Radio România Internațional

Tag: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy

  • February 15, 2025 UPDATE

    February 15, 2025 UPDATE

    MOTION The opposition SOS Romania has announced it will table a censure motion against the government led by Social-Democrat Marcel Ciolacu, a document also assumed by the opposition AUR MPs and signed by 125 MPs. The opposition USR MPs say they will announce whether they support or not the move. In turn, the ruling coalition has given assurances the motion stands no chances to get endorsed. No PSD MP will say yes to the censure motion against the Ciolacu government says the vice-president of the Chamber of Deputies, Social Democrat Daniel Suciu. He says the move initiated by the opposition would jeopardize the country’s stability. The PNL interim president, Catalin Predoiu, says that the Liberals will defend the government through their vote. Also on Monday, Education Minister, Daniel David, is expected to attend the ‘Government Hour’ hosted by the Chamber of Deputies, upon an AUR request. The AUR MPs are criticizing the measures proposed by the minister on the elimination of the compulsory studying of geography and history by high-school students. AUR has called for keeping the aforementioned subjects in the school programme so that they may contribute to the education of the new generations.

     

    DNA Romanian prosecutors have placed the head of the Joint Logistic Command of the Romanian Army, General Catalin Stefanita Zisu, under legal control on bail for abuse of office with aggravating consequences – according to sources withy the National Anti-Corruption Directorate, known in Romania as DNA. The bail in Zisu’s case stands at 200 thousand Euros, which he must make available in seven days. Retired colonel Lucian Amoraritei has also been charged on several counts, such as forgery, use of forgery and abuse of office. Businessman Ionel Olteanu is also involved with the case. According to prosecutors, between 2022-2023, the two army officers approved the settlements of the invoices issued, although they knew that part of the works at the Ghencea Military Cemetery in Bucharest had not been done. The prejudice they caused was estimated at roughly 12 million lei.

     

    TALKS The Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed at the Security Conference in Munich on Saturday that talks are underway with the USA over raw materials exchanges for Washington’s support in countering the Russian invasion. The US president Donald Trump has repeatedly said the US wants access to Ukraine’s vast resources of rare earths and other critical minerals, underlining that the USA should get something in exchange for its military support. At the Security Conference in Munich, Romania is being represented by its Foreign Minister, Emil Hurezeanu. According to a communiqué issued by the Foreign Affairs Ministry in Bucharest, Minister Hurezeanu will be presenting Romania’s assessments of the present regional challenges, such as the deterioration of the security situation in the Black Sea area and the implications of the aggression war Russia is presently waging on Ukraine for the security of the Euro-Atlantic area. The Romanian official is also going to underline the danger of the hybrid actions taken by the Russian Federation and the importance of countering suchlike activities. The head of the Bucharest diplomacy will be pleading for the continued solid support aimed at increasing the resilience of the ex-soviet, Romanian-speaking Republic of Moldova. During the same conference on Friday, the new vice-president of the United States, Republican JD Vance lashed out at the European leaders, whom he compared with the autocrats who headed the repressive regimes in Europe during the Cold War. He voiced concern over Europe, which he said is retreating from its fundamental values and gave several examples of repressive measures, including the cancellation of the presidential election in Romania late last year.

     

    RUGBY Romania’s national rugby side on Saturday conceded defeat to Portugal, 34-6, in their last match in Group B of Rugby Europe Championships 2025. Both sides have already qualified for World Cup 2027 in Australia after their wins this month in Rugby Europe Championships. The Romanians secured a 48-10 home win against Germany and an away win against Belgium, 31-14. Romania failed to qualify only in one |World Cup edition, namely in 2019, when it was disqualified due to an error of the Romanian rugby Federation, which included in its lineup an ineligible player.

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  • European Political Community Summit

    European Political Community Summit


    The Republic of Moldova (ex-Soviet, predominantly Romanian-speaking) hosted on June 1, at the Mimi Castle in the village of Bulboaca, the second summit of the European Political Community – a new platform for political coordination, which aims to promote dialogue and cooperation in order to address issues of common interest and to strengthen the security, stability and prosperity of the European continent. The nearly 50 leaders present at the summit discussed security and peace, the development of the economic and social infrastructure in the European space and resilience in the face of the threats produced by the war in Ukraine. At the same time, European officials reiterated their support for the Republic of Moldova in order to achieve the commitments assumed as a candidate state for joining the European Union.



    The summit reflects the strong determination of the European leaders to bring peace back to Europe, the host of the meeting, President Maia Sandu, stressed. According to her, the meeting ended with several concrete results for her country, among them the decision regarding the reduction of tariffs for roaming services, the launch of the EU Partnership Mission in the Republic of Moldova, a new aid package worth approximately 1.6 billions euro and 50 million euro worth of non-reimbursable funding from Norway. Maia Sandu also emphasized the fact that organizing the summit only 20 km from Ukraine “is a clear expression of solidarity with that country and the Ukrainian people, who are fighting for freedom, European values ​​and the future of the continent”.



    Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy stated at the summit that he received a strong signal of support from the allies in the matter of providing fighter planes. Zelenskiy also said that Ukraine needed future security guarantees, if joining NATO was not possible for the moment.



    Also present at the summit, the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, praised the reforms undertaken by the Republic of Moldova with a view to joining the EU and promised to “significantly” increase the size of the EU delegation to Chisinau, in order to “help the implementation of reforms”, while the High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, said that the Transnistrian dispute would not be an impediment for the accession of the Republic of Moldova to the Union.



    In his speech, the President of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, stressed that the Republic of Moldova is not alone, and the support of the democratic states will continue for both Chisinau and Kyiv. “The military aggression against Ukraine has been the most disruptive period after the Cold War. It is our responsibility, as the Community of European democratic states, to respond to this historic moment and to support the most vulnerable among us”, the Romanian head of state also said. (MI)