL
Nicosia, and vice-champion FCSB (former Steaua Bucharest) will meet the Czechs
from FC Viktoria Plzen.

21 July 2017
November 6, 2016 UPDATE

Road accident. Prosecutors have started a criminal
investigation to establish the people responsible for the most serious multiple
car accident ever to occur in Romania, in which four people were killed and
dozens injured on Saturday morning on the Bucharest-Constanta motorway.
Starting on Monday, all vehicles involved in the crash will undergo a technical
examination. Of the 44 people taken to hospital on Saturday, 24 are still
undergoing treatment, the health ministry has announced.

NATO. NATO Deputy Secretary General Rose Gottemoeller meets Romanian
president Klaus Iohannis in Bucharest on Monday and the country’s foreign
minister Lazar Comanescu and defence minister Mihnea Motoc. On Tuesday, she
will have talks with high representatives from nine allied states in Central
and Eastern Europe, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Lithuania,
Latvia, Poland, Romania and Slovakia, who are attending a regional meeting.
Rose Gottemoeller is the first woman to serve as NATO Deputy Secretary General. Before taking up this
post, she served as
Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security for the
U.S. State Department.

Trade. A centre for dialogue and cooperation in
the field of energy will be established next year in Bucharest, the Romanian
prime minister Dacian Ciolos said in the Latvian capital Riga at a meeting of
heads of government from Central and Eastern Europe and China. The Chinese
prime minister Li Keqiang
made a number of proposals to expand cooperation with the states in the region.
Romania is interested in continuing trade exchanges with China, said Romania’s
prime minister, adding that his government is waiting for the Chinese side to
give concrete signals with regard to the access of Romanian agri-food products
on the Chinese market. This would involve the development and diversification
of the export of meet and meet products, given that only one single Romanian
producer is present on the Chinese market at the moment. Romania is also
interested in developing its relationship with China in the area of tourism and
there is an opportunity in the near future to introduce charter flights between
Bucharest and China, prime minister Dacian Ciolos also said.

Diaspora. The pilot stage of a project entitled Digital
Diaspora – A Partnership for Building Efficient and Transparent Cooperation has
been launched in Madrid in the presence of the minister delegate for relations
with Romanians abroad, Maria Ligor. The project’s main goal is to improve the
quality and efficiency of digital communication between diplomatic missions and
Romanian communities abroad. In its pilot stage, the project will be
implemented in five Romanian diplomatic missions and will include training
courses given by digital communication experts aimed at identifying the
problems and opportunities in the area of online communication with respect to
the Romanian diaspora and find specific solutions to address and tap into them,
respectively. The project’s pilot stage comes to an end in October 2017 and is
carried out at Romania’s diplomatic missions in Spain, Italy, Belgium, Canada
and Australia.

Football. The
Romanian football side meet on Monday in Bucharest to prepare their Friday home
match against Poland as part of the 2018 World Cup preliminaries. In their
first three Group E matches, Romania defeated Armenia 5-nil in Yerevan and drew
against Montenegro and Kazakstan. Montenegro and Poland top the group with 7
points each, followed by Romania in the third place with 5 points. Romania
started their World Cup qualifying run with their first ever foreign manager,
the former German player turned professional coach Christoph Daum.

6 November 2016
November 6, 2016

Chain collision. According to the latest toll, four people
were killed and almost 60 injured in a chain collision caused by fog that
occurred on Saturday morning on the motorway linking Bucharest to the Black Sea
port of Constanta, in the south-east. More than 20 of the people injured,
including 7 in serious condition, are still undergoing treatment at hospitals
in Bucharest. Around 30 vehicles, including 2 buses, were involved in the
collision.

Trade expansion. A centre for dialogue and cooperation in
the field of energy will be established next year in Bucharest, the Romanian
prime minister Dacian Ciolos said in the Latvian capital Riga at a meeting of
heads of government from Central and Eastern Europe and China. The Chinese
prime minister Li Keqiang
made a number of proposals to expand cooperation with the states in the region.
Romania is interested in continuing trade exchanges with China, said Romania’s
prime minister, adding that his government is waiting for the Chinese side to
give concrete signals with regard to the access of Romanian agri-food products
on the Chinese market. This would involve the development and diversification
of the export of meet and meet products, given that only one single Romanian
producer is present on the Chinese market at the moment. Romania is also
interested in developing its relationship with China in the area of tourism and
there is an opportunity in the near future to introduce charter flights between
Bucharest and China, prime minister Dacian Ciolos also said.

Diaspora. The pilot stage of a project entitled Digital
Diaspora – A Partnership for Building Efficient and Transparent Cooperation has
been launched in Madrid in the presence of the minister delegate for relations
with Romanians abroad, Maria Ligor. The project’s main goal is to improve the
quality and efficiency of digital communication between diplomatic missions and
Romanian communities abroad. In its pilot stage, the project will be
implemented in five Romanian diplomatic missions and will include training
courses given by digital communication experts aimed at identifying the
problems and opportunities in the area of online communication with respect to
the Romanian diaspora and find specific solutions to address and tap into them,
respectively. The project’s pilot stage comes to an end in October 2017 and is
carried out at Romania’s diplomatic missions in Spain, Italy, Belgium, Canada
and Australia.

