Tag: Ruse

  • January 19, 2025 UPDATE

    January 19, 2025 UPDATE

    GAZA The Israeli government has nominated 33 hostages to be released by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas, during the first phase of the ceasefire agreement that has taken effect. In a first phase, on Sunday, three women were released, including one of Romanian descent and one with dual Israeli and Romanian citizenship. Romania welcomes the release of the first group of hostages, including a Romanian citizen and a person of Romanian descent, President Klaus Iohannis said. ‘We thank all our partners for their support and call for a continued implementation of the agreement and for the return of the remaining hostages to their families,’ the head of state said. Israel’s minister of national security Itamar Ben-Gvir has resigned in protest of the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, Israeli media report. Ben-Gvir’s far-right and ultranationalist party will leave the governing coalition. After months of deadlock in the 15-month war in Gaza, a three-stage agreement was reached earlier this week. During an initial six-week ceasefire, 33 Israeli hostages held in Gaza are to be released in exchange for 1,904 Palestinians held in Israeli prisons, while the Israeli army is to pull out of densely populated areas in Gaza. Some 1,200 people were killed and more than 250 were taken hostage during the unprecedented terrorist attack by Hamas commandos on October 7, 2023 in southern Israel. The Israeli army responded with a large-scale ground offensive followed by air strikes on Hamas positions in the Gaza Strip, an operation that resulted in more than 46,000 casualties, according to Palestinian authorities.

     

    UNIONS Romanian trade unionists ask the politicians in power to talk directly with the people, because social tensions are high, and the powder keg could explode at any moment. This warning was issued by the Cartel Alfa federation in a statement that says political decision-makers have abandoned open communication with Romanians. The budget deficit must be corrected by improving collection, but the government refuses to take any measures outside of recipes that have proven ineffective for years, Cartel Alfa also says.

     

    JOBS Nearly 33,000 positions are declared vacant by employers in Romania, the National Employment Agency announced. Most of them, over 20,000, are intended for unskilled applicants, another 10,000 jobs require high school, post-secondary school or vocational education, and a little over 1,900 jobs require a degree, including positions as engineers in various sectors, computer programmers, financial and accounting experts or veterinarians. Also, employers from the European Economic Area offer employment through the EURES Romania network; 100 jobs are available in Germany and Spain, and another 27in Austria, Ireland and Malta.

     

    ECONOMY The World Bank has revised downward its outlook for the Romanian economy this year, mainly due to the fiscal consolidation measures recently announced by the government. In its latest global economic outlook report, the World Bank lowers its estimate for Romania’s economic growth rate to 2.1% this year, as against 3.8% forecast in June 2024. Also, in 2026, Romania’s GDP growth is expected to be 2.6% compared to 3.8%, as estimated in June. On the other hand, economic growth in Central Europe is expected to recover to 2.8% in 2025 and 3% in 2026, thanks to robust private demand. Export growth in Central Europe is expected to remain modest due to slow progress in the euro area. The level of investments, especially in Poland and Romania, is expected to improve, thanks to structural reforms and EU funding.

     

    TRADE FAIR Romania takes part in the “Green Week” exhibition in Berlin, the agriculture ministry announced. Until January 26, the national stand presents samples of Romanian products registered or in the process of being registered in European quality systems, meat preparations and cheese varieties, canned vegetables and fruits, bakery products, honey and cold-pressed oils, syrups, wines and spirits. The 2024 “Green Week” event is attended by over 1,400 exhibitors from 60 countries, attracting some 300,000 visitors.

     

    TENNIS The Romanian-Ukrainian pair Gabriela Ruse/Marta Kostiuk qualified for the quarterfinals of the women’s doubles event at the Australian Open on Sunday, after defeating Hanyu Guo (China) / Alexandra Panova (Russia) 7-5, 4-6, 7-6 (10/6). Ruse and Kostiuk have played two Grand Slam women’s doubles semifinals together, one in Melbourne in 2023 and one at Roland Garros in 2024. In the quarterfinals, they will take on Su-Wei Hsieh (Taiwan) and Jelena Ostapenko (Latvia). (AMP)

  • January 17, 2025

    January 17, 2025

     

    RUSSIA The Romanian ministry of foreign affairs firmly condemns the Russian forces’ irresponsible attacks that violate all the norms of international law, and emphasises that Russia’s illegal and unprovoked aggression against Ukraine generates risks for the entire region. The statement was made as the monitoring and surveillance systems of Romania’s defence ministry Friday morning noted violations of Romanian airspace, in Tulcea county, after Russian forces resumed their drone attacks on civilian targets and port infrastructure in Ukraine. ‘Respect for sovereignty, security and peace are obligations that the Russian Federation violates systematically and without provocation. The persistent aggressive actions, the illegal occupation of some of the neighboring territories and the illegal full-scale war that Russia has been waging for almost 3 years against a sovereign neighbor are a persistent and serious threat not only to Ukraine but to the entire Black Sea region and NATO’s eastern flank,’ the foreign ministry says. The foreign ministry and the defence ministry also mention that they have been informing NATO in real time about the situations caused by these attacks, and remain in permanent contact with it.

     

    PROTESTS Several thousand police officers and employees from defence, public order and national security institutions, as well as reserve officers from all over Romania take part in a protest in Bucharest today. They are unhappy with a government order that has significantly reduced their incomes. The act scraps overtime pay and payments for days worked on weekends or public holidays. The protesters argue that the income of operational police officers will be severely affected, with decreases ranging between EUR 200 and 2,000. The participants are marching towards the ministry of finance, the ministry of justice, the labour ministry, and the interior ministry, with the government headquarters as their final destination.

