Radio România Internațional

Tag: Syria

December 9, 2024 UPDATE

Defense Ministry – The Romanian Defense Ministry (MApN) signals new disinformation actions in the online environment, especially on the TikTok platform. According to the MApN portal, InfoRadar, Romania’s borders and port infrastructure are targeted. One of the posts falsely accredits the idea that Romania’s borders will be closed and secured with military personnel, and the other presents, without any connection with reality, military equipment that is not in the Romanian Army’s equipment as being concentrated in the Port of Constanța, this being evidence, as the authors of the disinformation claim, of war preparations. The Ministry specifies that all this information is false and that its communication structures will continue to report cases of disinformation of the public opinion as they are identified. The National Audiovisual Council and The National Authority for Management and Regulation in Communications have notified the platforms Meta, TikTok, X and Google regarding their obligations in terms of combating disinformation, in accordance with the European regulation in the field.

Syria – On Monday, the EU called for a ‘peaceful and orderly’ transition in Syria, after the removal of the Bashar al-Assad regime from power. The head of EU diplomacy, Kaja Kallas, underlined that it was essential to maintain the territorial integrity of Syria, to respect the independence, sovereignty and state institutions of this country and to reject all forms of extremism. The Russian state media reports that the ousted president of Syria, Bashar al-Assad, and his family are in Russia and have received political asylum. The coalition of Syrian rebels and local officials have announced that they are working to transfer power and rebuild Syria together. Syrian Prime Minister Mohammad Ghazi al-Jalali has spoken publicly and has said he will remain in office until a new government is installed, that public institutions will be protected and that government officials must remain in office until a new government is formed. According to commentators, busy with the invasion of Ukraine, respectively with the conflict with Israel, Russia and Iran, the supporters of the Assad regime during the civil war of the last decade, have had no significant interventions against the rebels this time.

Weather – In Romania, in the next 24 hours, temperatures will be above the multi-annual averages specific to this date. The sky will be cloudy in the west, north and center of the country, and in the rest the clouds will be temporary. Light rainfalls will be reported in the center and northeast. There will be mixed precipitation in the mountain area and in the northern half of the country. The wind will blow moderately, with some intensification in the east and southeast. Maximum temperatures will range between 3 and 9 degrees Celsius. Meteorologists announce warmer weather than normal for this period throughout Romania, until January 6. Rain will be reported, especially in the first part of this interval, in the eastern, southern and intra-Carpathian regions, according to the four-week forecast issued by the National Meteorological Administration. The first month of winter is characterized by several phenomena, including snow, which, associated with intensification of the wind, will cause blizzards, quite often in the southern half and in the east.

Arrest – Horaţiu Potra, a local councilor in the town of Mediaş (central Romania), known as the leader of a group of mercenaries that operated in Africa, was arrested, Sunday evening, by Romanian prosecutors. His arrest was confirmed by his lawyers, who say that the charges are public incitement and non-compliance with the weapons and ammunition regime, being related to the arsenal found by investigators and a post on Facebook. Several weapons and sums of money were found in a car, in traffic, in Prahova county (south), which transported Potra and another person, who were allegedly on their way to Bucharest. Currently, the Prahova county prosecutors and police are conducting other searches in Ilfov (south), Sibiu (center) and Bucharest. The searches take place in several buildings owned by Potra, as well as in other spaces where it is assumed that there were meetings between him and persons suspected of involvement in perpetrating these crimes. According to the information published in the press, Potra is allegedly a supporter and the one who coordinates the security of the nationalist politician Călin Georgescu, accused of connections with Russia. Winner of the first round of the presidential election on November 24, round which was later canceled by the Constitutional Court of Romania, Georgescu claims that he does not know Potra and that he only knows things about him from the press.

Schengen – Austria will not oppose Romania and Bulgaria becoming full members of the European Schengen free travel area, at the meeting of interior ministers that will take place on Thursday in Brussels, the Austrian APA agency reported on Monday, quoted by Reuters, citing Austrian Interior Minister Gerhard Karner. We remind you that Romania and Bulgaria partially joined Schengen in March, by suspending air and sea border controls. Land border controls, however, remained in place due to opposition from Austria, motivated by Vienna’s concerns about illegal migration. Romania could thus enter the Schengen area 17 years after joining the European Union. (LS)

9 December 2024
October 30, 2023 UPDATE

MOTION The
Chamber of Deputies in Bucharest on Monday debated a simple motion to censor
Finance Minister Marcel Bolos, part of the Social Democratic- National Liberal
coalition cabinet. The opposition parties USR and Force of the Right, which
introduced the motion, believe he is responsible for increased taxation, as an
effect of applying fiscal measures that the government took responsibility for
in Parliament recently. The signatories also say that the main reason for the
budget deficit is the explosion in state spending, and draw attention to the
fact that measures taken by the government would not resolve the situation. USR
MP Claudiu Nasui, former minister of the economy, said that the new taxes hurt
small businesses, which will be forced to reduce their workforce, and bring up
prices for goods and services, which will have an immediate impact on the
population. In reply, Marcel Bolos said that Romania is at a crossroads, and
that concrete and sustainable measures are needed to overcome this hurdle. The Finance
Minister said that, absent this, there is a risk of losing access to European
funds. The vote for this simple motion is set for Tuesday.

VISIT The vice president of the European Commission for Values and
Transparency, Vera Jourova, held talks in Bucharest on Monday with the Romanian
president Klaus Iohannis. High on the agenda were the rule of law, the reforms
in justice, Romania’s accession to Schengen, the support for Ukraine and the
situation in the Middle East. She earlier met Justice Minister Alina Gorghiu
with whom she talked about the recommendations in the report on the rule of
law, the pension law, measures for the right way of assuring human resources,
proposed measures for digitization, AI and fighting online crime. In an
interview to the national radio station, Jourova said Romania is doing well
with the legal system, but there are new laws, which must be implemented so
that citizens may have access to a well prepared judicial system.