Bulgaria elections. Bulgarian voters are today electing
their president from among 21 candidates who are in the race. Parliament
speaker Tsetska
Tsacheva, the candidate of the ruling Bulgaria, and the candidate of the Socialist opposition and
former Bulgarian Air Force commander, general Rumen Radev, are the
favourites. According to opinion polls, Tsacheva may win the first
round, but lose in the second to Radev, who has campaigned for closer
ties with Russia. Radio Romania’s correspondent in Sofia notes that the
presidential elections are seen as a vote of confidence for prime minister Boyko Borisov who promised to
resign if his candidate doesn’t have the highest score in the first round.
Alongside the presidential elections, a referendum is also held on a number of
electoral changes, which has been largely ignored by the politicians and the
media during the election campaign.

Handball. The Romanian men’s handball team today face
Poland in qualifying Group 2 ahead of the European Championships of 2018. In
their first match, Romania defeated Belarus 26:23. Their group also includes
Serbia. In other news from handball, the Romanian champions and Champions
League titleholders CSM Bucharest on Friday in Budapest lost to the Hungarian
side Gyor, 33:25. This is CSM’s third consecutive defeat in the Champions
League preliminary groups. CSM now have only 2 points from their only win so
far, against the Russian side Rostov Don and are on the third position in the
group, after Gyor and Rostov and ahead of the Danish side Midtjylland. The
three best-ranked teams in each group advance to the main round.

6 November 2016
October 9, 2016 UPDATE

HOLOCAUST
MEMORIAL On Sunday, the National Commemoration Day of the Holocaust victims in
Romania, the Romanian Foreign Ministry paid homage to the memory of the victims
of the Holocaust and voiced solidarity with the survivors of the tragic events
that occurred during the Second World War. Also, the Foreign Ministry
reaffirmed its commitment to the fight against anti-Semitism and any other form
of racism, xenophobia, discrimination and intolerance. 75
years ago, on October 9th, Marshal Ion Antonescu, an ally to Nazi Germany,
started the deportation of Jews from Eastern Romania to the occupied Soviet
territories, an action that, according
to statistics, killed more than 250,000 people. Only 10% of the deported
returned home. The Holocaust was recognized by the Romanian authorities in
2004, on the basis of conclusions formulated by a commission headed by the
winner of the Nobel Peace Prize Elie Wiesel. The Jews and the Roma who died
during the Holocaust will be commemorated on Monday at the Victims’ Memorial in
Bucharest. The ceremonies will be attended by representatives of the Romanian
presidency, the Government, the
Diplomatic Corps, civil society, as well as survivors of the Holocaust.

STATE VISIT On
Monday, the president of Slovakia, Andrej Kiska, is paying a formal 2-day visit
to Romania, at the invitation of his counterpart Klaus Iohannis. According to a
communiqué issued by the Romanian Presidency, the main goal of the visit is to
boost bilateral relations, at political, economic and sectoral level, as well as to enhance cooperation on current
European issues. As Slovakia is currently holding the six month presidency of
the EU Council, the talks will mainly focus on the European agenda, and
president Iohannis will present Romania’s vision regarding the future of
Europe. On Tuesday, the two heads of state will open the Romania – Slovakia
bilateral business forum and will meet in Nadlac, in the west of the country,
with representatives of the Slovak community in Romania.

RATING Standard&Poors
rating agency has reconfirmed the rating regarding Romania’s long and short
term government debt, in national and hard currencies, namely BBB – /A-3, with
stable prospects. According to a communiqué issued by the Finance Ministry in
Bucharest, this confirmation is based on the economic results registered by
Romania lately, a moderate debt, as well as good prospects for further economic
growth. The low level of interest rates and the oil price have contributed to
an economic growth rate of 3.8% in 2015, and 5.2% in the first half of 2016,
which is the fastest growth in the whole of the EU. The line minister Anca
Dragu has stated that this economic growth has been accompanied by the creation
of new jobs, a low inflation rate and also a low external deficit.

GovITHub The first edition of
the digital marathon GovITHub ended at the Government headquarters in Bucharest
on Sunday. For two days, over 100 young
IT professionals developed programmes aimed at increasing the quality of public
services and improving citizen’s relation with state institutions. The list of
projects included an application with the help of which Romanians in the Diaspora can learn more and
faster about what is happening in the country, and applications such as the one
that allows citizens to report abuses committed by drivers.

DIASPORA Slatina and Apsa de
Jos in Ukraine have these days hosted the first meetings of the Romanian
cultural associations in the neighboring country. The event was organized by
the Department of Romanians Around the World with the Romanian Foreign
Ministry. The participants have talked about the issues facing Romanian
communities in Ukraine and several partnership agreements have been signed with
cultural associations in the country. There are approximately 500,000 ethnic
Romanians living 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.