     

    ELECTIONS The first round of the presidential elections in Romania will take place on May 4, and the second round on May 18, the government has decided. Stricter rules have also been set for the election campaign, especially regulating online campaigns. Failure to comply with them may entail fines for major online platforms of up to 5% of their turnover. Romanians in the diaspora will still have 3 days to vote, but on the last day, that is, on Sunday, polling stations will close at 9:00 p.m. Romanian time, regardless of the local time zone. The new provisions have been criticised by several NGOs. The presidential election was cancelled at the end of last year by the Constitutional Court, on grounds that the election process had been flawed.

     

    FLU Flu vaccination remains the easiest, safest and most effective protection method against seasonal diseases, Romanian doctors reiterate amid increases in the number of respiratory infections. Specialists emphasise that as the percentage of the vaccinated population increased, flu viruses spread less in communities decreases. A National Institute for Public Health report shows that the number of people diagnosed with respiratory infections has doubled, with almost 91,000 cases reported in the last week. There are almost 600 patients diagnosed with clinical flu and over 200 for whom lab tests have confirmed infection with the flu virus, most of them in Bucharest, Cluj, Braşov, Constanţa, Alba and Galaţi. Five more people have died from the flu, bringing the death toll since the beginning of the season up to 9.

     

    MIDDLE EAST Israel and Hamas have officially signed a ceasefire and hostage release agreement in Gaza, after overcoming last-minute disputes. The Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office announced that the Security Cabinet and the government are meeting later today to ratify the document. The US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said he expects the implementation of the agreement to begin on Sunday as planned, with the release of the first 3 Israeli hostages. At least one of the far-right Israeli ministers who oppose the agreement has resigned. According to Radio Romania’s correspondent in Israel, political life in Israel is shaping up to be troubled, with a great potential for surprises and even changes.

     

    TENNIS The Romanian tennis players Gabriela Ruse and Jaqueline Cristian, in separate pairs, qualified for the second round of the women’s doubles event at the Australian Open, the first Grand Slam tournament of the year, after winning their respective matches on Friday in Melbourne. Ruse and Ukraine’s Marta Kostiuk won against the Australians Destanee Aiuava and Maddison Inglis 6-4, 7-6 (7/2), and in the second round they will face strong opponents in Elise Mertens (Belgium) and Ellen Perez (Australia), seeded 6th. Jaqueline Cristian and her Italian partner Camilla Rosatello defeated Cristina Bucşa (Spain) / Iana Sizikova (Russia) 6-2, 6-7 (2/7), 6-4. Cristian and Rosatello will next face Leylah Fernandez (Canada) and Nadia Kicenok (Ukraine), seeded 16th. In another first-round match in the women’s doubles, Monica Niculescu and Sofia Kenin (US) were defeated by Miyu Kato (Japan) / Renata Zarazua (Mexico), 6-4, 6-4. In the men’s doubles, the Romanian-Argentine pair Victor Cornea / Mariano Navone were defeated in the second round by Germany’s Kevin Krawietz / Tim Puetz, 4-6, 6-1. (AMP)

  • June 6, 2024

    June 6, 2024

    WAGES The government in Bucharest is today expected to endorse a pay rise aimed at bringing the minimum wages in Romania up to 740 Euros starting July 1st. Over 1.8 million employees are to benefit the new measure. The 200 RON fiscal deduction from the minimum wages will be kept until the end of the year.

    VOTE Polling stations have today opened in the Netherlands, the first country to vote in the elections for the European Parliament due over June 6 and 9. Roughly 370 million people are expected to vote in all the 27 EU member states in the following days. Analysts are forecasting an advance of the far-right and Eurosceptical parties amid the frustrations caused by the rising cost of living, migration and the green policies that are getting more and more unpopular. Like in most EU countries, in Romania the voting for the European Parliament is due on Sunday, concurrently with the local elections. Romania gets 33 MEP mandates.

    TENNIS The Romanian-Ukrainian pair Gabriela Ruse/Marta Kostyuk has qualified without playing in the semis of the doubles contest in Roland Garros as Russians Mirra Andreeva and Vera Zvonareva failed to attend the quarterfinals on Wednesday. Ruse and Kostyuk have won a check of 148 thousand Euros and 780 WTA points. This is the second Grand Slam semifinals for Ruse and Kostyuk after Australian Open last year. In the semifinals Ruse and her partner will be playing the all-Italian pair, Jasmine Paolini/Sara Errani.

    BOOK FAIR Until June 16th Romania will be attending the 83rd edition of the Madrid Book Fair with a national stand and 20 literary events. This has been Romania’s 13th participation in this large-scale event staged by the Romanian Cultural Institute through the National Book Center and the Romanian Cultural Institute in Madrid with support from the Ministry of Culture and the Romanian Embassy in Spain. Among the protagonists of the aforementioned event there are writers Gabriela Adameşteanu, Eugen Barz, Aura Christi, Nichita Danilov, Cristian Fulaş, Miguel Gane, Stejărel Olaru, Radu Paraschivescu, Radmila Popovici, Andreea Răsuceanu and Radio Romania Journalist Corina Sabău.

