Radio România Internațional

Tag: Servicemen

  • Troops deployment for Steadfast Dart 25

    Troops deployment for Steadfast Dart 25

    Little time is left until the opening of the biggest drill staged by NATO this year. Held in Greece, Bulgaria and Romania over February 10th and 21st, «Steadfast Dart 25» brings together 10 thousand servicemen from 9 allied countries able to participate in all kind of ground, air, sea and special operations. Through this complex troops deployment, the drill emphasizes the multi-domain capabilities of NATO and its unflinching commitment to collective defence. Spain, which is heading the Joint Special Operations Command, will deploy 3 thousand troops, as well as gear and transport planes. Special operations cannot be done by conventional troops as they involve special procedures for any situation, in order to reach strategic, operational or tactic objectives and to achieve military objectives.

    According to the Spanish Defence Ministry, several transport alternatives have been used for the deployment of troops and equipment, combining air, sea, rail and road transportation. So, the ship carrying the most part of the troops set sail in Almeria and landed the contingent in the Greek port of Alexandroupolis. The equipment and vehicles were carried by trains towards rail terminals in Dumbrăveni and Voila (Romania), and from there their deployment to Cincu, in central Romania, was made by road. Five air missions were scheduled for the transport of 261 tactic vehicles and 58 containers. This has been a complex, large-scale deployment mainly involving ground units and special operation units due to the large number of personnel, the equipment and vehicles involved.

    Several days ahead of the aforementioned operation, the Spanish servicemen part of the NATO battle Group deployed in Cincu had completed the Eagle Thunder exercise which focused on the implementation of the firing capabilities of the Spanish detachment with both daytime and nighttime activities. Initiatives such as «Eagle Thunder» are proving the detachment’s readiness and determination to contribute to the security and stability of the allies in the region, reiterating the allies’ commitment to the defence and deterrence policy of NATO’s eastern flank.

    The last F-16 Fighting Falcon, Romania purchased from Norway, has touched down at the 71 Air Base “General Emanoil Ionescu” in Câmpia Turzii (central Romania) to complete the 48 Fighting Squadron, which boasts 16 aircraft. The purchase of the F-16s and the related packages of goods and services, is aimed at increasing Romania’s security through the defence of the national/NATO airspace in time of peace and crisis situations through the Permanent Air Policing under NATO command.

    The Romanian Defence Minister, Angel Tîlvăr, has received the Italian ambassador to Romania, Alfredo Durante Mangoni. One of the issues on the agenda was the importance of carrying on the joint drills aimed at contributing to raising interoperability at the allied level. Italy’s contribution with troops and equipment to NATO drills «Steadfast Dart 25» and «Sea Shield 25» has been hailed. The Romanian official has conveyed thanks to Italy for the support it offered to the countries in NATO’s Eastern Flank, mainly for its participation in the strengthened air-policing missions in Romania, including this year as well as for its contribution to the allied structures on the Romanian territory.

    (bill)

     

  • June 15, 2023

    June 15, 2023

    GOVERNMENT Romania’s Prime Minister
    designate, Social-Democratic leader Marcel Ciolacu today comes before
    Parliament in Bucharest with a list of the new cabinet to be sworn in and with
    a fresh ruling plan. PSD and PNL enjoy the majority although the Democratic
    Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania, UDMR, has left the ruling coalition. The
    new Prime Minister’s ruling programme includes five major objectives; solving
    the prickly issue of the special pensions, the endorsement of the law on unitary
    wages, a new price cap on products, the development of the public systems in
    education and healthcare, raising the national output and the creation of better-paid
    jobs. The opposition USR and AUR have voiced discontent at the new ruling
    programme as well as at the new cabinet ministers and have pledged to cast a nay-vote.
    The UDMR have announced they will provide the quorum needed but their MPs aren’t
    going to participate in the voting. Nevertheless, the group has announced its intention
    of having Parliament cooperation with the coalition parties on various
    interesting projects. The Ciolacu government is expected to get endorsement
    from the MPs belonging to the other national minorities. However, there are Liberals
    and Social Democrats who will abstain from voting for the new Executive,
    although they are running the risk of being excluded from their own parties.










    POVERTY Over 34% of
    the Romanians were facing the risk of poverty and social exclusion in 2022, the
    highest rate in the EU, according to data released by Eurostat, the statistical
    office of the European Union. Romania is followed in the ranking by Bulgaria,
    Greece and Spain. The states with the lowest rates of people facing the risk of
    poverty are the Czech Republic, Slovenia and Poland. At the EU level, the risk
    of poverty and social exclusion was higher among women than men. We’ll have
    more on the issue after the news.