HURRICANE Haiti has declared three days of
national mourning, as of Sunday, for the 900 victims of hurricane Matthew.
Also, the first cases of cholera have been confirmed in the Caribbean state. A
Romanian officer with the General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations will
head the team that will assess the damage caused by the hurricane. At the same
time, colonel Marius Dogean will coordinate the international assistance,
including the aid for the affected population. He was designated by the
European Commission as head of the EU Civil Protection Team, which will travel
to Haiti. Colonel Dogean worked in Jordan in 2012 during the crisis triggered
by the massive inflow of refugees from Syria, and also in 2013, in the
Philippines, after the catastrophic passing of typhoon Hayian. Also, he was a
national expert posted for EC assessment missions in South Sudan.

FOOTBALL Romania’s national
football team is in Astana, where on Tuesday it will take on the team of
Kazakhstan, in the preliminaries of the 2018 world Cup hosted by Russia. On
Saturday, Romania defeated Armenia 5-nil, also away from home. In the same
group E, Poland won 3-2 the game against Denmark, and Montenegro defeated
Kazakhstan 5-nil. Now Romania ranks first, with 4 points, just like Montenegro
and Poland. Last month, the match
between Romania and Montenegro ended in a draw, 1-1. That was the debut match
for the German Cristoph Daum, the first foreign coach to head Romania’s team as
of this fall. Also at home, Romania will take on Poland, on November 11th.

9 October 2016
October 8, 2016

VISIT– Slovak President, Andrej Kiska, will pay a two-day state visit to Romania, as of Monday, at the invitation of his Romanian counterpart, Klaus Iohannis. According to a communiqué issued by the Romanian Presidential Administration, the main aim of the visit is to consolidate bilateral ties, at political, economic and sectoral level and to boost cooperation on European issues of topical interest, in a context marked by many challenges. Given that Slovakia is currently holding the half-yearly presidency of the EU Council, the talks will mainly focus on the European agenda, and President Iohannis will present Romanias stance on the future of Europe- the aforementioned source also says. Iohannis will also underline the need to further strengthen economic cooperation, starting from the historical record high of two-way trade exchanges reported in 2015, worth 2.4 billion Euros, which is on the rise. On Tuesday, the two presidents will open the Romanian-Slovak Business Forum and will meet, in the western town of Nadlac, with representatives of the Slokav community in Romania.

ROMANIAN DIASPORA – The town of Slatina in the western Ukrainian region of Transcarpathia (a.k.a. Zakarpattia) is today hosting the first meeting of the Romanian cultural associations in Ukraine. Initiated by the Dacia Union of the Romanians living in Transcarpathia, jointly with the Department for the Romanian Diaspora with the Romanian Foreign Ministry, the meeting is devoted to the problems encountered by these organisations in their activity, particularly financing. Almost half a million ethnic Romanians are living in the neighbouring state of Ukraine, most of them residing in localities along the common border, in the Romanian eastern territories annexed by the former USSR in 1940, following an ultimatum, and taken over by Ukraine in 1991, as a successor state.

COLECTIV TRAGEDY – Approximately one year after tragedy struck the Bucharest-based Colectiv nightclub, justice takes its course, with a trial being opened into the case. 64 people died and over 100 others got injured in the fire which accidentally broke out on the night of October 30 to 31, 2015. The three owners of the club are accused of manslaughter, bodily harm and of not taking the legal work health and safety measures. The indictment compiled by the Prosecutor Generals Office shows, among others, that they encouraged and permitted the access of a large number of people, far beyond the allowed limit, in the absence of emergency exit ways, also accepting the organisation of an indoor pyrotechnical show, in spite of improper insulation. The owners of the pyrotechnical company, one of their employees and two legal persons are being tried in the same case. The huge collective emotion produced by the Colectiv tragedy generated massive anti-corruption rallies in Romania, which led to the resignation of the coalition cabinet led by Social-Democrat Victor Ponta, on November 4, and its replacement by the technocratic government led by Dacian Ciolos.

PARTY LEADER – The National Council of the National Liberal Party, the second largest party in the Romanian Parliament on Saturday confirmed Alina Gorghiu as the Liberals only president, following the resignation tendered by Vasile Blaga from the position of party co-president. On September 28, Blaga stepped down, after anti-corruption prosecutors announced he was subject to legal restrictions pending trial in a corruption case. The acts of corruption were reportedly carried out in the 2009-2012 period, when Blaga was interior minister and later on Senate Speaker, and he favoured the preferential granting of contracts. In exchange for this influence peddling, he would have received commissions worth 10% of the value of contracts, that is 700,000 Euros for himself and the party he was a member of, the Liberal Democratic Party, which later merged with the National Liberal Party.

HURRICANE MATTHEW – A Romanian officer from the General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations will lead the team which will assess the damage produced by hurricane Matthew in Haiti. Colonel Marius Dogean will also coordinate international assistance, including aid relief operations to the disaster-affected population. Boasting an extensive experience in the field of civil protection, with a career spanning over 15 years, Marius Dogean was designated by the European Commission head of the EU Civil Protection Team which will go to that Caribbean island, where approximately 900 were killed by the hurricane. Colonel Dogean also travelled to and worked extensively in Jordan, in 2012, during the crisis caused by the massive flow of refugees from Syria, and a year later in the Philippines, following Typhoon Hayian. He was also one of the national experts dispatched by the European Commission to the conflict area in Southern Sudan, on an assessment mission.