    FOOTBALL Romania’s football side will be up against the selection of Lichtenstein in Bucharest on Friday night in their last training game before the European Championship in Germany. In another friendly on Tuesday our footballers obtained a goaless draw against the neighbouring Bulgaria. In Group E of Euro 2024, Romania will be playing Ukraine on June 17 in Munich, Belgium on June 22 in Cologne and Solvakia in Frankfurt four days later. Officials of the football federation in Bucharest say they expect the attendance of a large number of Romanian football fans, who are residents in Germany or in other countries in Western Europe. Romania’s last participation in a  European football tournament was in 2016 and in the World Cup in 1998.

    (bill)

     

  • A new bridge over the Danube

    A new bridge over the Danube

    Romania and Bulgaria
    will together build a third bridge over the Danube. The two countries submitted
    to the European Commission a joint project for a preliminary blueprint study
    and at this stage, its implementation has already begun. The location of the
    new road-rail bridge will be close to the cities of Giurgiu and Ruse and
    Romania is going to support this technical solution. The European Commission is
    also supporting the project, as the European Commissioner for Transport, Adina
    Valean has explained. Romania is the only EU country that gets money for the construction
    of roads through the National Plan of Recovery and Resilience, the European
    official went on to say.




    The support
    comes against the issues currently faced by the Friendship Bridge, the main
    connection between Romania and Bulgaria, which is 70 years old and extremely
    overcrowded. At present, roughly 2 thousand lorries and over 4 thousand cars
    are crossing the bridge on a daily basis. The second bridge over the Danube, at
    Calafat-Vidin is also very busy.


    State
    Secretary with the Transport Ministry, Ionuţ Săvoiu, has offered details about
    the new project.




    Ionut Savoiu: Talks are underway these
    days for the construction of bridges between Romania and Ukraine, between
    Romania and Bulgaria. We enjoy the support of the European Commission for
    another bridge over the Danube at Giurgiu-Ruse. And we are going to do anything
    we can so that this one will be a road-rail bridge. I am convinced the
    feasibility survey will enable us to make the right decision in this respect
    and I am looking forward to getting this survey. We know the two sides want
    this survey to be launched a.s.a.p and I am pretty sure the outcome of this
    process will be a good bridge. And I say this from my perspective as an expert
    in the field.




    According to
    the authorities, a survey will be conducted on the various routes leading up to
    the new bridge. The greenlight for funding the new project is expected in early
    2024. The timetable also includes a contract to be concluded with the European
    Commission until mid-2024, and its implementation until the end of 2026 with
    the two sides deciding on the location and the ways of funding the new bridge.
    Besides the European funds available, the possibility of using the mechanisms
    of the private-public partnership is also being considered.




    This would
    lead to a significant reduction of the implementation deadlines and is expected
    to attract additional funds. In another development the railway linking the
    Romanian city of Giurgiu to the Bulgarian city of Ruse, which has been
    non-operational since 2005 will be reopened at Gradistea over the Arges River,
    where a 1.3 km bridge is being constructed. At the same time the national
    company CFR Infrastructure has obtained roughly 500 million Euros worth of EU
    funding for the streamlining and electrification of the Bucharest-Giurgiu railway.


    (bill)

  • Un nou pod peste Dunăre

    Un nou pod peste Dunăre

    România și
    Bulgaria vor construi al treilea pod peste Dunăre. Cele două țări au înaintat
    un proiect comun la Comisia Europeană pentru un studiu preliminar de
    proiectare, iar odată cu acesta a început, practic, procesul de implementare a
    proiectului. Noul pod se va afla în apropiere de Giurgiu-Ruse și va fi unul
    mixt – rutier şi feroviar, iar România va sprijini această soluţie tehnică. Şi
    Comisia Europeană susţine acest proiect, după cum a dat asigurări chiar
    comisarul european pentru Transporturi, Adina Vălean. România este singura ţară
    din Uniunea Europeană care primeşte bani pentru construcţia de drumuri prin
    Planul Național de Redresare și Reziliență, a precizat oficialul de la
    Bruxelles.


    Sprijinul vine în contextul problemelor de pe Podul Prieteniei,
    principala vamă dintre România-Bulgaria, vechi de aproape 70 de ani şi depăşit
    ca volum al transporturilor. În prezent, aproape 2.000 de camioane și peste
    4.000 de mașini traversează acest pod în fiecare zi. Și cel de-al doilea pod
    peste Dunăre, cel de la Calafat-Vidin, este foarte folosit.


    Secretarul de stat
    în Ministerul Transporturilor, Ionuţ Săvoiu, a oferit mai multe amănute despre
    noul proiect Se discută în această perioadă de poduri între România
    şi Ucraina, la Isaccea, între România şi Bulgaria. Există sprijinul Comisiei
    Europene pentru un al doilea pod peste Dunăre la Giurgiu-Ruse. Vom face tot ce
    se poate astfel încât podul să fie prevăzut şi cu linie de cale ferată. Sunt
    convins că rezultatele studiului de fezabilitate ne vor pune în faţa unei
    decizii corecte din acest punct de vedere şi aştept cu mare interes realizarea
    acestui studiu. Ştim că este o discuţie între cele două părţi să se lanseze cât
    mai repede acest studiu de fezabilitate. Rezultatul acestuia sunt convins că ne
    va conduce în direcţia de a avea un pod. Asta o spun din perspectiva mea, ca
    specialist în domeniu.