    DRILL Roughly 600 Romanian and allied
    servicemen are taking part until Friday in the Dacia Strike 23 multinational
    drill currently underway at the Smardan Training Ground close to Galati in
    eastern Romania. The drill focuses on the interaction between the joint command
    structures of the Multinational Division Southeast and the ground troops
    deployed. Dacian Strike 23 is the second biggest war drill the NATO troops
    have carried out in the past two weeks in the training ground of Smardan after ‘Saber
    Guardian 23’, an event that brought together a record number of troops and pieces
    of military equipment.








    MAE The Foreign Ministry in Bucharest
    has recommended the Romanians who travel to Pristina to encourage our football
    side in their game against the local side, in the EURO 2024 preliminaries, to
    enter Kosovo through Blaze, in North Macedonia. The only checkpoint between
    Serbia and Kosovo recommended is Merdare, which is very likely to be overcrowded
    due to additional security measures. The Romanian Foreign Ministry does not
    recommend the check points in northern Kosovo because they could be blocked or
    closed down due to the worsening security situation in the region. At the same
    time, the Ministry recalls the situation in the area remains unpredictable and
    recommends the Romanian football fans to refrain from chanting or posting
    political slogans, which could trigger a response from the hosts. The Romanians
    are also advised to avoid traveling at night as well as crowded or isolated places.








    WEATHER The weather in Romania is
    generally unstable with an overcast sky and thunderstorms in the mountains, the
    southwest and center. Heavy downpours are expected in the aforementioned areas
    as well as on isolated areas in the other parts of the territory. The highs of
    the day range between 20-31 degrees with a noon reading in Bucharest, where the
    weather is presently hot, of 30 degrees Celsius.




    (bill)

  • April 16, 2022 UPDATE

    April 16, 2022 UPDATE

    DAY
    Roman-Catholics and protestant believers are this Sunday celebrating Easter, whereas
    the Orthodox and Greek-Catholic believers are celebrating Palm Sunday. Orthodox
    believers on Saturday attended various religious processions dedicated to Jesus
    Christ’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem, which also marks the beginning of the last
    week of Lent, also known as the Passion Week, before Easter, which they
    celebrate on April 24th. Saturday was also the first day of Jewish
    Holiday of Passover, which celebrates the exodus of the Israelites from slavery
    in Egypt.








    RATING The trust signal conveyed by the Romanian government to foreign
    investors was also confirmed by the rating agencies Standard & Poor’s and
    Fitch, the Executive in Bucharest announced on Saturday. Growth prospects are
    underpinned by the unprecedented volume of national and EU funds, which are to
    be pumped into the main areas of the Romanian economy, such as industry,
    agriculture, energy, environment, digitization and also by the government
    development policies, the Executive went on to say. Romania’s Finance Minister Adrian
    Câciu hailed a recent decision by the financial rating agency Standard &
    Poor’s to reconfirm Romania’s Sovereign credit rating to ‘BBB minus’ with
    stable outlook. ‘This is another proof that the national policies of funding
    the economy were right’ Câciu says. According to Standard & Poor’s, Romania’s
    rating is underpinned by EU membership and international capital flows. At the
    same time the risks posed by the war in Ukraine are diminished by the prospects
    of absorbing a major volume of EU funds as well as by the low energy dependence
    on imports of natural gas and oil from Russia. However, the agency has significantly
    dropped the country’s growth estimates down to 2.1% and has increased estimates
    regarding the inflation rate, which in 2022 is expected to go up to 9% as
    compared to 6% forecast in December. Another major rating agency Fitch last
    week confirmed Romania’s rating at ‘BBB minus’, with negative outlook, the last
    notch in the investment-grade category.


    BNR Romania’s
    Central Bank (BNR) expects the country’s inflation rate to increase in the
    following months against the intitial forecasts. So, Romania’s inflation rate is
    going to exceed the level of 11.2% forecast in June. The phenomenon was caused
    by the latest price hikes in fuel and processed food against the war in Ukraine
    and the international sanctions imposed on Russia. In another development,
    although pressure for pay rises might be felt, at least in the sectors facing a
    shortage of qualified personnel, substantial pay rises are very unlikely to
    happen in the near future. We recall the annual inflation rate went up to
    10.15% in March from 8.5% in February reaching the highest level in the past 18
    years.










    INVICTUS A team made up of 20
    servicemen of the Romanian army, who got wounded in various operation theatres
    around the world are for a week participating in the Invictus Games underway
    this year in the Hague. They are competing in six sporting events, such as
    archery, athletics, rowing, powerlifting, cycling, swimming and sitting
    volleyball. According to the Defence Ministry in Bucharest, these games are
    designed to promote the respect and empathy for the sacrifice and trauma
    suffered by the wounded soldiers whose involvement in these activities is an
    opportunity for social re-integration and regaining self-confidence. This has
    been the Romanians’ third participation in the Invictus Games after those in
    Toronto, in 2017 and Sydney, a year later. The opening ceremonies in the Hague
    have also been attended by Romania’s Defence Minister Vasile Dincu.