ISRAEL The Israeli army has
announced that it struck targets in Syria and Lebanon, in response to rocket
fire coming from these countries. In another development, new rocket attacks
launched from the Gaza Strip targeted, today, the south of Israel, the most affected
being the city of Netivot, where a residential block was hit, writes The Times
of Israel, noting that there were no victims. Palestinians in the north of Gaza
also said there had been intense air and artillery strikes as Israeli troops,
backed by tanks, launched a ground assault on the enclave. The Israeli military
say they have hit more than 600 targets in recent days, killing dozens of
terrorists and continuing to expand its ground operations in Gaza. After the
attacks of the Islamist group Hamas on October 7, more than 1,400 people have
been killed in Israel. On the other hand, Hamas authorities in Gaza say that
the toll of Palestinians killed in Israeli strikes has exceeded 8,300.

HANDBALL The Romanian women’s
handball champions, CSM Bucharest, secured a 29-24 away win against Buducnost
Podgorica of Montenegro in the Champions League’s Group A, on Sunday. The Romanians
obtained their third victory in this European season. After six stages, the
Romanian champions are in the 4th position with 6 points, in a group
dominated by Gyor Audi of Hungary. In the competition’s next stage, CSM, on
their home turf will be up against the Hungarian side Debrecen, on November 11.
On Saturday, in the competition’s Group B, vice-champions Rapid Bucharest outperformed
Krim Ljubljana from Slovenia, 27-22. In the next round, they will be playing at
home the Norwegian side Vipers Kristiansand, on November 12.

(bill)

30 October 2023
May 30, 2023 UPDATE

VISIT Romanian president Klaus Iohannis
will be receiving King Charles III of the United Kingdom at the Cotroceni
Palace in Bucharest on Friday. After the welcome ceremony, His Majesty will be
having face-to-face talks with the Romanian president, and is expected to meet
local authorities, representatives of civil society and members of the
diplomatic corps. The British Ambassador in Bucharest, Andrew Noble, has told the
AGERPRES news agency that His Majesty’s visit is private and that he will meet
the Romanian president as a courtesy gesture. This will be the first visit of a
British Monarch to Romania. King Charles III owns property in Romania, which he
used to visit regularly when he was Prince of Wales.

STRIKE After a new round of talks with the government in
Bucharest, trade unions in Romania’s education sector have threatened to carry
on their all-out strike as their request for a pay rise has been turned down by
the authorities. According to them, the government offered only the equivalent
of 800 euros in bonuses for teachers and 300 euros for the auxiliary personnel.
Over 15 thousand teachers protested in front of the government building and the
presidential palace on Tuesday calling on the Romanian president, who used to
be a teacher before becoming the country’s president, to get involved in the
process of finding a solution to their claims. President Iohannis has voiced
readiness to act a mediator in the talks aimed at finding a solution to the
crisis in Romania’s education system. He described the teachers’ claims as
natural and legitimate but underlined that overcoming the deadlock in education
and ending the strike are crucial for the good functioning of the school year
and for maintaining a stability climate in the educational system. Students in
schools across Romania have voiced their support for their teachers’ protests
and for their claims.

AID The National Committee for Emergency Situations, convened on
Monday by the Prime Minister of Romania, Nicolae Ciucă, approved the granting,
free of charge, of humanitarian aid to Syria. It is intended for the population
affected by the major earthquake produced on the territory of Turkey on
February 6, which caused casualties and big material damage in Syria as well.
The support is granted based on the humanitarian assistance request initiated
by Damascus through the European Civil Protection Mechanism. The Romanian
state, through the National Administration of State Reserves and the Romanian
Patriarchate, will send basic goods, food, medical devices and shelter items.
The transport will be carried out by air, with the support of the Ministry of
Defense.

UNITER The UNITER Gala, which awards the best Romanian theatrical
productions, will take place on June 12, in Timișoara, with a new concept,
specially created for the city in the west of the country, which holds the
title of Cultural Capital of Europe, the organizers announce in a press
conference on Monday. In the preamble, between June 7-10, three of the best
shows of 2022, nominated for the UNITER awards, will be presented: Oedipus King of the Marin
Sorescu National Theater in Craiova (south), Antonin Artaud. The
Cenci Family of the Vasile Alecsandri National Theater in Iasi
(east) and Seaside Stories of the Constanta State Theater
(south-east). The performances will be followed by interactive
question-and-answer sessions with the audience.

(bill&MI)

30 May 2023
May 30, 2023

Strike. Last night, the Romanian Government presented a new and better offer to the teachers who, on Monday, entered the second week of their all-out strike. Teaching and auxiliary teaching staff were offered two bonuses of 2,000 lei (400 euros) each, in June and October. For the non-teaching staff, the offer was 1,500 lei, also in the form of bonuses. At the same time, the unions were promised the conclusion of an agreement with the parties in the governing coalition that would cover all the aspects to be included in the future salary law. The Governments offer was sent to teachers from all over the country, and a response from them is expected regarding the continuation or not of the strike. Today, in the capital, teachers are holding a march. They want to call on the president of the country, Klaus Iohannis, himself a teacher, to get involved in finding a solution to their demands, especially the salary related ones. Last week, over 10 thousand Education employees participated in a rally in front of the Government headquarters. Meanwhile, the strike is particularly affecting final year students, who fear they wont be able to sit their exams on time.

Protests. In Romania, prison police officers are starting to protest. They stand against the increase of the retirement age to 65 years, as they claim that the life expectancy of employees in the system is 62 years. Today, they are wearing white armbands at work, and for tomorrow a temporary interruption of the activity for two hours is announced in several units across the country. Court clerks too have announced that they plan to join the protests started by the other categories of public employees. On Monday, hundreds of employees of the national Railways Company organized a protest rally. They accuse the continuous degradation of working conditions and the fact that there is no salary scheme in the company to stimulate performance and increase the efficiency of the employees. Trade unionists from the medical sector have also started a calendar of protests. Their claims concern the application of the provisions of the salary law to all employees, with reference to the categories of staff that have the lowest incomes, the granting of vacation vouchers and the modification of the calculation system for increments, night shifts and food allowances. More on this after the news.