    Potrivit autorităților, urmează să se facă o analiză a
    diferitelor trasee și a punctelor din care va porni podul la Giurgiu-Ruse. La
    începutul anului 2024, este de așteptat să se anunțe dacă proiectul a fost
    aprobat pentru finanțare. Calendarul prevede semnarea unui contract cu Comisa
    Europeană până la jumătatea anului 2024 și implementarea până la sfârșitul lui
    2026, când cele două state vor decide locația și modalitatea de finanțare a
    noului pod. Pe lângă fondurile europene, va fi analizată și posibilitatea
    utilizării mecanismelor parteneriatului public-privat pentru construirea
    podului. Acest lucru ar duce la o scurtare semnificativă a termenelor limită
    pentru realizarea integrală și ar atrage finanțare suplimentară.


    Pe de altă
    parte, în primăvară, linia de tren Bucureşti-Giurgiu pe care nu se mai circulă
    din 2005 va fi redeschisă, la Grădiştea, peste râul Argeş, fiind în lucru un pod nou cu o lungime de 1,3 kilometri.
    De asemenea, compania națională CFR Infrastructură a obţinut finanţare europeană
    de aproape 500 de milioane de euro pentru modernizarea şi electrificarea liniei
    între București şi Giurgiu.



  • Jurnal românesc – 17.07.2023

    Jurnal românesc – 17.07.2023

    Accelerarea proiectului de construcţie a unui nou pod peste Dunăre, între Giurgiu şi Ruse, a fost una dintre concluzile întâlnirii pe care prim-ministrul Marcel Cioacu a avut-o la Bucureşti cu premierul bulgar Nikolai Denkov. Cei doi au fost de acord că, până la finalizarea acestui proiect, ar trebui pusă în funcţiune o linie de feribot între cele două oraşe, pentru a face faţă traficului intens de mărfuri şi pentru a-i ajuta pe turiştii care circulă în ambele direcţii. Subiectul central al întrevederii l-a constituit însă cel legat de aderarea celor două state la Spaţiul Schengen. Ciolacu a reamintit că Bucureştiul şi Sofia îşi concentrează eforturile pentru a gestiona migraţia şi pentru a proteja frontierele Uniunii Europene şi a punctat faptul că România a demonstrat că este un partener responsabil şi de încredere al Uniunii în acest domeniu şi un furnizor de securitate pentru întreagul bloc comunitar. La rândul său, premierul bulgar a apreciat că procesul de integrare în Schengen trebuie să fie finalizat de cele două state împreună şi a spus că dialogul experţilor români şi bulgari cu cei din ţările care încă mai au anumite rezerve trebuie continuat. La 12 iulie, Parlamentul European a adoptat o rezoluţie care, printre altele, solicită Consiliului Uniunii Europene să admită aderarea României şi Bulgariei la Spaţiul Schengen până la finalul acestui an.

    Fostul ministru al Justiţiei, Robert Cazanciuc, a anunţat că, împreună cu senatorul Lucian Romaşcanu, a depus o iniţiativă legislativă privind declararea datei de 15 iulie drept Ziua mărcii poştale româneşti. Proiectul prevede şi organizarea unui Târg al mărcilor poştale şi al cărţilor poştale maxime, iar consiliile judeţene, împreună cu inspectoratele şcolare judeţene şi cel al Municipiului Bucureşti, pot organiza expoziţii filatelice tematice. Romfilatelia va organiza evenimente de promovare a mărcii poştale, alături de Institutul Cultural Român, şi va emite anual un produs filatelic special pentru a marca Ziua mărcii poştale româneşti. Cazanciuc a amintit că la 15 iulie s-au împlinit 165 de ani de la prima emisiune filatelică. Marca poştală a fost de-a lungul timpului un reper solid al patrimoniului nostru spiritual şi cultural, dincolo de relevanţa sa filatelică în sine. (…) Pentru că a fost şi este un adevărat mesager al istoriei şi geografiei României, (…) făcând cunoscute în ţară şi străinătate personalităţi remarcabile ale vieţii politice şi culturii româneşti, evenimente şi realizări de prestigiu din diferite perioade istorice ale României, a arătat Cazanciuc. Timbrul poştal românesc Capul de bour a fost tipărit la Iaşi, într-o primă emisiune, sub egida Poştei Domneşti a Principatului Moldovei, la data de 15 iulie 1858.

    Nava simbol a Forţelor Navale Române, bricul Mircea, a acostat în acest final de săptămână în Portul Taranto, din Italia, şi, până la 19 iulie, este deschisă publicului care doreşte să cunoască tradiţia marinarilor români, a transmis Statul Major al Forţelor Navale. Bricul Mircea se află luna aceasta într-un marş internaţional de instrucţie în Marea Mediterană şi are la bord 67 de studenţi ai Academiei Navale Mircea cel Bătrân şi 12 studenţi străini de la academii partenere din Bulgaria, Germania, Polonia, Turcia, Letonia, Spania şi Italia. (…) echipajul navei şi studenţii de la bord vor avea misiunea de a promova valorile şi tradiţiile marinăreşti ale României, precum şi şcoala de marină românească, a mai transmis Statul Major al Forţelor Navale. Ambasada României în Italia, prin Consulatul General al României din Bari, a planificat, în perioada escalei navei în Portul Taranto, vizite ale cadeţilor de la bord la obiectivele turistice din zonă, întâlniri oficiale ale comandantului navei-şcoală cu autorităţile publice locale din Taranto, precum şi un cocktail, la bord, la care au fost invitaţi reprezentanţi ai autorităţilor civile şi militare din regiune. Bricul Mircea a fost declarat oficial, în anul 2019, Ambasador Onorific în Serviciul României, iar în anul 2022 a primit titlul de Ambasador al României Sustenabile.

