Radio România Internațional

Tag: Romanian handball team

April 16, 2021 UPDATE

COVID-19 IN ROMANIA – Romania has
increased its vaccination rate, with over 80,000 doses being administered on
Thursday for the second day in a row, while the total number of people given at
least one dose exceeded 2.5 million on Friday. Also as of Friday, people will
be able to get the AstraZeneca vaccine without an appointment in the centers
where this jab is available. According to Prime Minister Florin Cîţu, Romania
is expected to hit the 35% mark in early July in terms of the share of the
population that got immunized, which will allow for a gradual relaunch of the
economy. On the other hand, the number of ICU cases among Covid patients is
still high, at almost 1,500, but the overall number of hospital admissions is
decreasing, with almost 13,000 Covid patients currently receiving hospital
treatment. Almost 3,700 new infections were recorded on Friday, as well as 137
new deaths. The incidence rate has dropped to 6 per thousand inhabitants in
Bucharest.

COVID-19 EUROPE –France became the third country in
Europe to pass 100,000 Covid-related deaths after the UK and Italy. France has
30-40,000 new cases and 300 fatalities daily and 30,000 Covid patients are in
hospital, including almost 6,000 in severe condition. Even though the situation
remains complicated, the French authorities have begun discussing relaxation
measures from mid-May. In Italy, Prime Minister Mario Draghi has talked about
the reopening of restaurants and schools starting Monday, April 26. Expressing
a prudent optimism, the Italian Prime Minister said his Government decided to
take a calculated risk and classify regions with a satisfying epidemiological
evolution in the yellow zone, where restrictions are less severe. In Madrid,
the Spanish government has ruled out extending the state of emergency beyond
May 9. Under the current regulations, a nighttime curfew starts at 11 PM while the
number of people in public spaces is limited.

NATO – Romania will
begin withdrawing its troops from Afghanistan from May 1, together with all its
NATO allies. Defense minister Nicolae Ciucă recalled that two decades ago,
Romania made the decision to join the coalition fighting terrorism and its
strategic allies in an international effort to combat an enemy that threatened
citizens’ peace and security. Over these almost 20 years, tens of thousands of
Romanian military carried out various missions in the theatre of operations in
Afghanistan, having a significant contribution to improving the security
situation in the region. Romania lost 27 military in Afghanistan, while more
than 200 were wounded. 649 Romanian military are currently deployed in that
country as part of the Resolute Support mission under the NATO aegis.

SUPPORT –The European Commission has approved a
government 500 million euro support scheme for Romanian companies in the areas
of tourism, accommodation and food services as well as travel agencies hit by
the Covid pandemic. In the form of direct aid, the scheme will cover up to 20%
of losses incurred last year compared with 2019 and will be granted until December
31, 2021 at the latest. Support may benefit over 7,300 firms.

5G – The
government has approved a bill on 5G communications that significantly boosts
internet speed for mobile devices. According to interior minister Lucian Bode,
the bill called for special attention because the new technology can also give
rise to complex threats to national security through access to sensitive
information structures. The US authorities warned that the advance of the
Chinese giant Huawei in this field poses a security risk owing to the
involvement of the Chinese state, so Romania and the US last year signed a
memorandum on the introduction of certain rules for the authorization of 5G
providers. The tender to assign the 5G spectrum in Romania, which was already
postponed twice, may be held in the second part of the year.

DACIA – Sales of Dacia cars in Europe
saw a 67% growth in March, while the car maker’s market share increased from
2.4 to 2.5%, according to a report from the European Automobile Manufacturers’
Association. The statistical data cover the European Union, the UK and the
European Free Trade Association countries, namely Iceland, Liechtenstein,
Norway and Switzerland. The Romanian Dacia manufacturer was taken over by the
Renault group in 1999. Launched in 2004 with the Logan model, Dacia has since
become an important player on the European car market.

HANDBALL – Romania are facing North
Macedonia on Saturday in Bucharest in the first leg of the 2021 World
Championship play-offs in women’s handball. The return match is due to take
place on April 21, in Skopje. Commentators say booking a place should not be a
problem, given that the number of participants grew to 32. The tournament will
be hosted by Spain. Europe has 50% of the available places. Romania is yet to
miss a women’s World Championship, where it has won four medals over the years:
gold in 1962, silver in 1973 and 2005 and bronze in 2015. (C.M. & V.P.)