Pensions. The Romanian Chamber of Deputies is to decide the final form of the bill amending the special pension law. Today, parliamentarians from the labor committee are analyzing the amendments submitted on Monday by the leaders of the PSD-PNL-UDMR governing coalition. The changes were requested by the European Commission, so that Romania could benefit from European funds, as the reform of special pensions is a milestone in the NRRP. According to the new amendments, the standard retirement age is correlated with the public pension system, in order to eliminate exceptions. For diplomats and court auxiliary personnel, the standard retirement age will increase to 65 years. The same principle will apply to military personnel, gradually, until 2035.

Syria. The National Committee for Emergency Situations, convened on Monday by the Prime Minister of Romania, Nicolae Ciucă, approved the granting, free of charge, of humanitarian aid to Syria. It is intended for the population affected by the major earthquake produced on the territory of Turkey on February 6, which caused casualties and big material damage in Syria as well. The support is granted based on the humanitarian assistance request initiated by Damascus through the European Civil Protection Mechanism. The Romanian state, through the National Administration of State Reserves and the Romanian Patriarchate, will send basic goods, food, medical devices and shelter items. The transport will be carried out by air, with the support of the Ministry of Defense.

Forum. The Romanian – Ukraine Bilateral Chamber of Commerce is organizing today, under the auspices of the Embassy of Ukraine in Bucharest, the “Rebuilding Ukraine” forum. The event is attended by government officials from the two countries, as well as representatives of Romanian companies that want to get involved in the reconstruction of Ukraine. Also, the project includes the organization of an annual conference, a forum and an exhibition.

UNITER. The UNITER Gala, which awards the best Romanian theatrical productions, will take place on June 12, in Timișoara, with a new concept, specially created for the city in the west of the country, which holds the title of Cultural Capital of Europe, the organizers announce din a press conference on Monday. In the preamble, between June 7-10, three of the best shows of 2022, nominated for the UNITER awards, will be presented: “Oedipus King” of the “Marin Sorescu” National Theater in Craiova (south), “Antonin Artaud. The Cenci Family” of the “Vasile Alecsandri” National Theater in Iasi (east) and “Seaside Stories” of the Constanta State Theater (south-east). The performances will be followed by interactive question-and-answer sessions with the audience. (MI)

30 May 2023
Unexpected seismic activity

Two earthquakes
rocked for two consecutive days the south-western regions of Romania. The first
with a magnitude of 5.2 on the Richter scale took place on Monday and had 16
aftershocks. The second one, more powerful with a 5.7 magnitude took place at a
depth of 7 kilometers and was also felt in other regions of Romania, including
in Bucharest. These two earthquakes came at a time when the death toll of those
that hit Turkey and Syria last week is on the rise. Romania’s main seismic area
is Vrancea in south-east, so the latest earthquakes in the country’s south-west
came as a surprise mainly to those studying the phenomenon. Here is the
director of the Institute for Earth Physics, Constantin Ionescu.

Constantin Ionescu:The area has rarely seen any earthquakes and
those that happened there before were of low magnitudes, of 3, 2, 1 degrees.
And it came as a surprise to us the fact that the area became active again. A
couple of earthquakes was reported in that area in the past but never with
magnitudes over 4 degrees. From the geological point of view, the tectonic
plates moved vertically. Both of them shared the same mechanism, it was a
tandem, so to say. And the second one wasn’t an aftershock.

There were no
victims but the first quake caused panic, which was probably fuelled by the
recent Turkish-Syrian tragedy. The two earthquakes had effects in three
counties in the country’s southwest though.

Here is now Raed
Arafat, the head of Romania’s Department for Emergency Situations.

Raed Arafat: The
effects of these two earthquakes have been felt in six towns and villages in
three counties, Gorj, Dolj and Mehedinţi. Fifty emergency calls have been
registered but people mainly called in about their cracked walls or to report some elements of masonry that had collapsed.
Initially there were rumors about a destroyed building, which eventually proved
false. Several panic attacks have also been reported by means of the 112
emergency number.

More serious issues
appeared in the Gorj county on the national road crossing the Jiu Gorges, which
was blocked by fallen boulders and the intervention of road workers was needed.
In Târgu Jiu, capital of the Gorj county, the tremors caused damage to the
buildings of the City Hall and the Prefect’s Office. They also caused
disruptions in the electricity and gas supplies, which resumed shortly.

State secretary
Arafat has drawn attention to the fact that panic can lead to a series of
mistakes during an earthquake and can even prove deadly. According to him
people must train to get a better reaction in situations like these. An
application, which can be accessed at the portal of the Emergency Situations
Department, comprises a series of recommendations on how to behave before,
during and after an earthquake.

(bill)

15 February 2023
February 15, 2023

MOLDOVA President Klaus Iohannis says Romania has stood and will
stand by the R. of Moldova and firmly condemns any foreign attempt at destabilising
this country. It is highly alarming to see public signs of attempts by the
Russian Federation to step in illegitimately and upset the democratic and
constitutional order of the R. of Moldova, a sovereign state that has chosen
its political direction through a free vote, the Romanian president said in a statement
issued on Wednesday. Klaus Iohannis reiterated that Moldova is not alone in facing
these challenges, and reconfirmed Romania’s unwavering support for the
sovereignty and territorial integrity of this country, within its
internationally recognised borders, and for its pro-European future. The
Romanian official also pointed out that Moldova belongs in the EU family, and
that this path is irreversible and must be followed with determination, courage
and ambition. The statement comes after on Monday the pro-Western president of
Moldova Maia Sandu announced Moscow was planning to force a change of the
political power in Moldova, using violence to destabilise the country.

AID Romania is sending further humanitarian
aid to Turkey and Syria in the wake of last week’s devastating earthquakes that
killed some 40,000 people. A new humanitarian flight by 3 Romanian Air Forces
aircraft today takes around 22 tonnes of goods donated by the Romanian
government to the people affected by the tremors in the 2 countries. Another 2
trains with basic necessity products have been already sent to Turkey, and 2
planes with humanitarian aid were sent to Syria on Tuesday. According to the UN,
9 million Syrian and 2.2 million Turkish nationals need aid. The Turkish Confederation
of Enterprises and Businesses says the disaster might cost the country 84 billion
US dollars.