    Lotul României a ocupat locul întâi între ţările din Europa şi locul patru în clasamentul pe naţiuni, la Olimpiada Internaţională de Matematică desfăşurată la Chiba, în Japonia. Cu cinci medalii de aur şi una de argint şi un total de 208 puncte România a fost depăşită doar de China, Statele Unite ale Americii şi Coreea. Medaliaţii au fost elevii David-Andrei Anghel, Andrei Moldovan, Robert Dragomirescu, Pavel Ciurea, Radu Lecoiu, toţi de la Liceul Internaţional de Informatică din Bucureşti şi Andrei Chiriţă de la Colegiul Naţional de Informatică Tudor Vianu din Bucureşti. Delegaţia României a fost coordonată de conf. univ. dr. Cătălin-Liviu Gherghe, de la Facultatea de Matematică şi Informatică a Universităţii din Bucureşti. Locul 4 la Olimpiada Internaţională de Matematică este cea mai bună poziţie pe care România a ocupat-o la această competiţie în ultimii 24 de ani, transmite ministerul Educaţiei.

  • Simona Sapundzhieva din Bulgaria


    Simona Sapundzhieva din Bulgaria, studentă în anul pregătitor la limba română, la Facultatea de Litere a Universităţii din Bucureşti.


    Eu sunt Simona Sapundzhieva din Bulgaria. Acum sunt în anul pregătitor şi studiez doar limba română. Sunt din oraşul Ruse.”


    Pe Simona Sapundzhieva am întălnit-o pe holul Facultăţii de Litere a Universităţii din Bucureşti. Ne povestea de ce a ales să înveţe în România.


    Pentru că studiile în Bulgaria nu sunt atât de bune ca aici şi dacă studiez aici pot să lucrez pentru mai multe companii străine de exemplu. Am prieteni care studiază aici, în România, medicina în special, ei mi-au spus că e bine aici.



    Cum se simte în România tânăra din Bulgaria?


    Locuiesc în sectorul 6, în cămin acum. Mi se pare interesant şi amuzant până acum. În România, şi mai ales în Bucureşti, aveţi oameni foarte diferiţi, din multe ţări. De exemplu, în grupa mea avem studenţi din Germania, din Palestina, din Grecia. Venim din diferite culturi. În weekenduri mă întorc acasă pentru că mi-e dor de părinţi şi Ruse e foarte aproape, e cam la 70 de kilometri distanţă de Bucureşti şi de aceea mă întorc.



    Cum se gândeşte la viitor Simona Sapundzhieva din Bulgaria, deocamdată studentă în anul pregătitor la limba română, la Facultatea de Litere a Universităţii din Bucureşti?


    După acest an vreau să studiez la Facultatea de Istorie şi vreau să devin traducătoare sau profesoară de istorie, dar nu ştiu încă. Mi se pare interesant, ştiu şi engleza şi am fost foarte bună în şcoală la istorie.






  • Romanian tennis player Gabriela Ruse

    Romanian tennis player Gabriela Ruse


    Tennis players from Romania were among the protagonists of several international competitions underway last week. Irina Begu for instance made it to the quarterfinals of the WTA 1000 tournament in Madrid then jumped up to the 27th position in the world hierarchy, close to the best ranking in her career, the 22nd position she obtained back in 2016.


    Also in Madrid, Gabriela Ruse came very close to the finals of the womens double. Together with Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk, Ruse had made it to the semifinals where they were outperformed 7-5, 7-6 by the top-seeded all-American pair Jessica Pegula / Coco Gauff.


    Sorana Cîrstea, also from Romania, emerged as winner of the WTA 125 tournament held in Reus, Spain, a competition with 100 thousand Euros in prize money after outperforming Elizabeth Mandlik of the USA in the finals.


    So we had a difficult task today in our attempt to designate the athlete of the week here on Radio Romania International. However, we have eventually chosen Gabriela Ruse whose performance has brought her no less than 390 WTA points, more than to Irina and Sorana, and also managed a jump of seven places in the doubles ranking currently to the 32nd position, which is the best in her career so far.


    Elena-Gabriela Ruse was born on November 6th 1997, in Bucharest. She took up tennis when she was four years old with Dinamo Bucharest Sports Club. She has so far won only one WTA tournament, the one in Hamburg in 2021.


    In the same year she made it to the finals of the Palermo tournament and is presently ranking 152nd in the world standings. She obtained her best performance in May last year, when she made it to the 51st position. She has obtained better results in doubles matches though, particularly since she has been competing together with Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine. In the first Grand Slam tournament of the year in Melbourne, the pair has made it to the semifinals.


    (bill)


  • Bulgaria – Restricții de circulație la punctele de frontieră Kardam, Silistra, Ruse și Vidin

    Bulgaria – Restricții de circulație la punctele de frontieră Kardam, Silistra, Ruse și Vidin

    În perioada 29 – 31 martie 2023, Asociația Națională a Producătorilor de Cereale din Bulgaria va organiza activități de protest în zona punctelor de control la trecerea frontierei (PCTF) Kardam (corespondent PCTF Negru Vodă), Silistra ferry (corespondent PCTF Ostrov), Ruse (corespondent PCTF Giurgiu) și Vidin (corespondent PCTF Calafat), inclusiv prin blocarea cu tehnică agricolă a accesului auto în PCTF menționate, dar și a circulației rutiere pe drumurile republicane (naționale sau europene) adiacente/aferente, informează Ministerul Afacerilor Externe (MAE) de la Bucureşti.