16 April 2021
December 15, 2018

WEATHER – A code orange alert against
heavy snowfall, freezing rain and drizzle is in place until Sunday evening targeting
areas in the southwest, center and south. Snowfall was reported on Saturday all
across the country, with strong wind reportedly drifting the snow in the
mountain areas. The highs on Saturday varied between minus 3 and plus 9 degrees
Celsius. Saturday’s snowfall also affected rail and road traffic.

HEALTHCARE – The Sanitary Solidarity Federation in Romania on
Saturday threatened to launch new protests before launching an all-out strike
if the Government passes an emergency decree to freeze salary income at the
level of the month of December, with no salary increase provided for employees
in the healthcare sector in 2019. Unionists say the healthcare sector is
shocked by the effects of disparaging salary increases for different types of
medical staff. We recall the authorities have raised the salaries of medical
staff to stop the exodus of Romanian doctors abroad.

KOSOVO – UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres has expressed
concern after the Kosovar Parliament decided to muster an army and has called
on all stakeholders to show restraint. An unofficial meeting of the Security
Council was held at the request of Serbia. NATO Secretary General Jens
Stoltenberg condemned the decision of the Parliament of Kosovo to create an
army, saying NATO will reexamine its level of commitment with the Security
Force in Kosovo. The European Union too has criticized the decision. The
Foreign Ministry in Bucharest said efforts to initiate the transition process
for the Security Force in Kosovo, despite repeated messages from the NATO and
the EU, have had negative impact on the situation in the Western Balkans and
the Euro-Atlantic integration of countries in this area. According to the
Ministry, all efforts must be directed towards continuing a dialogue between
Serbia and Kosovo, to avoid declarations and initiatives that risk escalating
tensions at regional level. We recall Romania has not recognized the
independence of this former Serbian province with a majority Albanian
population.

AFRICAN SWINE FEVER – A new outbreak of African swine fever was
confirmed on Saturday in southern Romania, raising the number of towns and
villages affected to 300 in 18 counties. There are over 1,100 outbreaks and
over 400 cases reported in wild animals. Some 51 million euros have to be paid
in damages to pig farmers.

VISIT – Romanian Minister for the Business Sector, Trade and
Entrepreneurship, Stefan Oprea, met the US Secretary of Trade, Wilbur Ross in
the United States. Minister Oprea presented Romania’s priorities at the helm of
the EU Council, which include promoting trans-Atlantic economic and trade
relations. Minister Oprea thanked Washington for its constant and transparent
support for Romania’s efforts to join the Organization for Economic Cooperation
and Development (OECD). The two officials also discussed partnership agreements
signed between the two countries’ industry sectors, as well as cooperation in
the energy field. One of the biggest US investments in the energy field is
currently in development in Romania.

PARIS – Thousands of yellow jackets protested in Paris on
Saturday for the fifth consecutive weekend against the increase in the cost of
living, France Press reports. Hundreds were arrested. Over 8,000 members of the
riot police were deployed in the French capital city, to try to ease public
tension. The Eiffel Tower and other museums remain open as well as general
stores. The past weeks’ protests were marked by acts of violence, with over
1,700 people arrested nationwide last week alone.

PROTESTS – Hungarian opposition parties have urged participants in
Friday’s antigovernment protest in Budapest to continue protests, Kossuth Radio
reports. The crowd of protesters marched for several hours in downtown
Budapest, at times clashing with the riot police. For days people are
protesting against Parliament’s draft law on increasing the number of
additional working hours for employees. Dubbed the slavery law, the project
was allegedly designed to favor car manufacturers, protesters say.

HANDBALL – Romania’s handball team is playing the
Netherlands in Sunday’s bronze final at the European Championship underway in
France. On Friday, in the semi-finals, Romania lost to Russia while France won
against the Netherlands. Romania and the Netherlands previously played in the
main group phase, Romania losing the match. Romania has a chance of matching
its best performance at the European championships, namely the bronze medal won
in 2010. By qualifying to the semi-finals, Romania has secured qualification to
the World Cup in Japan next year. We recall team captain Cristina Neagu
sustained a serious injury and will be unavailable for the remainder of the
season. The goals scored in this year’s edition have earned Neagu the title of
all-time top scorer at the European Championship.