UN The Romanian foreign minister
Bogdan Aurescu Tuesday had talks with the UN secretary general António
Guterres. The Romanian official was at the UN headquarters in New York, where
he was a speaker at the UN Security Council debate on Threats to international peace and
security: Sea-level rise: implications for international peace and security.
According to the foreign ministry, the 2 officials discussed climate change and
its consequences, as well as the situation in Ukraine one year after the start
of Russia’s illegal war of aggression. Bogdan Aurescu pointed out
that Russia’s irresponsible conduct, which violates the core principles of international
order, must end, and that it is particularly serious for a member of the UN
Security Council to have started this war. The Romanian foreign minister also
highlighted Romania’s support efforts, including the receiving of over 3.5
million Ukrainian refugees who have transited Romania. Current developments in
the R. of Moldova were also discussed.

DEFENCE Romania’s defence minister Angel Tîlvăr and the chief of
general staff Daniel Petrescu Tuesday took part in a meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group, held in Brussels
on the sidelines of the meeting of NATO defence ministers. According to the
Romanian defence ministry, since the start of Russia’s war of aggression
against Ukraine, Romania has provided shelter and aid to over 3.5 million
Ukrainian nationals who have transited the country, and has taken part in facilitating
the transit of nearly 12 million tonnes of grains from Ukraine to global
markets. Romania has stated repeatedly that the scope and regularity of the support
given to Ukraine must be maintained. Also on the sidelines of the meeting of
NATO defence ministers, Angel Tîlvăr had bilateral talks with his counterparts
from the UK, Ben Wallace, and Spain, Margarita Robles Fernandez. They discussed
the security situation in the Black Sea region and emphasised the need for
substantial Allied contribution to ensuring the effectiveness and credibility
of NATO’s defence posture on the eastern flank.

INFLATION The National Bank of Romania has revised its inflation
forecast for the end of this year from 11.2% estimated previously to 7%. According
to the Quarterly Inflation Report made public today by the central bank
governor Mugur Isarescu, at the end of 2024 the indicator will stand at 4.2%. Romania
has consolidated its position in the EU in terms of inflation, with the 9th
highest rate in the Union. Mugur Isărescu also said a balance must be achieved
between fighting inflation and avoiding a possible recession, and added that
the inflation forecast is marked by many uncertainties.

FOOTBALL CFR Cluj, the only Romanian team still
playing in the European competitions, Thursday takes on the Italian side Lazio Rome, away from home, in the
playoffs for the Conference League’s eighth-finals. The second leg of this
round is scheduled next week in Cluj-Napoca. According to a UEFA poll, the
Romanians are most likely to win. This season CFR Cluj finished the group stage 2nd in a group that also
included Sivasspor (Turkey), Slavia Prague (Czech Republic) and Ballkani
(Kosovo), while Lazio ended up in the Conference League playoffs after
finishing 3rd in its group, after Feyenoord (the Netherlands) and
Midtjylland (Denmark). (AMP)

15 February 2023
February 14, 2023

AMBASSADOR The new US ambassador to Romania, Kathleen Ann Kavalec is today
presenting her diplomatic credentials in Bucharest. The US diplomat is to be
received by Romanian president Klaus Iohannis and will be meeting the president
of the Chamber of Deputies, Marcel Ciolacu. Kathleen Ann Kavalec arrived in
Romania last week, when she was welcomed by the head of the Romanian diplomacy,
Bogdan Aurescu. Also today, the ambassadors of Turkey, Ozgur Kivanc Altan, of
Slovakia, Peter Hatiar and of Mexico, Amparo Erendira Aguiano Rodriguez are
expected to present their diplomatic credentials to president Klaus Iohannis.

INS According to data released by the National Institute for Statistics, in
January, the annual inflation rate in Romania went down to 15.1% from a 16.5%
in December 2022. Prices in food products increased over 22% in December while
non-food products by 12%. Services also saw a 10% increase in their prices. Romania’s
Central Bank expects the inflation rate to go down faster than initially
predicted and reach single digits in the last quarter of the year thanks to the
latest schemes of capping and subsidizing energy prices. According to the same
sources, the Romanian economy saw a 4.8% growth last year. The European
Commission on Monday forecast a 4.5% economic growth for Romania in 2022 and
2.5% this year.

RESPONSE The European Parliament has voiced solidarity with the
victims of the earthquake that hit Turkey and Syria last week and has issued a
statement entitled The European Response to the Earthquakes in Turkey and
Syria’. The document has been presented by the European Parliament president
Roberta Metsola, who says that the European Civil Protection Mechanism has been
activated immediately and humanitarian aid dispatched. The EU Commissioner for
Crisis Management, Slovenian Janez Lenarčič has announced a donors’ conference
and the MEPs held a minute of silence in the memory of the victims of the disaster.
In the meantime, rescue teams are fighting to find survivors in spite of the
small chances 8 days after the earthquake. The death toll has exceeded 31
thousand in Turkey and 57 hundred in Syria.

PLANES Two cargo planes of the Romanian Air Forces carrying
goods for the victims of the earthquake of February 6th are taking
off today from Bucharest. One of this planes is to touch down in Gaziantep,
Turkey and the other in Beirut, Lebanon as Syria is still under sanctions due
to the authoritarian rule of President Bashar al-Asad, which asked for international
help only a couple of days ago. Romania has also dispatched humanitarian aid to
Turkey by means of its railway network. The first freight train loaded with
goods, which left Romania on February 11th, has already reached its
destination. In another development, a team from the dog training center in Craiova,
southern Romania, has also left for Turkey, a country Romania is presently helping
with rescue teams and necessity goods.

WEATHER Temperatures in Romania are higher than usual for this time of the year
and the sky is overcast mostly in the northern regions. Precipitations have
been reported on small areas in the north-east, east, north and the west of the
country. Moderate breeze has also been reported in some regions and the highs
of the day range between zero and 10 degrees centigrade. The noon reading in
Bucharest was 7 degrees.