FOOTBALL Romanias national football squad will take on Armenia this evening in an away fixture counting towards the World Cup preliminaries in 2018. In the same group, E, Poland take on Denmark and Montenegro face Kazakhstan. Three days after the match in Yerevan, Romania face Kazakhstan, also away from home. Last month the national team were held to a 1-all draw by Montenegro on home turf, in what counts as the debut game for the newly appointed manager of the national team, the German Christoph Daum, the first foreign manager to have been appointed at the helm of the national team. This autumn, Romania also takes on Poland on home turf, on November 11th. (Translated by D. Vijeu)

8 October 2016
September 27

NATIONAL DEFENCE –Romania’s Supreme Defence Council, chaired by President Klaus Iohannis, convenes today in Bucharest. The agenda of the meeting covers such topics as the implementation of the decisions made at the NATO Summit in Warsaw, the latest developments in the Middle East and the implications for Romania and the main measures which are necessary to eliminate threats to national security caused by a massive flow of migrants and to maintain the public order and safety climate. Other topics on the agenda are the situation of those active in the defence industry, the evaluation of cyber security in public institutions in Romania, setting up and rendering operational the multinational brigade for developing and consolidating essential elements of the advanced allied presence as well as the state of the public healthcare system in Romania.

ROMANIAN DIASPORA — Romania has been included in the top 20 of countries with the largest diapora, with some 3.4 million Romanian citizens living in a foreign country, a UN report based on figures released in 2015 shows. According to the UN World Migration Report, this is the second largest increase in a country’s diapora, 7.3% per year, and the highest increase in the number of migrants from a country which hasn’t faced war. Ranking first in terms of this increase is Syria, with 13.1%, and ranking third is Poland with 5.1%. At European level, it is for the first time that Romania has gone up to the 4th position, in terms of the total number of citizens who live abroad, following the UK, Poland and Germany. The Romanian diaspora accounts for 17% of Romania’s population, which stands at approximately 20 million people, according to the latest census, carried out in 2014.

WASHINGTON — The two candidates to the US presidency, Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican Donald Trump, have confirmed the major split in their views over security and economic issues, in the first of the three televised debates held ahead of the presidential elections of November 8. Their dialogue was based mainly on plans regarding the economy, the taxation system and foreign policy. They contradicted each other on the role the US should play on the international stage and mutually contested each other’s capacity to lead the country. The only common point was the determination to fight terrorism, pundits note. The debate ended with the Democratic candidate’s urge to the population to go to the polls and with the Republican’s candidate pledge to support her, in case she wins the elections. According to Bloomberg, the first reactions on the financial markets are indicative of the fact that investors consider that Hillary Clinton is the winner of the debate.

REP OF MOLDOVA — The EU Commissioner Johannes Hahn has announced in Chisinau that the EU will conditionally resume the financial assistance to the Republic of Moldova, a former Soviet state with a majority Romanian speaking population. Brussels is waiting for concrete results in the fight against corruption, in reforming the audio-visual and completing the investigation into the banking system fraud in the Republic of Moldova. EU’s further granting European financial support depends on Moldova’s signing an agreement with the IMF. In July, Moldova reached an agreement with the IMF, on a 170 million dollar loan. Later on, Romania’s Government unblocked and released the first tranche of a 150 million Euro loan. In another move, Commissioner Johannes Hahn has expressed hope that the presidential election of October 30 will be held in a democratic way, observing the national and international laws in the field.

FEAST OF MUSIC — RadiRo Festival, organised by Radio Romania, continues today with a concert given by the Leipzig Radio Symphony Orchestra, which will perform pieces by Rachmaninoff and Schumann. Yesterday, the National Radio Orchestra under the baton of Cristian Macelaru and with cellist Razvan Suma as soloist received standing ovations. Another success was scored by the Radio Academic Choir and the Radio Children’s Choir, which performed Carl Orffs “Carmina Burana”, one of the best-known works of the last century. The festival, organised by Radio Romania, comes to an end on Saturday, October 1, and the concerts will also be aired live in the European Broadcasting Union network and the Asia-Pacific platform of public and private radio broadcasters. Now in its third edition, RadiRo is the only big European festival devoted exclusively to radio orchestras.