(Translated by V. Palcu)

15 December 2018
September 29, 2018

TREASON CASE – The Directorate Investigating Organized Crime and
Terrorism in Romania (DIICOT) has announced that it has closed a case based on
the high treason accusations brought by Ludovic Orban, the president of the
National Liberal Party in opposition, against Prime Minister Viorica Dăncilă.
According to the Directorate, the case, which concerned the memorandum approved
by the Government with respect to the relocation of the Romanian Embassy from
Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, was dismissed because no breach of the law has been
established. The criminal complaint filed in May by Ludovic Orban also
concerned Liviu Dragnea, the president of the Social Democratic Party in power,
who was accused of unlawful disclosure of state secrets, Orban said at the
time.

MEETING – Romanian Foreign Minister Teodor Melescanu
met with counterparts from Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Sri Lanka, Bahrain,
the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Laos on the sidelines of the UN General
Assembly held in New York. Additionally, the Romanian official met with his
Hungarian counterpart, Peter Szijjarto. According to a Ministry release, the
two officials looked at ways to improve bilateral relations, based on the
Strategic Partnership between the two countries, EU and NATO membership and
mutual respect. Talks focused on topics of mutual interest, especially
supporting the European track of states in the Western Balkans and the need to
diversify energy transport routes, in order to ensure energy security at
regional and European level.

LAW ENFORCEMENT – The Romanian Police has identified
32 vehicles wanted internationally. Eight were reported as stolen in the United
Kingdom, five in Belgium and Spain each, four in Italy, three in Germany, two
in France and one in Poland, the Netherlands, Bulgaria, Hungary and Romania
each. The Romanian Police recommends prudence to people who want to buy a
second-hand vehicle in trade fairs abroad and to ask the buyer for all the
proper car identification documents.

GUAM – Ex-soviet states making up the so-called
GUAM group – Georgia, Ukraine, Azerbaijan and the Republic of Moldova, will
join efforts to consolidate their positions and defend territorial integrity,
GUAM officials said as part of a GUAM Parliament Assembly held in Chisinau.
GUAM officials have criticized Russia’s involvement in fueling territorial
conflicts and military aggression, particularly in Georgia and Ukraine. GUAM
was set up in 2006, with the aim of developing cooperation between members,
consolidating stability and joint security at European level. The Republic of
Moldova is currently holding the rotating presidency of GUAM. Chisinau is
facing increased pro-Russian separatism in Transdniestr, a region the broke
with Moldova in 1992 in the wake of an armed conflict that killed hundreds and
that ended with the military intervention of Russian forces.

TSUNAMI – According to authorities in Indonesia,
some 400 people were killed in the earthquake and ensuing tsunami that hit
Sulawesi Island on Friday. Most casualties were reported in Palu city, hit by
tsunamis measuring three meters in height. The coms and power grid are
temporarily offline, while images flooding public media reveal dead bodies
amidst debris along the shoreline, international news agencies report.

HANDBALL – The Romanian women’s handball team
is today playing Poland’s B team as part of a training campaign ahead of the
European Championship hosted this year by France. The tournament will take
place over November 29 – December 16. Romania was drawn in Group D along with
Norway, Germany and the Czech Republic. At the European Championships of 2016,
Romania was ranked 5th.

TENNIS – Romanian tennis players Irina Begu and
Raluca Olaru on Saturday lost 7-5, 6-3 to Olga Danilovic of Serbia and Tamara
Zdansek of Slovenia in the women’s doubles final at the tournament in Taskent,
Uzbekistan, totaling 250 thousand dollars in prize money. Olaru has previously
won the Taskent doubles twice, in 2008 alongside Olga Savchuk of Ukraine and in
2016 with Ipek Soylu of Turkey. Begu won the women’s singles in 2012.