    MAE recomandă cetățenilor români să urmărească cu atenție situația din zonele respective, iar șoferii să respecte strict semnalizarea rutieră temporară montată și indicațiile/semnalele organelor de control aflate la fața locului.

    Pe perioada desfășurării activităților de protest este posibil ca, pentru perioade limitate de timp, unele categorii de drumuri să fie închise circulației rutiere, la fel și circulația prin PCTF menționate și în zonele adiacente acestora. Se pot forma coloane de autovehicule, în special de automarfare.

    Se recomandă turiștilor români să se asigure că dețin suficiente resurse de combustibil, apă și alimente și că mențin în stare de funcționare mijloacele mobile de comunicare, iar firmelor românești de transport internațional de marfă sau pasageri să ia măsurile adecvate în vederea organizării temeinice a itinerariilor de deplasare, prin luarea în considerare a posibilității înregistrării unor timpi măriți de așteptare la trecerea frontierei bulgare și prin asigurarea resurselor necesare de apă și alimente persoanelor transportate.

    În acest context, MAE subliniază importanța informării corecte a șoferilor români, achiziționării din timp a vinietelor electronice și achitării conforme a taxelor de drum tip TOLL pentru folosirea infrastructurii rutiere publice din Bulgaria, în conformitate cu legislația în vigoare.

    Informații suplimentare pot fi accesate astfel:

    cu privire la starea actuală a drumurilor – pe aplicația gratuită LIMA www.lima.api.bg, de pe pagina web a Agenției Infrastructura Rutieră – www.api.bg și la numărul de telefon 070013020, accesibil în regim non-stop;cu privire la e-vigneta și sistemul e-TOLL – pe site-ul www.bgtoll.bgwww.mvr.bgwww.sofia-airport.euwww.weather.bgwww.mae.ro/travel-conditions/3677 (Condiții de călătorie în R. Bulgaria, titlul Reglementări vamale) și pe site-ul Agenției Vămi din R. Bulgaria – www.customs.bg.

    Românii pot solicita asistenţă consulară la numerele de telefon ale Ambasadei României la Sofia: +35929712858 şi +35929733510, apelurile fiind redirecționate către Centrul de Contact și Suport al Cetăţenilor Români din Străinătate (CCSCRS) şi preluate de către operatorii Call Center în regim de permanență. În cazul unei situaţii urgente poate fi apelat numărul de telefon de permanență al misiunii diplomatice a României în Bulgaria: +359879440758.

    MAE recomandă consultarea paginilor web

    http://sofia.mae.ro,

    https://ec.europa.eu/consularprotection/content/travel-advice_ro, www.meteoalarm.org, www.mae.ro și reamintește faptul că cetățenii români care călătoresc în străinătate au la dispoziție aplicația Călătorește în siguranță (http://www.mae.ro/app_cs), care oferă informații și sfaturi de călătorie.

  • Athlete of the Week

    Athlete of the Week

    The year’s first Grand Slam tournament, the Australian Open, ended last
    week in Melbourne.




    Novak Djokovic won the men’s competition, the present edition actually
    being the tenth he has won in his entire career. The Serbian player has also
    added his 22nd Grand Slam trophy equaling the record so far held by Spanish
    Rafael Nadal. The women’s competition was won by the 24-year-old Arina
    Sabalenka of Belarus, who obtained her first Grand Slam win. She presently
    comes second in the world’s ranking after Polish Iga Swiatek.






    Romania was represented only in the women’s competition where Irina Begu
    made it to the second round while Monica Niculescu reached the eighth finals
    together with Swiss Viktorija Golubic. The best performance in the
    aforementioned competition was obtained by Elena-Gabriela Ruse, who made it to
    the semifinals together with Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk. The two eventually
    conceded defeat to second-seeded Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova of
    the Czech Republic who eventually emerged as winners. For the performance she
    obtained in Melbourne, Radio Romania International has designated Gabriela Ruse
    athlete of the week.






    Elena-Gabriela Ruse was born on November 6th 1997, in Bucharest.
    She took up tennis at the age of four with Dinamo Bucharest Sports club. She
    reaped only one WTA tournament in Hamburg in 2021 and made it to the finals in
    Palermo. She is currently ranking 144th in the world ranking and the
    highest position she obtained last year when she ranked 51st. In the
    doubles competition she is presently ranking 40th.




    (bill)

  • Athlete of the Week

    Athlete of the Week

    The year’s first Grand Slam tournament, the Australian Open, ended last
    week in Melbourne.




    Novak Djokovic won the men’s competition, the present edition actually
    being the tenth he has won in his entire career. The Serbian player has also
    added his 22nd Grand Slam trophy equaling the record so far held by Spanish
    Rafael Nadal. The women’s competition was won by the 24-year-old Arina
    Sabalenka of Belarus, who obtained her first Grand Slam win. She presently
    comes second in the world’s ranking after Polish Iga Swiatek.