TENNIS – Romanian tennis player, Simona Halep, WTA no.5, will meet Kazakh Yaroslava Shvedova (WTA no. 41) in the eighth finals of the Wuhan Open in China, with approximately 2.5 million dollars in prize money up for grabs. Today Shvedova defeated Italian Roberta Vinci (WTA no.15), in the second round of the competition. Halep is fourth seeded in the Wuhan Open, after Angelique Kerber (WTA no.1), Garbine Muguruza (WTA no.3) and Agnieszka Radwanska (WTA no.4). (Translated by D. Vijeu)

27 September 2016
September 12, 2016

A NEW SCHOOL YEAR — Education and not corruption should mark the way to success in Romania, said Romania’s President, Klaus Iohannis, during the ceremonies occasioned by the start of a new school year. He has made public one of his wishes for Romania, in his capacity as head of state, namely a society upholding real values. This prompted him to launch the project “Educated Romania”, focussing on a different type of education, adapted to the needs of society. In turn, PM Dacian Ciolos says the Romanian education system should bring a change of perspective and let pupils room to express themselves and to learn to be responsible. He urged pupils to take confidence in their own forces and not to simply chase high grades and “empty titles, depleted of any content”, which do not bring them any progress at personal level. Over 3 million pupils have today started a new school year.

ROMANIAN-FRENCH TIES — French President, François Hollande, is paying a state visit to Romania. On Tuesday, he will be received in Bucharest by his Romanian counterpart, Klaus Iohannis. The two high officials will approach issues on the bilateral as well as the European agenda, following Great Britain’s decision to leave the community block. François Hollande and Klaus Iohannis will also visit the Research Centre in Magurele, near Bucharest. Agreements in the field of education and research will be signed with the two presidents in attendance. They will also participate in the Economic Forum” Future French-Romanian Partnerships”. Romania counts on a boost in the bilateral economic relations, France being Romania’s fourth largest trading partner and the fifth largest investor. According to the French Presidency, François Hollande, will attend the inauguration of an Airbus helicopter factory in Brasov, central Romania. The Romanian authorities intend to boost the Strategic Partnership between the two countries, after in June, the French and Romanian prime ministers revised and signed the roadmap. We recall that Romania, a Francophone and Francophile country was the first southeast European state to strike a Strategic Partnership with France, in 2008. The Partnership was signed in Bucharest by the then presidents, Nicolas Sarkozy and Traian Basescu.

ROMANIAN DIASPORA — The minister delegate for the relation with the Romanian Diaspora, Maria Ligor, has met with members of the Romanian community in Canada, where she underlined the importance of voting by mail. The Romanian official has presented the measures that have already been taken and are considered for implementation in the ensuing period of time, which are aimed at enhancing professionalism, transparency and efficiency of the Department of Policies for the Relation with the Romanian Diaspora. Talks also laid emphasis on the high interest for cooperation in such domains as tertiary education, business, promotion of Romanian artists, substantiating and evaluating the consequences of public policies on Romanian communities living outside the country’s borders. Maria Ligor has also met with the Canadian Minister of Immigration, Citizenship and Refugees, John McCallum, together with whom she approached ways to boost bilateral cooperation, including a visa waiver for Romanian citizens and boosting cooperation between the EU and Canada.

ROMANIAN CARRIERS — Romanian carriers are today running at low speed on ring roads across the country, again, in protest against the high mandatory liability insurance premiums. They protested every Monday in recent times, and in the absence of a measure taken by the government, they will stage a big rally at national level on September 15. Meanwhile, the government has made public its decision to change the laws on mandatory liability insurances. According to a draft emergency ordinance that has been launched for public debate by the Finance Ministry, contracts can also be signed for a period ranging from one month to one year and the payment can also be made in instalments. Furthermore, the beneficiary can request the termination of the contract. A ceiling will be introduced for the level of premiums, with the Financial Surveillance Authority being allowed to change them.

REDUNDACIES — Some 850 employees of the Hunedoara Energy Compound in western Romania will be laid off, under a restructuring program which takes effect as of today. Trade unions have made public their decision to give up on the planned protests after reaching an agreement with the company management on Friday and signing a Collective Employment Agreement, which stipulates, among others, the rights of those to be made redundant. The management has announced the restructuring program will not impact labour productivity and will allow for continuing activity in the following years. Collective layoffs do not solve the problems that have long been outstanding at the Hunedoara Energy Compound, the more so as the company’s debts to the state budget and to its suppliers exceed some 330 million Euros. Furthermore, nothing has been done in the past three years to render the activity more efficient.

SYRIA — The nationwide ceasefire agreement in Syria, negotiated by the US and Russia, is to come into effect today, after a weekend marked by heavy air strikes, which took some 100 lives, among civilians. The agreement has been negotiated by US Secretary of State, John Kerry, and Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, and provides for a nationwide ceasefire, improved humanitarian access and joint military actions against Islamist groups such as the Islamic State and the former AL-Nusrah Front, affiliated to Al Qaeda. Many Syrian rebel groups have shown reservation towards the planned peace deal, saying it only strengthens the regime in Damascus and increases the suffering of the people, the BBC and FP report. The regime of Bashar al-Assad and his allies have announced they will abide by the ceasefire.