(Translated by V. Palcu)

29 September 2018
January 13, 2018

DIPLOMACY – Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe Friday arrived in Estonia, the first stop on his diplomatic tour of Central and Eastern Europe, which will also take him to Latvia, Lithuania, Bulgaria, Serbia and Romania. The Japanese official is trying to rally support for Tokyo’s firm stand against North Korea. This is the first such visit paid by a Japanese Premier to the region. The Japanese official is to be received by president Klaus Iohannis in Bucharest on Tuesday. The agenda of the talks includes the stage and prospects in the process of strengthening the very good relations under the Renewed Partnership between Romania and Japan at political, economic and cultural level as well as in terms of security and human relations, the Romanian presidency has announced. Other issues, such as the cooperation between the EU and Japan, regional developments with an emphasis to the North Korean file, as well as the Romanian-Japanese cooperation, are also to be tackled. Shinzo Abe is accompanied by a delegation of Japanese businesspeople from the trade and IT sectors, willing to expand business opportunities in Europe. This is the first visit to Romania by a Japanese Prime Minister and comes against the background of celebrating five years since the 2013 Renewed Partnership between Romania and Japan.

EXERCISE — The Romanian Naval Forces on Saturday continued drills on the Black Sea, jointly with NATO partners. The King Ferdinand battleship, carrying a Puma Naval helicopter on board, it out at sea together with the USS Carney destroyer and a Turkish submarine. The drills are aimed at developing underwater warfare capabilities. On Friday, during docking maneuvers in the port of Constanta, naval forces trained against possible terrorist rapid attacks. We recall that at the end of January and in early February, NATO’s permanent forces in the Mediterranean will come train with the Romanian Naval Forces in the Black Sea.

INVESTIGATION — Anti-corruption chief prosecutor Laura Codruta Kovesi will be subject to a disciplinary investigation by the Prosecutor Department of the Superior Council of Magistracy, after the Judicial Inspection Corps started criminal proceedings against her for disciplinary offences. The head of the National Anticorruption Directorate is accused, among other things, of having marred the image and professional ability of prosecutors, as well as the prestige of the justice system, as transpires from the audio recordings made public in June 2017. According to the Judicial Inspection Corps, Laura Codruta Kovesi addressed fellow prosecutors using a patronizing and aggressive tone, which was a blatant violation of the minimum standards of professional ethics. We recall that under Kovesi’s mandate, the National Anticorruption Directorate has been constantly praised by the European Commission for helping reform Romania’s justice system.

DEBRIS FLOWS — The death toll of January’s debris flows in Southern California has reached 18 dead. US officials admit hopes of finding further survivors are very low. Mass evacuations have been expanded to the region. Over 1,200 members of emergency rescue services continue to dig through the mudslide, which in some areas reaches 4.6 meters in height. Drones, military vehicles and K9 units are involved in search and rescue operations. The flow of mud and debris, including uprooted trees, electricity poles and boulders, was the result of the heavy rain that hit the mountainous area in the wake of the Thomas fire last month. The mudslide destroyed over 65 homes and damaged another 460 in the wildfire-ravaged areas.

ELECTIONS — The second day of the Czech Presidential election started on Saturday. Polls favor the acting president Milos Zeman to win a second term in office with less than half of the vote, which will require a second ballot to determine the country’s future president. Aged 73, Zeman focused his campaign on opposing migration and anti-European criticism. Of the other eight contenders, Jiri Drahos, a chemistry teacher and former president of the Czech Academy of Sciences has the highest chances of facing Zeman in the second round. In the Czech Republic the president holds reduced powers and has a limited influence, the exception of his constitutional prerogatives.

HANDBALL — The Romanian men’s handball team is today playing Ukraine in Bolzano, Italy, in Group 3 of the 2019 World Cup preliminaries. On Friday, Xavier Pascual’s trainees defeated the Faeroe Islands 28-20, while on Thursday it outperformed Italy, 34-24. With 4 points, Romania is ranked first in the group tables, followed by Ukraine with 2 points, Italy and the Faeroe Islands with zero points. The winners of the six preliminary groups will advance to the playoffs for the World Cup. A total of 13 teams will take part in the tournament, 3 having already qualified: France and the host teams, Germany and Denmark.