    Romania was represented only in the women’s competition where Irina Begu
    made it to the second round while Monica Niculescu reached the eighth finals
    together with Swiss Viktorija Golubic. The best performance in the
    aforementioned competition was obtained by Elena-Gabriela Ruse, who made it to
    the semifinals together with Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk. The two eventually
    conceded defeat to second-seeded Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova of
    the Czech Republic who eventually emerged as winners. For the performance she
    obtained in Melbourne, Radio Romania International has designated Gabriela Ruse
    athlete of the week.






    Elena-Gabriela Ruse was born on November 6th 1997, in Bucharest.
    She took up tennis at the age of four with Dinamo Bucharest Sports club. She
    reaped only one WTA tournament in Hamburg in 2021 and made it to the finals in
    Palermo. She is currently ranking 144th in the world ranking and the
    highest position she obtained last year when she ranked 51st. In the
    doubles competition she is presently ranking 40th.




    (bill)

  • January 23, 2023 UPDATE

    January 23, 2023 UPDATE

    MEETING The
    head of the Romanian diplomacy, Bogdan Aurescu, on Monday participated in a
    meeting of his EU counterparts held in Brussels. High on the agenda were talks
    on Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, which also involved the participation
    of Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba through a videoconference, as well
    as the latest developments in Sahel and other countries in West Africa. The EU
    officials also tackled the latest developments in Iran, Montenegro, Afghanistan
    and Venezuela as well as the launch of the EU mission in Armenia, which has an
    observation and monitoring mandate along the border with Azerbaijan. Aurescu
    referred to the need for carrying on the EU multi-dimensional support for
    Ukraine enabling it to cope with the cold season and a possible onslaught by
    the Russian troops. He mentioned that Romania supports the consolidation of the
    sanctions-regime against Russia by endorsing a 10th package of restrictive
    measures as well as the continuation of the assistance programmes for the third
    countries affected by the war. On the sidelines of the event, the Romanian
    official held talks with his counterparts from Italy, Belgium, Germany and the
    Netherlands. High on the agenda was Romania’s accession to Schengen.








    TENNIS Romanian – Ukrainian pair made up of Gabriela Ruse and Marta Kostyuk has
    qualified for the quarters of the women’s doubles at Australian Open, the
    year’s first Grand Slam tournament after a two-set win 6-3, 6-4, against the
    Czech pair Miriam Kolodziejova/Marketa Vondrousova. The two will be next playing
    Storm Hunter of Australia and Elise Mertens of Belgium who have eliminated
    Monica Niculescu of Romania and Viktorija Golubic of Switzerland.








    COVID-19 The number of Covid-19
    infections Romania registered last week dropped as compared to the previous
    week. The Ministry of Health has reported almost three thousand infections, 500
    less than between January 9th and 15th. Almost 900 people
    have been admitted to hospitals, out of whom 111 are presently being treated in
    ICUs. 38 related fatalities have also been reported all in patients with
    comorbidities. The number of flu infections is on the rise though.








    (bill)

  • January 21, 2023 UPDATE

    January 21, 2023 UPDATE

    ASYLUM Romania’s immigration department on Friday registered 40 asylum applications.
    Most of these, 24, were filed by citizens from Bangladesh. The General
    Inspectorate for Immigration has also issued 394 permits for those who applied
    for temporary protection, out of which 388 for Ukrainian nationals. Last year 4,398
    Ukrainian citizens applied for asylum in Romania and they benefit from all the
    rights stipulated in the national legislation. The total number of Ukrainians
    who entered Romania since the beginning of the invasion is around 3.5 million.
    Almost 29% of the accommodation facilities for these refugees have been
    occupied.










    DAY
    The Day celebrating the Union of the Romanian Principalities will be marked by
    the representations of the Romanian Cultural Institute in Chisinau, Rome,
    Warsaw, Venice, Istanbul and Vienna. The Romanian Cultural Institute in Chisinau
    stages a scientific event devoted to 164 years since the Union of the Romanian
    Principalities – Moldova and Wallachia. The Romanian Institute of Culture and
    Humanistic Research in Venice is staging a conference meant to emphasize the
    cordial Romanian-Italian relations during the rule of Alexandru Ioan Cuza (1859-1866)
    and the symmetric destiny of the two peoples in the process of completing their
    national unity. The Academia di Romania in Rome is also celebrating the Union
    day with a film screening about the portrait of Romanian ruler Alexandru Ioan
    Cuza made by photographer Carol Popp of Szathmari. The Romanian Cultural
    Institute in Warsaw will be screening on the Youtube platform a film with
    Polish subtitles entitled ‘The 1859 Union of the Romanian Principalities’
    directed by Radu Gaina. The Romanian Cultural institutes in Istanbul and Vienna
    are also screening films about the aforementioned union and the personality of
    ruler Alexandru Ioan Cuza.










    FAIR Romania boasts a national stand at the
    International travel Fair taking place in Madrid until Sunday. The stand has
    been developed by the Ministry of Entrepreneurship and Tourism jointly with
    several field associations and is promoting cultural trips, rural tourism and
    city-break packages. Among other things, the Romanian programme also includes
    meetings with relevant players from the public and private tourist sector with
    the view to introducing Romania’s touristic potential to Spain. At the same
    time, the fair is a good opportunity of promoting the city of Timisoara as
    European Capital of Culture in 2023.