TENNIS — Romanian tennis player, Simona Halep, continues to be ranked as world no.5 in the WTA rankings made public today, whereas German Angelique Kerber becomes the new no.1 in tennis. Romanian Irina Begu ranks 23rd, Monica Niculescu 55th and Sorana Carstea 89th. (Translated by Diana Vijeu)

12 September 2016
The Congress of the Romanians Around the World

Bucharest last week played host to the first Congress of the Romanians Around the World. 49 delegates from 13 countries have voted for a council to represent the Romanian communities in the Diaspora and in the historical Romanian regions around the country. Participants have spoken about the unity of the Diaspora for the benefit of the Romanian citizens and have called for authorities’ support for the preservation of national identity.

The authorities in Bucharest have conveyed a message to the representatives of the Romanians around the world that they have a significant contribution to Romania’s image abroad and that their voice will also be heard in the Romanian Parliament. It is in Romania’s best interest to have active and strong communities abroad and for this reason the Romanian Diaspora will have in the authorities a reliable partner for finding solutions to the problems that these communities are currently facing, the Congress panelists have also said.

The Romanians in the Diaspora have also talked about restoring their trust in the authorities, about unity and cooperation in the interest of the citizens outside Romania’s borders; they have also mentioned their accomplishments and the problems they are facing at present. From Cernauti, in Western Ukraine, Iurie Levcic has pulled the alarm about the danger of denationalization, by closing down schools with tuition in Romania.

Iurie Levcic: “Ukraine hasn’t opened a university or a faculty for the teaching stuff yet. The Romanian schools in Ukraine are passing through a major crisis right now. The Ukrainian state hasn’t done anything so far to build or open in Cernauti at least one kindergarten with tuition in Romanian.”

Svetlana Captari of the Republic of Moldova has called for support for identity preservation through language and culture. The Romanians in the Timoc Valley, in eastern Serbia, are also fighting for the preservation of Romanian language. They have also pleaded for support for gaining Romanian citizenship. Staging courses of Romanian, consular facilities, libraries, setting up a Diaspora museum are among the requests made by the participants in the Congress of the Romanians Around the World. The participants have also voted for the leading structures of the Council of the Romanians Around the World. The 49 delegates have elected pastor Marius Livanu, currently living in Italy, as president of the council. Livanu said he would fight for the unity of the Diaspora.

Marius Livanu: “I don’t want any competition between north and south, between those living on the other side of the Atlantic or here, those in Italy and in other parts of the world. We are all Romanians living abroad and we must work for the benefit of all Romanians.”

Tommy Tomescu of Britain has been elected vice-president, while Savic Alexander of Serbia as secretary general. The status and regulations for the functioning of this body have also been established.

(Translated by Daniel Bilt)

27 June 2016
June 25, 2016 UPDATE

ROMANIANS IN THE UK – The minister for the relation with the Romanian Diaspora, Dan Stoenescu, has assured the Romanians in Great Britain that there is no imminent change in their situation and nothing will change in the interaction between the two states in the ensuing period of time. He underlined that, during the forthcoming negotiations, Romania will take into consideration several elements, among which: the social dimension and the impact this referendum will have on the rights and freedoms of Romanian citizens, economic and trade-related issues, the possible effects on Romanian exports as well as indirect effects on the European economy. Romania will be holding the presidency of the EU Council in 2019 and will have a say in the Brexit process, Stoenescu went on to say. He urged the Romanians willing to leave the country to work abroad to carefully analyse each offer and to accept a job based on an employment contract with clearly set out terms.

LONDON- Representatives of the six EU founding member states met in Berlin on Saturday, following the Britons’ decision to leave the European community block. The foreign ministers of Germany, France, Italy, Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands discussed the process of implementing the necessary procedures entailed by Brexit and said the negotiations should start as soon as possible. After the Berlin meeting, French foreign minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said the decision to leave the EU is the choice of Britons, but the perfect Europe that we all dream of, with all the necessary changes and improvements, should be kept alive. In Brussels, the president of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, accepted the resignation tendered by the British Commissioner for Financial Stability, Jonathan Hill, and announced he would offer the portfolio to vice-president Valdis Dombrovskis. According to the EU Treaties, a country can nominate only one commissioner for a portfolio in the commission, and president Juncker expressed openness to discuss with the British Prime Minister about a new nomination and about allotting another portfolio in the European Commission. In another move, Scottish Prime Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, expressed her wish to start immediate talks with Brussels in order to “protect Scotland’s place in the European Union”, following Great Britain’s decision to leave the European community block.

EXCHANGE RATE– In Bucharest, the national currency, the leu, has lost ground against the Euro, which stands at 4.53 lei, the National Bank of Romania announced on Saturday. The impact is lower than expected, against the backdrop of turmoil on financial markets, following Brexit, economic analysts say. The depreciation of the leu against the dollar is considerably higher, a dollar being traded for 4.70 lei. The result of the British referendum has also led to an increase in the ROBOR index, which is used to calculate interest rates for credits in lei, with a three-month maturity. The reference index stands at 0.85, as compared to a constant level of 0.75 in the past months.

PRIZE– Romanian translator Constantin Geambasu grabbed the most prestigious Polish prize for making Polish literature better known abroad- Transatlantyk. The jury appreciated the 45 year-long activity carried out by professor Constantin Geambasu, from the Bucharest University. Constantin Geambasu, a Polish studies expert, has translated over 50 volumes from the Polish language. Thanks to him, Romanians can now read, in their own language, the books by three Polish winners of the Nobel Prize for literature.