    TENNIS Romanian tennis player Irina Bara on Friday qualified for the
    semifinals of the ITF tournament in Palm Harbor, Florida after a 6-3, 6-4 win
    against Grace Min of the USA. Bara has also qualified for the doubles finals
    together with Italian Lucrezia Stefanini after a 6-3, 6-1 win against Kayla Day
    and Ellie Douglas of the USA.




    (bill)

  • February 20, 2022

    February 20, 2022


    COVID-19 Most of the indicators used to assess the Covid-19 pandemic in Romania have lately been on a downward trend. Authorities announced over 76 hundred new cases on Sunday as well as 68 related fatalities. The largest number of infected persons since the onset of the pandemic in Romania was registered on February 1st, 40,018. Doctors in this country have pointed out that the pandemic isnt over yet and it is important that safety measures be respected and the vaccine rollout carried on. According to them, the other countries have resorted to lifting some restrictions thanks to the higher vaccination rates, unmatched in Romania. Authorities are presently considering a series of relaxation measures to be gradually applied, but have announced that a decision is to be made depending on the situation in hospitals across the country. According to Health Minister Alexandru Rafila, it is important that people protect themselves against SARS-CoV-2 and recommended that face covering be maintained. Experts have sounded the alarm against a fresh Omicron variant, which is more transmissible than the one dominant at present being also immune to some anti-viral treatment.



    TALKS US president Joe Biden is today meeting the National Security Council for talks on the situation in Ukraine. For the first time since the beginning of the crisis, Biden is convinced that Russian president Vladimir Putin has made a decision to invade Ukraine and a possible attack is only a matter of time. On Saturday at the security conference in Munich, the USA had again cautioned that an invasion in Ukraine would entail unprecedented sanctions for Moscow. Vice president of the United States Kamala Harris says that besides economic measures, the USA will continue to strengthen NATOs eastern flank. Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky told the Munich conference that Ukraine would not respond to provocations but defend itself against a Russian aggression. Ukraine is Europes shield against Russia, Zelensky also said. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg told the Munich conference that there is no sign on the pullout of Russian troops from the border with Ukraine. Also attending the conference in Munich, the head of the Romanian diplomacy, Bogdan Aurescu reiterated Romanias stand that the present security crises in the Black Sea is not a regional crisis but affects the entire Euro Atlantic security. Aurescu has underlined the importance for the countries in the region to be pro-active and cooperate in order to overcome the challenges.



    DAY 166 years were celebrated on Sunday since Romania abolished slavery among its Roma minority after more than five centuries. Under a law promulgated in 2011, this day has been celebrated in Romania ever since so that it may shed light on a history page not enough known in this country. The abolition process kicked off by political leader Mihail Kogalniceanu in 1837 was completed on February 20th 1856 through a decree issued by ruler Barbu Stirbei. Setting the Roma free has laid the foundation for the process of recovering the identity and memory of a community heavily tried by history, Romanian president Klaus Iohannis said in a message conveyed on Sunday.



    INVICTUS An invictus team made up of Romanian servicemen wounded in various operation theatres around the world is going to represent Romania at the Invictus Games due to kick off in the Hague in April, says a communique issued by the countrys Defence Ministry. This would be the third participation of this army team in the aforementioned international competition, after the editions in Toronto 2017 and Sydney 2018. 20 wounded servicemen are to compete in 7 sporting disciplines in the Invictus competition.



    SPORT The Romanian womens water polo selection conceded defeat to Germany 11-4 in Bucharest on Sunday in their last game in the European Championship qualifiers. Both sides had already been qualified for the prestigious competition. In the other game of the qualifiers, Slovakia secured a 22-9 win against Ireland. Germany ranks first in the group with 12 points, followed by Romania with 9, Slovakia with 6, Ukraine and Ireland each with one point. This qualification has been a first for our womens side.


    (bill)


  • April 14, 2019 UPDATE

    April 14, 2019 UPDATE

    COUNCIL Romania’s Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Petre
    Daea, on Monday will be chairing the proceedings of the EU Agriculture and
    Fisheries Council in Luxembourg. This is the third suchlike council headed by
    Romania since the country took over the EU rotating presidency. High on the
    agenda there are the post-2020 CAP reform package, regulations regarding
    strategic plans within the CAP – opinion exchanges on green farming, as well as
    research and agriculture.








    TENNIS A pair made up of Romanian tennis players
    Sorana Cirstea and Andreea Mitu on Sunday won the doubles finals of the WTA
    tournament in Lugano, Switzerland. In the finals, the Romanians clinched a 1-6,
    6-2, 10-8 win against Veronika Kudermetova of Russia and Galina Voskoboeva of Kazakhstan.
    This has been the first finals this year for the two Romanian players. Cirstea
    has four WTA titles won in doubles matches and five finals played, while Mitu
    has three titles and a finals.