(bill)

14 February 2023
Romania to reinforce its high-risk buildings

The devastating earthquakes that last week hit Turkey and Syria have prompted the Romanian authorities to take measures for the reinforcement of the buildings, which could be affected by a strong earthquake. Several projects in this respect have been carried out in the past years but with little results and thousands of historical buildings in Romanias major cities could collapse in the event of a powerful earthquake.

A series of measures on carrying out research and restoration works to old vulnerable buildings, is high on the agenda of the government proceedings in Bucharest, upon request from the countrys Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca. 27 hundred buildings in Romania, most of them in capital city Bucharest, are presently running the risk of being razed to the ground by an earthquake like those that rocked Turkey and Syria last week.

Two programmes aimed at consolidating these buildings are presently benefitting from funds: a first one that is run by the Ministry of Development and a second one, which has been included in the National Plan of Recovery and Resilience Romania has assumed with the EU.

Prime Minister Ciuca has called on those responsible to present the measures that are to be taken by the Ministry of Development to step up the programme it was entrusted after the severe situation in Turkey and Syria, where thousands of people have been killed by last weeks quakes.

The Prime Minister has drawn attention to the problems that reside in the delays of implementing programmes, which already exist.

Nicolae Ciucă: “These are the problems we are currently facing in Romania. We are doing talks and planning but when it comes to implementing these plans, we come with a series of arguments to justify the delays in implementing them. And this is what I believe has led to this situation we are seeing today, the lack of coherence in implementing the decisions made in this respect.”

In turn, state secretary with the Ministry of Development, Marin Țole, says that both residential and public buildings such as schools, kindergartens and hospitals are to be consolidated. The Romanian official has also mentioned a special mechanism to simplify the way of identifying the high-risk buildings.

Marin Țole: “Weve tried to conduct research on all high-risk buildings, of the first and second degree, so that the state may intervene through its Territorial-Administrative Units for their consolidation with funds from the national budget or from those made available by the European Commission”

The National Plan for the consolidation of buildings relies on a budget of 142. 8 million euros and the programme known as The Wave of Restoration part of the National Plan of Recovery and Resilience has a budget over 500 million euros. The latest big earthquake that hit Romania was on March 4th 1977 when 15 hundred people lost their lives. And according to statistics, Bucharest is the European capital that is most at risk from earthquakes.

(bill)

13 February 2023
February 8, 2023 UPDATE

EARTHQUAKE The massive earthquakes that hit Turkey and Syria on Monday killed around
12,000 people, according to the latest reports. Two-thirds of the total
casualties are reported in Turkey. Tens of thousands of people were injured. In
spite of the freezing cold, rescuers are struggling to find survivors. President Tayyip Erdogan declared
disaster areas in the 10 provinces affected by the quakes, and introduced a
3-month state of emergency. Seventy countries have so far provided support in
the search and rescue operations. Romania joined the international aid efforts
and sent nearly 120 search and
rescue specialists, doctors and nurses, as well as search and rescue dogs.
Many Romanian nationals have contacted the Embassy in Ankara to report the situation there, but few of them
requested to be repatriated. Turkey is located in one of the world’s
main seismic areas. In 1999, an
earthquake occurring in Düzce, in the north of the country, killed over 17,000 people. As regards Syria, Romania is going to provide mostly humanitarian aid,
following that country’s request to the EU Civil Protection Mechanism.

PATRIOT Romania has received a second Patriot system, out of the total
four, that were contracted for the first stage of the country’s Air Force
equipping programme. According to the defence minister Angel Tilvar, the four
systems represent the first stage in achieving state-of-the-art ground-based
air defence capability, which can be fully integrated into the NATO system.
Patriot systems were first delivered to Romania in 2020, and 2023 is the year
when the first stage of the equipping programme is to be fully completed,
according to the Defence Ministry. The Patriot system is one of the most
advanced air protection systems of the US military arsenal. It is a mobile
system that usually includes a powerful radar, a control station, a power
generator, launch stations and support vehicles.

EU The European Council on Thursday will hold a summit in Brussels to
discuss the war in Ukraine, the EU economy and migration. A video-conference
chaired by the European Council President, Charles Michel, was held on Tuesday
and was also attended by Romanian President Klaus Iohannis, who said talks
focused on the support granted to Ukraine, consolidating the competitiveness of
the EU economy and implementing concrete measures of combating illegal
migration. Although Schengen enlargement is not officially on the agenda,
President Iohannis might approach it informally in the plenary or during
bilateral meetings with his counterparts.

MOTION The Chamber of
Deputies Wednesday dismissed the simple motion tabled by the opposition against
the interior minister Lucian Bode. The document signatories accuse Bode of plagiarism
and blame him for Romania’s failure to join the Schengen area. In Monday’s
debates on the motion, Lucian Bode argued that the opposition’s claims were
untrue and prompted by the forthcoming elections.This is the
second failed motion against minister Bode, after the one in October.

PROTESTS Members of the Sanitas Trade Union Federation Wednesday held
protest rallies in Bucharest, for the 3rd consecutive day, picketing
political party offices. Several hundred unionists from around the country
protested against the Salaries Law and the under-financing of healthcare
institutions and social assistance in Romania. The list of demands includes a
minimum 15% pay raise. The unionists warned that unless the authorities meet
their demands, further protests may be planned. (E.E., A.M.P.)

8 February 2023
February 28, 2020 UPDATE

Government — In Bucharest, the PM designate Florin Citu on Friday submitted in Parliament the list of ministers and the governing program of his cabinet, after they were approved by the National Liberal Party’s executive bureau. The only change to the membership of the new government is at the finance ministry, a portfolio previously held by Florin Citu, who was replaced by Lucian Heius. The PM designate says he will negotiate with the parliamentary parties, as of Monday, the formation of a majority and he is asking the Social Democrats not to delay the timetable for the investiture of the new government. The latter claim however that the list of ministers presented without previous discussions with the parliamentary parties that should have led to the formation of a majority clearly shows that the Liberals are set to trigger off early elections. Similar opinions were expressed by the representatives of the center rightist Save Romania Union, the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats, the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania and the center leftist Pro Romania party. The People’s Movement Party (center right) representatives say they will go to consultations with the Liberals. Florin Citu’s nomination by president Klaus Iohannis took place after the Constitutional Court on Monday ruled as unconstitutional the re-designation of Ludovic Orban as interim PM. His government had been dismissed earlier this month through a motion of no confidence.