ROMANIANS AROUND THE WORLD — Reverend Marius Livanu of Italy on Saturday was elected president of the Council of the Romanians Around the World. He received the vote of the delegates of the Diaspora and historical communities gathered in Bucharest for a first congress. Marius Livanu said the role of a president is to unite people and therefore he will fight to achieve the unity of the Diaspora. Savici Alexander of Serbia was elected Secretary General. The participants elected the six vice-presidents of the Council, who will represent the Diapora and the historical communities in the relation with the Romanian authorities.

ARREST – Relu Fenechiu, former transport minister, and Ion Krech, former director with the Justice Ministry, on Friday evening got temporarily arrested for 30 days. The ruling is not final. Fenechiu is accused of influence peddling and money laundering, after he reportedly received 620,000 Euros, between 2012 and 2014, from a software company, that is a 15% quota from two contracts promoted by the Justice Ministry. (Translated by Diana Vijeu )

25 June 2016
June 25, 2016

ROMANIANS IN THE UK – The minister for the relation with the Romanian Diaspora, Dan Stoenescu, has assured the Romanians in Great Britain that there is no imminent change in their situation and nothing will change in the interaction between the two states in the ensuing period of time. He underlined that, during the forthcoming negotiations, Romania will take into consideration several elements, among which: the social dimension and the impact this referendum will have on the rights and freedoms of Romanian citizens, economic and trade-related issues, the possible effects on Romanian exports as well as indirect effects on the European economy. Romania will be holding the presidency of the EU Council in 2019 and will have a say in the Brexit process, Stoenescu went on to say. He urged the Romanians willing to leave the country to work abroad to carefully analyse each offer and to accept a job based on an employment contract with clearly set out terms.

LONDON– Representatives of the six EU founding member states have today met in Berlin, following the Britons decision to leave the European community block. The foreign ministers of Germany, France, Italy, Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands are discussing the process and the speed at which the Brexit enforcement procedures will unfold. Ahead of the meeting, German foreign minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said its of utmost importance to stay calm. Following Great Britains decision to leave the EU, we cant go into recession or enter a period of inactivity, the German official said. The UKs possible financial costs generated by the decision to leave the European Union have repeatedly been underlined and warnings to that end have been issued. Moody’s rating agency claims that Great Britain is facing a long period of uncertainty, accompanied by plummeting confidence and a decrease in investments which might lead to a decrease of the economic growth rate. The agency downgraded the current AA1 rating prospects for governmental bonds. The Eurogroup president has said a restricted access to the EU is the price Great Britain should pay, and Brexit might prompt some companies to leave the City of London, the BBC correspondents report. The leaders of the EU founding states will meet to discuss Great Britains separation from the union. The first meeting, without British representation, will be held on Wednesday.

EXCHANGE RATE– In Bucharest, the national currency, the leu, has lost ground against the Euro, which stands at 4.53 lei, the National Bank of Romania announced on Saturday. The impact is lower than expected, against the backdrop of turmoil on financial markets, following Brexit, economic analysts say. The depreciation of the leu against the dollar is considerably higher, a dollar being traded for 4.70 lei. The result of the British referendum has also led to an increase in the ROBOR index, which is used to calculate interest rates for credits in lei, with a three-month maturity. The reference index stands at 0.85, as compared to a constant level of 0.75 in the past months.

ARREST – Relu Fenechiu, former transport minister, and Ion Krech, former director with the Justice Ministry, on Friday evening got temporarily arrested for 30 days. The ruling is not final. Fenechiu is accused of influence peddling and money laundering, after he reportedly received 620,000 Euros, between 2012 and 2014, from a software company, that is a 15% quota from two contracts promoted by the Justice Ministry.

REYKJAVIK – A historian with no experience in the domain of public administration, Gudni Johannesson, might become the new president of Iceland, following todays presidential election. The Icelanders will elect a new president, to replace Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson who has held this position since 1996. The election comes at a time of growing disappointment over the political elite, against the backdrop of the “Panama Papers disclosures on certain politicians who own accounts involving off-shore companies. Prime Minister Sigmundur Davís Gunnlaugsson had to step down, following the scandal, the BBC correspondents report.

FOOTBALL– Three matches are being played today in the eighth finals of the European Football Championships underway in France: Switzerland-Poland in Saint-Etienne, Wales- Northern Ireland in Paris and Croatia – Portugal, in Lens. This is the first edition in the history of the European Football Championships with 24 teams playing in the group stage.