    MARATHON Several thousands athletes participated on Sunday in the 9th
    edition of the Cluj Napoca International Marathon, in north-western Romania.
    The competition brought together athletes from 37 countries, such as the USA,
    India, Japan or Kenya. The competition had a section for children, which
    included the 400 and 800 meter races. According to organizers, several DJs
    played music during the event encouraging the athletes all along the race
    track.












    POLL
    Romania’s main opposition party, the National Liberal Party (PNL) estimates the
    turnout in the EU parliamentary elections on May 26th and the
    referendum on justice around 50%. Liberal leader Ludovic Orban believes the
    Foreign Ministry will open only few polling stations for the Romanians abroad voicing
    his concern about this situation. According to Orban, most of the Romanians who
    left the country did it because of the lack of prospects and the way in which
    the Social-Democrats ruled the country, and that means the Romanians abroad
    would vote for the opposition. The fact they aren’t allowed to cast their vote
    would affect the outcome of the elections. In another development, Calin
    Popescu Tariceanu, leader of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats in Romania,
    (ALDE) currently ruling the country together with the Social Democrats, has said
    that president Klaus Iohannis is using this referendum for a better start in
    the presidential race. Iohannis has recently announced the issues to be voted
    on during the referendum – a ban on amnesty and pardon for corruption offenses
    as well as a ban on emergency ordinances for crimes, penalties and judicial
    organization, correlated with the right of authorities to directly notify the
    Constitutional Court over these ordinances.










    SOLDIERS The four Romanian servicemen wounded in a bomb attack in
    Afghanistan on Saturday are now out of danger. An improvised explosive device
    went off close to the military vehicles of the Romanian Battalion 300 Saint
    Andrew on a patrol mission on that day. The explosion was followed by an attack
    with light infantry weapons by insurgents, which was repelled with support from
    the US ground and air troops. The four wounded soldiers were stabilized and
    transferred to the Kandahar Air base. In 2019, the Romanian army will dispatch
    780 servicemen to Afghanistan, the Romanian defense ministry announced last
    year. Romanian Battalion 300 participates in a NATO- coordinated mission, which
    has brought together 16 thousand servicemen from 40 countries. The most
    numerous contingents have been deployed by the USA, 85 hundred soldiers,
    Germany 13 hundred and Italy with 9 hundred.



    (translated by bill)

  • March 8, 2018 UPDATE

    March 8, 2018 UPDATE

    IWD The International Women’s Day is an opportunity to reiterate Romania’s commitment to promoting women’s rights and eliminating gender discrimination, the Foreign Ministry in Bucharest has announced. The institution has also described the day as an opportunity to consider the progress made in promoting women’s role and admitting their contribution to the development of modern society. Women were celebrated on Thursday in more than 50 countries around the world. Since 1975, the International Women’s Day has been celebrated on March 8th. Under a resolution endorsed two years later, the UN General Assembly acknowledged women’s role in the peace and development efforts in fighting discrimination and supporting women’s participation in the life of society.




    DEFENCE Romania’s Defence Minister, Mihai Fifor, on Thursday announced that a draft on amending the servicemen statute had been submitted to Parliament in Bucharest. According to Fifor, it was high time the military got the respect it deserved from the state institutions and citizens. The Defence Minister delivered a speech in Focsani, eastern Romania, during the repatriation ceremony attended by some Romanian troops who served in the Kandahar region in Afghanistan.




    DRILL Over 17 hundred Romanian and foreign servicemen are participating until March 15 in one of the biggest multinational drills staged by the Romanian Armed Forces in Dobrogea, south-eastern Romania, as well as in the Black Sea’s international waters. Spring Storm 18 exercise is based on a unique training concept during which naval, air and ground forces are carrying out amphibious and minesweeping operations in a landing area. The drill is part of NATO assurance measures adopted at the Alliance’s 2016 summit in Warsaw. The Romanian soldiers are training together with their counterparts from the allied and partner countries like the USA, France, Bulgaria, Georgia and Ukraine.




    RELATIONS The relationship between Romania and Serbia is very good and will be even better, said Romania’s president Klaus Iohannis on Thursday after talks with his Serbian counterpart Aleksandar Vucic. Serbia is our main partner in the Western Balkans, Iohannis has also said, adding that the ethnic Romanians in Serbia and the ethnic Serbians in Romania have an important role to play in consolidating the bridge between the two countries. Klaus Iohannis also said that a solution to the Kosovo problem would mean a huge step forward on the European path for the entire Western Balkans. We recall that Romania is one of the five EU member states yet to recognise Kosovo’s independence, a former Serbian province with a majority ethnic Albanian population. The Serbian president said his country is grateful for the support given by Romania on its path to Europe and that it is open to cooperation in different areas.