Coronavirus Romania — In Romania another two persons — a woman from Timisoara (in the west) and a man from Maramures (in the north) – have been infected with the new coronavirus. They have been hospitalized and are receiving treatment in two local quarantine centers. At present, 3 cases of infection with the new coronavirus have been reported in Romania, the first patient being a man from Gorj (in the south) who is now in a good state in a Bucharest hospital. He seems to have recovered from the virus infection and he will be tested again in the coming days. All the three patients have been in contact with people from Italy, the European country most affected by the coronavirus. The interim health minister Victor Costache has given assurances that around 85% of the persons infected with the virus develop mild or moderate forms of infection. According to a statement from the governments Group for Strategic Communication, 47 persons are in quarantine at the moment and over 8,300 are being monitored at home. The statement also reads that two Romanian citizens infected with the coronavirus on the Diamond Princess cruise ship, which has been quarantined in the Japanese port of Yokohama, are now in hospital in Japan and are in good condition.

WHO – The World Health Organization on Friday increased the risk assessment of the coronovirus to very high across the world. The WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the increasing number of new cases and of countries affected in the past days was really concerning. He showed that 24 cases of COVID-19 were exported from Italy to 14 countries and 97 cases were exported from Iran to 11 states, while the average number of new infections in China — 329 cases reported in the past 24 hours — has reached the lowest level in more than a month. The coronavirus has spread to Europe with the Netherlands and Northern Ireland reporting the first cases of contamination. All public schools were closed in Japan and Saudi Arabia banned foreign pilgrims from travelling to Mecca. South Korea and Iran also cause concern. The virus has contaminated over 80,000 people and has caused the death of almost 3,000 around the world, mostly in China. More than 50 countries have been affected. Stock exchange shares have seen new plunges, facing the most difficult week since the financial crisis of 2008.

Refugees — Turkey started on Friday to allow the refugees from its territory (around 3.7 million people, mostly from Syria) to head for Europe. The Turkish authorities say they took the measure because they did not receive enough international support and had no other choice. News agencies comment that Turkey’s move is actually an attempt to force the Europeans to put more pressure on Syria and its ally Russia, in the clashes from the Syrian province of Idlib, where tens of Turkish soldiers were killed. The Bulgarian PM will meet Monday with the Turkish president after groups of migrants already reached the Bulgarian border. ‘We are concerned that the Turkish border guards have withdrawn from the frontier” said the Bulgarian PM. Greece and Bulgaria have consolidated measures at their land and sea borders. A Turkish official warned that the world should know that the Syrian refugees are a problem of the entire world, especially of the countries in the region and Europe, not only of Turkey. The EU retorted by asking Ankara to observe the 2016 agreement under which it committed to stop the migrants’ wave in exchange for financial aid. (translation by L. Simion)

28 February 2020
October 16, 2019 UPDATE

Turkey — The Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan will meet Thursday with the American vice- president Mike Pence who is heading the US official delegation on a visit to Ankara, in an attempt to obtain a ceasefire in northern Syria, the Turkish presidential administration announced on Wednesday, according to France Press. Erdogan had previously announced that the American officials would only have talks with their Turkish counterparts. The Kremlin announced that the Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke on the phone with his Turkish counterpart Tayyip Erdogan about the Syrian conflict and invited him to visit Russia in the next few days. The two leaders underlined the need for preventing a conflict between the Turkish and Syrian units in northern Syria where Ankara started an offensive. The US announced the pullout of the 1,000 US soldiers still deployed in that area, but pointed out that it would keep the 150- strong Al-Tanf garrison at the border with Jordan. One week ago Ankara launched an offensive targeting the Kurdish militias People’s Protection Units YPG, an ally of the West in the anti-Jihadist fight.

Strasbourg — The European Parliament on Wednesday postponed the vote for validating the future EC headed by Ursula von der Leyen. The vote had been scheduled initially for October 23 during next week’s plenary session of the EP in Strasbourg. The vote was postponed as the candidates for European Commissioner of Romania, Hungary and France were rejected during the validation process within the EP on grounds of conflict of interest or ethical problems. Ursula von der Leyen and her team were to start their mandate on November 1 but the rejection of the 3 candidates put it on hold.

Exercise — The ‘Rear Admiral Horia Macellariu corvette is participating from October 15 to 17 in a drill in the Serpents’ Island area and in the Black Sea international waters together with the Pryluky missile carrier from Ukraine and the American destroyer USS ‘Porter’, the Romanian Navy Staff officials announced, adding that the 3- party exercise contributes to the consolidation of the partnership between Ukraine and the NATO member states in the naval forces domain. (update by L. Simion)

16 October 2019
October 9, 2019 UPDATE

Attack — The EU, NATO, the UN have reacted to the military offensive Turkey launched on Wednesday in northeastern Syria, a few days after the withdrawal of the American troops from the area. The president of the European Commission on Wednesday called for the cessation of the military operation and warned that, if Ankara intended to create a safe area, it would not receive any European funding. In turn, the NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said Turkey’s action in Syria should be proportionate and measured, adding that “It is important to avoid actions that may further destabilize the region, escalate tensions and cause more human suffering.” The president of the UN Security Council the South-African ambassador Jerry Matthews Matjila called on Turkey to protect civilians and exercise maximum restraint. An emergency meeting of the UN Security Council was scheduled for Thursday meant to discuss the Turkish offensive. Turkish planes on Wednesday bombed the region of Ras al – Ain, on Syria’s northern border with Turkey. The Turkish president called the operation ‘Spring of Peace’ saying that the targets are the Islamic state and the YPG Kurdish militias which Ankara considers the allies of PKK, a party forbidden in Turkey. The Turkish president added the ‘safe zone’ cleared of Kurdish militias will also house Syrian refugees. An alliance of the Kurdish and Arab fighters announced the air strikes already killed and wounded people.