(Translated by Diana Vijeu )

25 June 2016
June 24, 2016 UPDATE

LONDON — Prime Minister David Cameron on Friday announced plans to step down by October further to Britain’s vote to leave the EU. According to the final results of Thursday’s referendum, 51.9% of the British citizens voted against their country staying in the EU. The voter turnout was over 72%. The referendum revealed major regional differences, with both Scotland and Northern Ireland having voted to stay within the Union, while England and Wales preferred to leave. The UK vote risks encouraging similar referendums in other EU member countries. In the Netherlands, anti-immigration leader Geert Wilders has already called for a similar vote in his country, and so did in Italy and France the far-right parties Northern League and National Front, respectively. Paris has called on Europe to move to regain the confidence of its citizens. Berlin spoke about a sad day for Europe and for the UK, and is to host on Saturday a meeting of the ambassadors of the 6 EU founding member states. In Brussels, the EU’s leaders called on London to start the exit procedure as soon as possible. The President of the European Council Donald Tusk said the Union was determined to keep its unity as a 27-member bloc. The head of the European Parliament Martin Schulz announced a special meeting of Parliament on Tuesday. President Barack Obama said the US respects Great Britain’s decision to leave the EU. He said the special relationship between Washington and London will continue and added that both the EU and Great Britain remain the US’ partners. In turn, president Vladimir Putin said London’s decision to leave the community block will also impact Russia. Putin said that, if need be, Moscow will change its economic policy, to reduce to a minimum the effects produced by Brexit.

ROMANIAN REACTIONS TO BREXIT — Romania regrets the UK vote to leave the EU, but respects it, the Romanian President Klaus Iohannis said on Friday after talks with PM Dacian Cioloş, the central bank governor, Mugur Isarescu, and the leaders of Romanian political parties. The PM emphasised that Brexit will not have a great impact on the Romanian economy and it will be managed without major problems. The National Bank Governor said the impact on the national currency is small and manageable, while local political leaders say Romania’s path is within the Union, alongside the other member states. The EU is a highly valuable project, and it must carry on, said President Iohannis. He added that in the negotiations preceding the actual separation, Romania will do its best to protect the Romanians who work and live in that country. Klaus Iohannis also pointed out that UK will remain an important partner for Romania, but it will not have a privileged status compared to the EU. Not least, the President pleaded for redefining the European project, so that it might be easier to understand by and more beneficial to its citizens. The leaders of the political parties say the European project must continue, with Romania being part of the process, and Bucharest should maintain and develop the strategic partnership with Great Britain.

CEASE-FIRE DEAL- The Romanian Foreign Ministry hails the signing, in Havana, on June 23rd, of the Agreement between the Columbian Government and the rebel group FARC, on a final cessation of fire, the laying down of weapons, security guarantees and the fight against criminal organisations. According to a press release issued on Friday, the Romanian Foreign Ministry says the document is a “crucial step” forward, towards the signing of a final peace agreement, meant to put an end to a conflict which spanned over five decades, and will open a new chapter in Columbia’s history. The conflict took a toll of over 220,000 lives, with tens of thousands of people reported missing, and caused a huge humanitarian crisis.

ROMANIANS AROUND THE WORLD — Bucharest is hosting on Friday and Saturday the first Congress of Romanian Diaspora, attended by forty-five delegations from 13 countries. On the first day, the participants also approached the issue of the Diaspora’s unity, to serve the interest of the Romanian citizens and called for the Romanian authorities’ support to help preserve national identity. For two days, the talks will mainly focus on the problems faced by the Romanian communities abroad. The agenda also includes talks on the establishment of new cultural institutions for the diaspora, to promote national culture among the Romanian communities in Romania’s neighbouring countries.

CELEBRATION — The Universal Day of the Romanian Blouse was celebrated on Friday in the main cities across the country with exhibitions, fairs, and conferences on the present and future of one of the elements of Romania’s national culture. The Universal Day of the Romanian Blouse was initiated by the online community “La Blouse Roumaine” in 2013 and grew into a global event, celebrated in over 50 countries. It is marked in cities like Washington, New York, Los Angeles, Toronto, Paris, London, Madrid, Amsterdam, Milan and Vienna.

NIGHT OF CULTURAL INSTITUTES — Bucharest is hosting tonight the 10th White Night of Cultural Institutes, in which institutions like the British Council, Goethe Institut, Cervantes Institute, the French Institute and the Romanian Cultural Institute are taking part. Fifteen cultural entities organise more than 50 events in 12 venues. The agenda includes concerts, film screenings, sculpture and photography exhibitions. The White Night of Cultural Institutes is a project of the network of EU National Cultural Institutes, and is organised with support from the Representative office of the European Commission in Romania.

TENNIS — The Wimbledon draw was made available on Friday. Romania’s Simona Halep (WTA’s no.5) will be playing Anna Schmiedlova (Slovakia), in the first round, Irina Begu (WTA’s no.27) will be facing Carina Witthoeft (Germany), and Monica Niculescu (WTA’s no.47) will be playing a tennis player emerging from the qualifications. Sorana Carstea (WTA’s no.86) will meet 11th seeded Petra Kvitova (the Czech Republic) and Patricia Ţig (WTA’s no.100) will be playing Sara Errani (Italy). The Wimbledon tournament, the oldest and most prestigious of the four Grand Slam tournaments in the world is scheduled for June 27-July 10.

(Translated by Ana Maria Popescu and Diana Vijeu)

24 June 2016