    TENNIS Romanian tennis player Gabriela Ruse and her Ukrainian partner
    Marta Kostyuc have qualified for the round of 16 of the women’s doubles in
    Australian Open after their 3-6, 7-6, 6-0 win against Nicole Martinez of the
    USA and Ellen Perez of Australia in Melbourne on Saturday. Ruse and Kostyuk
    will be next taking on the winners of the game pitching the Czechs Miriam
    Kolodziejova and Marketa Vondrousova to Beatriz Haddad Maia of Brazil and Shuai
    Zhang of China. Also in the round of 16, the
    Romanian-Swiss pair made up of Monica Niculescu and Viktorija Golubic
    will be taking either on the fourth-seeded pair made up of Storm Hunter of Australia
    and Elise Mertens of Belgium or Timea Babos of Hungary and Kristina Mladenovic
    of France.






    AID
    The European Commission has approved a 44 million euro assistance scheme for
    the cattle breeders in Romania. The government in Bucharest has proposed this
    support scheme against the backdrop of the war Russia is presently waging on
    Ukraine. The aforementioned scheme consists of direct grants aimed at
    offsetting the effects of the latest price hikes in energy, fuel and fodder and
    helping the farmers to overcome the financial difficulties caused by the
    present geo-political crisis. The aid, which doesn’t exceed 250 thousand euro
    per farmer, will be granted until December 31st this year.










    (bill)

  • September 13, 2022

    September 13, 2022

    VISIT Romanian Defence Minister Vasile
    Dincu is paying a formal visit to Israel until Friday. According to a communiqué
    by the Defence Ministry, the Minister’s agenda includes talks with his Israeli
    counterpart, formal ceremonies at the ‘Yad Vashem’ memorial, the Holocaust
    Museum and the Children’s Memorial as well as visits to companies in the
    defence industry. The two ministers will be tackling topical issues such as
    security in the Middle East and the Black Sea, as well as the stage and
    prospects of bilateral cooperation in the field of defence.








    UKRAINE According to Ukrainian
    president Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukrainian forces have retaken more than 6000
    square kilometers from Russian control in September. Kyiv says that Russia has
    given up the idea of dispatching more troops to Ukraine and Zelensky makes an
    appeal to the West to step up armament deliveries to Ukraine, while the
    Ukrainian troops are trying to tighten control over a big portion of land
    retaken from Russia in the north-east. In another development, on Monday, the
    head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi announced
    that Ukraine and Russia seem to be interested in the IAEA proposal to create a
    buffer zone around the nuclear power plant in Zaporizhzhia, occupied by the
    Russian troops in March. Russia and Ukraine have been accusing each other of
    shelling Europe’s largest nuclear plant, which affected the buildings close to
    its 6 nuclear reactors, increasing the risk of a nuclear disaster.










    FORUM Moldova- Romania: Capital Bridges, is the
    name of the first high-level forum devoted to promoting capital markets on the
    two banks of River Prut, which is taking place in Bucharest today. According to
    organizers, the event has been structured on three panels and will have among invitees
    Romania’s Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca and his Moldovan counterpart Natalia
    Gavrilita. The two already held talks this morning during a working breakfast.
    The forum’s agenda includes topical issues such as the international context, ways
    of implementing favourable policies for the development of business and
    investment climate, and strengthening ties between the capital markets of the
    two countries, mainly against the background of the Republic of Moldova’s
    status of EU candidate.










    TENNIS Romanian tennis player Gabriela Ruse joined the main
    draw of the WTA tournament in Portoroz, Slovenia, a competition with more than
    200 thousand Euros in prize money, after her Monday’s win against Ziva Falkner
    of Slovenia. In the competition’s first round Ruse will be up against Lesia
    Tsurenko of Ukraine, which defeated the Romanian 6-3, 6-3 last year in the
    first round of Winner Open held in Cluj Napoca, western Romania. The
    competition’s main draw also includes Ana Bogdan, who will be playing Ajla
    Tomljanovic, quarter-finalist in the US Open. Ruse and Bogdan will be partners
    in the doubles contest.

    (bill)

  • Camioanele așteaptă 180 de minute  în PTF Giurgiu

    Camioanele așteaptă 180 de minute în PTF Giurgiu

    Camioanele așteaptă 180 de minute în Punctul de Trecere a Frontierei Giurgiu după ce partea bulgară a început lucrările de reabilitare în zona Podului Prieteniei şi la drumul naţional Ruse – Razgrad, informează ITPF Giurgiu.

    Timpul de aşteptare la controlul de frontieră pentru camioane, la ieşirea din România prin PTF Giurgiu, a ajuns sâmbătă la 180 de minute, după ce partea bulgară a demarat, la ora 11,00, lucrări de reabilitare la pavajul asfaltic din porţiunea bulgară a Podului Prieteniei care face legătura între Giurgiu şi Ruse şi la drumul naţional Ruse – Razgrad, potrivit susrse mai sus menționată.

    Pe sensul de intrare în ţară, timpul de aşteptare este de 40 de minute pentru camioane.

    Autoturismele aşteaptă la ieşirea din ţară, prin PTF Giurgiu, 20 de minute, iar pentru ieşire zece minute.

    În perioada 18 – 26 iunie, pe teritoriul Bulgariei va fi reabilitată suprafaţa drumului naţional I-2, pe relaţia Ruse – Razgrad, de la km 0+000 până la km I + 057/Podul Dunării, fiind realizate lucrări de reparaţie a carosabilului, au informat autorităţile bulgare.