Revolution file — The first court date in the December 1989 revolution file was set by the Supreme Court for November 29. The pre-trial hearing will take place without the access of the public. In this file, the former leftist president Ion Iliescu was prosecuted for crimes against humanity. The former deputy prime minister Gelu Voican Voiculescu and general Iosif Rus, the former head of the Military Aviation were prosecuted for the same crimes in the same file. Prosecutors claim that Ion Iliescu was the head of a dissident group made up of military officials and civilians, whose aim was to remove from power the former dictator Nicolae Ceausescu but to maintain Romania in the sphere of influence of the former USSR.

Nobel Prize — Researcher John B. Goodenough of the USA, M. Stanley Whittingham of Great Britain and Akira Yoshino of Japan on Wednesday received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for 2019, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences announced. The three were made laureates for the development of lithium-ion batteries. Through their research the Nobel prize in chemistry winners have set the basis for a wireless society and without fossil fuels. The Nobel Prize in Literature will be awarded on October 10 and that for Peace on October 11. The Riksbank Sveriges Prize in Economic Sciences in memory of Alfred Nobel will be announced on October 14.

Holocaust — Each year on October 9 Romania pays homage to the victims of the Holocaust. October 9 was chosen for this commemoration as on this day in 1941 the deportation of Jews from Romania to Transdniester. The Romanian Foreign Ministry paid homage to the victims of the Holocaust expressing solidarity with the survivors of the tragic events of WWII. The Foreign Ministry officials recall that Romania made significant efforts of late to assume its past, condemn the denial of the Holocaust and of anti-Semitism. On Tuesday, President Klaus Iohannis promulgated the law under which the National Museum of History of the Jews and the Holocaust in Romania will be set up. The museum will be based in Bucharest and will host a permanent exhibition about the history of the Jewish communities on Romania’s territory from the 17th century until the present time. (update by L. Simion)

9 October 2019
August 7, 2019 UPDATE

VISIT The President of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, will be received at the White House on August 20 by the US President Donald Trump. The announcement was made last night in Bucharest and Washington. The White House news release reads that President Donald Trump looks forward to celebrating together with his Romanian counterpart 30 years since the fall of communism in Romania and the 15th year of Romanias membership in the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation. The White House also announced that the 2 leaders will discuss how best to meet the many shared security challenges facing the United States and Romania and ways to advance fair and reciprocal trade and energy partnerships. According to the Romanian Presidency, Klaus Iohannis will emphasise that Romania will continue to be a reliable strategic partner and a responsible and trustworthy ally of the US.

CARACAL INVESTIGATION Romanian investigators Wednesday resumed searches at the Caracal home of Gheorghe Dincă, who alleged, after being apprehended more than a week ago, that he had killed and then incinerated 2 teenagers. On Tuesday, the investigators found in a forest near Caracal new bone and tooth fragments, which forensic experts found to be human. So far, only traces of 15-year old Alexandra Macesanus DNA were found in the ashes at Gheorghe Dincăs residence. A number of people were questioned and storage devices were searched. An outrageous series of mistakes made by the authorities in relation to the case has already led to high-level dismissals and resignations. The prosecutor division of the Higher Council of Magistrates requested the Judicial Inspection unit to check the activity of the Directorate Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism and the prosecutors offices attached to courts, focusing on the way of handling criminal cases involving human trafficking and child trafficking, as well as offences like kidnapping and manslaughter in cases of missing persons. On Wednesday, State Secretary with the Interior Ministry Raed Arafat presented PM Viorica Dăncilă with a report on ways to improve the emergency call tracking system. Arafat coordinates an inter-ministerial committee set up in late July in the wake of the Caracal case.

NAVY The Romanian Black Sea port of Constanţa launched a series of events devoted to Navy Day, traditionally celebrated on August 15. On Wednesday, the Day of sea resources and navy education, military divers held diving workshops for the 80 winners of a Facebook competition. Also, the military port hosted a ceremony welcoming the Mircea Training Ship from a sail devoted to the celebration of the vessels 80 years in the service of the Romanian Navy. Mircea sailed more that 8,500 miles in 93 days and stopped in 12 European ports, welcoming over 12,000 visitors on board. Until August 15, other Danube and Black Sea ports will also host concerts, book launches and interactive workshops devoted to the Romanian Navy Day.

REPATRIATION A group of 15 people, Romanian citizens and their Syrian families, were repatriated on Tuesday via Turkey, the Romanian Foreign Ministry announced. The operation was completed with support from the Romanian embassies in Damascus and Ankara, of the Romanian Consulate in Istanbul and of Romanias Honorary Consul in Iskenderun. The Foreign Ministry also mentioned that since the start of evacuation operations in Syria, in 2011, 784 Romanian citizens and their families have been repatriated. At present, the Romanian Embassy in Damascus provides assistance and consular protection to citizens from various states, including Australia, Canada, France, the Republic of Moldova, Portugal, and others, based on individual requests.

DIASPORA Nearly 9,000 Romanian citizens who intend to vote in this autumns presidential election, whether by post or in polling stations abroad, had enrolled on the dedicated online platform until Wednesday. The Romanian citizens who wish to vote by mail must fill in an online form posted on www.votstrainatate.ro, enclosing a scan or photo of their ID and a copy of the document proving their right to stay in a foreign country. The registration forms will be active until September 11. Approximately 9.7 million Romanians live abroad, according to data communicated by 70 diplomatic missions and centralised by the Ministry for the Romanians Abroad.

(translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

7 August 2019
October 27, 2018

DST – Romania will revert to winter time on Saturday to Sunday night. Clocks will be shifted back one hour, and 4.00 oclock will become 3 oclock, local time. Consequently October 28 will have 25 hours and will be the longest day of the year. The move is meant to balance the practice of setting the clocks forward 1 hour from standard time during the summer months, in order to make better use of natural daylight and reduce the consumption of electricity. According to a poll conducted across Europe and made public in August, 84% of the respondents would like their country to maintain the summer time and not to shift to wintertime any longer. Many of the respondents said the shift causes fatigue, insomnia, dizziness, lack of focus and energy. According to the European Commission, the EU member states should decide upon the issue. The EC calls on the EU member states to make public their choice by the end of April 2019. If the timetable set by Brussels is observed, the shift operated on March 31, 2019 will be the last compulsory shift to the summer time. The EU member states are currently grouped into three different time zones: Western Europe, Central Europe and Eastern Europe.

AIR FORCES – The head of the Canadian Royal Air Force, general lieutenant Alexander Donald Meinzinger, is today paying a visit to the Mihail Kogălniceanu airbase in south-eastern Romania, where he will meet with the head of the Romanian Air Force, general Viorel Pană and with the Canadian unit dispatched at Mihail Kogălniceanu. The 135 strong unit is carrying out NATO air policing missions, alongside members of the Romanian Air Force. These missions are aimed at developing response and deterrence capabilities, sources with the Romanian Defence Ministry say.

COLECTIV – A show inspired by the drama around the fire-ravaged Colectiv nightclub in 2015 is staged on Saturday and Sunday at the National Dance Centre in Bucharest. Titled “153 seconds, the show starts with the story of a survivor. The project has been coordinated by director Ioana Păun, who has collected testimonies made by the victims and opinions expressed by sociologists and psychologists and then staged a show on resignation and the possibility of making a change. The title “153 seconds comes from the duration of the fire which ripped through Colectiv, taking the lives of 65 people. On Tuesday, October 30, its three years since the tragedy struck the Bucharest-based club. We recall it was followed by massive protests which deplored corruption at the level of the central and local administration and led to the resignation of the Ponta-led cabinet.

EUROPEAN FUNDS – Since joining the EU, back in 2007, Romania has had at its disposal European funds worth over 45 billion Euros to develop the country, says the European Commissioner for Regional Policy, Corina Creţu. According to her, the cohesion policy is meant to improve the living standards of the European citizens, and the results are visible in Romania, too. Corina Creţu will pay an official visit to Bucharest next week, where she will meet with high ranking Romanian officials and will have talks on the future of the European cohesion policy.

SYRIA – Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel are today meeting in Istanbul to attend a summit on Syria, meant to consolidate a fragile truce and to give an impetus to the efforts that are being made to find a political solution to civil war, FP reports. The conflict in Syria has taken a toll of 360,000 people, since 2011. The setting up, under the UN aegis, of a committee to begin drafting a new fundamental law for Syria seems to be a major challenge, given the current stand taken by the regime in Damascus. Attending the Istanbul Summit will also be the UN Special Envoy for Syria, Staffan de Mistura.

SWINE FEVER – A case of African swine fever was confirmed on Saturday in a household in Vrancea county, eastern Romania, the National Sanitary Veterinary and Food Safety Authority has announced. The area has been isolated, disinfection measures have been taken and the line authorities have set up checking points on the main roads. Over 1,000 African swine fever outbreaks have been confirmed in 15 counties in Romania so far, and no less than 350,000 pigs have been culled. Romania has requested support from the EU to offer damages to the affected farmers.

SPORTS – Romanian tennis player Marius Copil (no.93 ATP) is today facing German Alexander Zverev, second seeded and no.5 ATP, in the semi-finals of the Basel tennis tournament. Copil has previously defeated American Taylor Fritz and is playing his second match in Basel with a top 10 tennis player, after he surprisingly defeated Croat Marin Cilic, no.6 ATP, in the eighth finals. Playing in the other semi-final are first-seeded Roger Federer of Switzerland and seven seeded Daniil Medvedev of Russia.

WEATHER – The highs of the day range from 17 to 25 degrees C. The noon reading in Bucharest was 17 degrees C.

27 October 2018
Bucharest, on the situation in Syria

The President of
Romania Klaus Iohannis and the Romanian Foreign Ministry did not hesitate to
express the country’s position with respect to the Western operation in Syria,
this past weekend, initiated a week after the chemical attack in Douma that
Damascus is thought to have orchestrated. Shortly after the joint operation of
the USA, UK and France, President Iohannis reiterated Romania’s solidarity with
the actions of its strategic partners. Romania once again condemns the use of
chemical weapons in Syria, which, the President said, is unacceptable. In turn,
the Foreign Ministry describes the West’s move as a firm reaction to the
atrocities that made so many victims among civilians in Douma, who are already
struggling with the devastation caused by a war that must be ended as soon as
possible.

Bucharest
reiterates the need for a solution to the conflict in Syria, which caused
suffering among civilians, and says it is vital for all parties to continue to
support actively the UN actions designed to put an end to this crisis. The
Foreign Ministry also argues that the chemical attack must be investigated
immediately, independently and impartially, and requests that the perpetrators
be held liable.

The French
Defence Minister Florence Parly has stated that the targets of the operation in
Damascus were the main research centre and two production centres that are part
of Bashar al-Assad regime’s clandestine chemical weapons programme. After the
operation, the US President Donald Trump used the phrase mission accomplished,
while Washington’s representative at the UN, Nikki Haley, told an emergency
meeting of the Security Council that the US was ready for new strikes, in the
event of another chemical attack in Syria.

In turn, British
PM Theresa May said there had been no alternatives to a military strike, and
described the Western operation as limited and targeted.

Meanwhile,
international experts working with the Organisation for the Prohibition of
Chemical Weapons Sunday has initiated an investigation into the presumed
chemical attack in Douma, which killed scores of people. Fieldwork will likely
be difficult, as investigators are expected to conduct their research, a week
after the events, in an area under the control of Damascus authorities and of
the Russian military police and devastated by a 5-year long siege.

According to the
World Health Organisation, nearly 500 people in Douma have symptoms consistent
with exposure to toxic chemicals. (Translated by Ana Maria Popescu)

16 April 2018