TENNIS — Romanian tennis player Mihaela Buzarnescu, 57 WTA, on Saturday lost 6-1, 4-6, 6-3 to Elise Mertens of Belgium in the final of the WTA tournament in Australia, totaling 225 thousand dollars in prize money. The match was repeatedly interrupted due to heavy rain. For her remarkable run at Hobart, Buzarnescu on Monday will rank among the world’s top 50 players. Also on Monday the Australian Open is set to start, with Simona Halep seeded first in the competition. Halep will play Destanee Aiava of Australia in the first round. Another five Romanian tennis player will take part in the main draw: Sorana Cirstea, Irina Begu, Mihaela Buzarnescu, Monica Niculescu and Ana Bogdan. Marius Copil will also play in the men’s competition. (Translated by V. Palcu)

13 January 2018
December 4, 2016 UPDATE

ELECTION – Legislative elections will be held in Romania on December 11, under the new legislation in force, marking a return to the 2004 party-list voting system. New representation quotas are also being introduced, as follows: 1 deputy per 73,000 inhabitants and 1 senator per 168,000 inhabitants. Running for the 466 MP seats are 6,493 people. The Romanian Diaspora, accounting for over three million people, will be represented by 2 senators and 4 deputies. All Romanians residing abroad will as of this year be able to vote by post.

REFUGEES – 17 Syrian refugees were apprehended by the Romanian border police while trying to illegally cross from Serbia into Romania. Nine of the 17 are children aged between two and ten. On Saturday, the border police also identified a Turkish national accompanied by a Serbian guide. The man was trying to enter Romania on route to Germany. Over the last year, over 300 refugees, mostly Syrian, have tried to enter Romania. Most of them are trying to cross from Serbia, currently home to over 7,000 immigrants.

ANTI-CORRUPTION CAMPAIGN – An anti-corruption campaign is being held on Monday in 14 border crossing points in Romania, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine. For the course of five days, flyers and leaflets will be handed out with the purpose of raising the awareness of citizens with respect to the risk they expose themselves when dealing in border-related crimes. Organized by the General Anti-Corruption Directorate in Romania, the Anti-Corruption National Centre in Moldova and the State Border Police Service in Ukraine, the campaign is carried out also with help from Romanian high-school volunteers.

EUROSTAT – One in three Romanians cannot afford to eat out with friends every month, shows the latest Eurostat survey. Figures indicate the same figures for Hungary and Bulgaria. In Romania, those affected are the elderly, of whom 43% lack the funds to eat out in a restaurant every month. Over a third of young people below 25 cannot afford to go out to a pub every month. Nearly one in ten European citizens lacks the money for such monthly activities.

GREECE – Structural reforms will help Greece get sustainable growth instead of a debt-cutting deal, the German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble told Bild am Sonntag on Sunday. Greeces outstanding debt currently amounts to 300 billion euros, accounting for 180% of its GDP, the highest in the Eurozone. A Eurozone Finance Ministers meeting is scheduled to take place on Monday in Brussels, aimed at reviewing the progress Athens has reported in implementing the line of reforms demanded in exchange for granting financial assistance. Germany is unlikely to discuss a cut in Greeces debt ahead of the elections of September 2017. For the first time since 2014, Greece has reported a growth of its GDP for two consecutive terms, thus ending the economic slump.

HANDBALL – Romanias national womens handball team are participating in Sweden between December 4 –18 in the European Handball Championship. Romania will take on Norway, in Group D, on December 5th, Russia on the 7th of December and Croatia on the 9th. The three top-ranking teams in each group will qualify to the second stage. Romanias team is coached by the Spanish Ambros Martin, who last month replaced the Swedish Tomas Ryde, who led the Romanians to victory at the 2015 World Championship hosted by Denmark, when they won bronze. Ambros Martin was designated the best coach of the world in 2013 and 2014 and won two times the Champions League with the Hungarian team Győr that he is also coaching. The teams of Norway and Denmark have won the most continental titles, 6 and 3 respectively. Romanias best result at the European Championship was the bronze medal in 2010.

(Translated by V. Palcu)

4 December 2016