Radio România Internațional

Tag: US election

November 7, 2024 UPDATE

SUMMIT The President of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, pleaded for short and long-term solutions at a roundtable on migration occasioned by the Summit of the European Political Community in Budapest on Thursday. At the talks on migration, Klaus Iohannis warned that this remains an important challenge at European level, which requires a common and comprehensive response. He emphasised that migration continues to be worrisome in the context of the conflict in the Middle East and the continued war in Ukraine. Mr. Iohannis also said that Romania remains committed both to the implementation of effective migration management measures and to ensuring the security of the EU’s external borders. On the sidelines of the summit, the Romanian head of state also attended a meeting focused on support for the Republic of Moldova, alongside president Maia Sandu and other European leaders. At the end of the meeting in Budapest, the European leaders adopted a joint statement welcoming the results of the referendum and the presidential elections in the Republic of Moldova, and committing to providing further support so that the state can carry on its reforms and fight foreign interference. Klaus Iohannis also had a bilateral meeting with the secretary general of the Council of Europe, Alain Berset.

VISIT The Romanian PM Marcel Ciolacu will make a visit to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland on November 12 and 13, where he will have meetings with his counterpart Keir Starmer, with the Speaker of the House of Commons, and will participate in the Romania-UK Economic Forum. According to the spokesperson of the Romanian government, ahead of this visit, the Cabinet approved in Thursday’s meeting a memorandum updating the Convention between the two countries in the field of taxation and preventing tax evasion. The document takes into account the changes made in the Romanian legislation in 2023 and those related to Romania’s goal of joining the OECD.

DEFENCE “Russia’s aggressive actions in the Black Sea region force us to have a common perspective, able to generate a firm response to the emerging threats at our borders,” said the Romanian defence minister Angel Tîlvăr at a meeting of defense ministers in South-Eastern Europe, held in Tirana (Albania). According to a ministry news release, the meeting was an opportunity to discuss the impact of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and its implications for regional security. In this context, Angel Tîlvăr highlighted Romania’s role as a pillar of stability in the extended Black Sea region, an area that has become a crucial point for Euro-Atlantic security. “Only through a united approach can we ensure the security of our region and stability at the borders of the EU and NATO,” he also said. On the sidelines of the meeting, in bilateral talks with his Moldovan counterpart, Anatolie Nosatiy, Tilvǎr emphasised the importance of firm support for the Republic of Moldova in the face of security challenges and destabilisation attempts, part of the Russian Federation’s hybrid actions.

AGRICULTURE The Common Agricultural Policy needs a separate budget, and farmers need to be sure they will receive the funds without limitations linked to the rule of law or other unrelated conditions, the European Commissioner for Agriculture, Janusz Wojciechowski, said in Bucharest. On the sidelines of his official visit to Romania, the EU Commissioner attended the National Conference of the Romanian Farmers’ Club jointly with the minister of agriculture, Florin Barbu. The European official said that, at EU level, the agricultural trade balance with third countries reached a record-high surplus of EUR 70 billion in 2023. The Conference was attended by farmers, high-ranking Romanian and European officials with responsibilities in the development of agriculture policies and strategies, leaders in the field of agricultural technologies, as well as representatives of farmers’ associations at European and national levels.

SALARIES The average annual full-time adjusted salary of Romanians is the fourth lowest in the European Union. Eurostat data shows an annual increase of approx. EUR 2,600 for 2023, but the total amount remains less than half of the EU average. The EU adjusted average annual salary the last year was EUR 37,900, while in Romania it was approx. EUR 17,700. Luxembourg holds the record with an average full-time salary of over EUR 81,000, followed by Denmark and Ireland. At the opposite pole is Bulgaria, with EUR 13,500 per year, followed by Hungary and Greece.

US ELECTION The US President Joe Biden gave assurances on Thursday that the American electoral system is fair and that a peaceful and orderly transition of power will be ensured. The statement was made in a speech addressed to the American nation on the election results and preparations for the transition on January 20, when President-elect Donald Trump will return to the White House, after defeating the Democrat Kamala Harris. “We accept the choice the country made. I’ve said many times that you can’t love your country only when you win,” Biden said in his first media appearance after Trump’s victory. As for the integrity of the American electoral system — “it is honest, it is fair, and it is transparent,” Biden said. “And it can be trusted, win or lose.” Leaders around the world reacted after Donald Trump announced his victory in the US presidential election. (AMP)

7 November 2024
Reactions to the election of Donald Trump

Many political leaders around the world have reacted by congratulating the Republican Donald Trump, who announced his victory in the US presidential election. Before the votes counting was over, he had obtained more than the 270 electors that he needed to be elected. He thus becomes the second American president with two non-consecutive terms. The incumbent President Joe Biden and the Democratic candidate Kamala Harris congratulated President-elect Donald Trump on his victory. Joe Biden invited him to the White House and expressed his commitment to ensuring a smooth transition, emphasizing the importance of working to unify the country. “The outcome of this election is not what we wanted, not what we fought for, not what we voted for. A fundamental principle of American democracy is that when we lose an election, we accept the results.” Kamala Harris said in a speech held at Howard University in Washington.

European leaders emphasized Europe’s close ties to the United States, posting early congratulations for Donald Trump as it became clear he would win the US presidency. The President of the European Commission, Ursula Von Der Leyen, “warmly congratulated” Donald Trump on his victory in the election, and the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, emphasized the ‘lasting alliance’ and the ‘historic link’ between the European Union and the United States. The French President Emmanuel Macron promised to cooperate with the German Chancellor Olaf Scholz for a stronger Europe, given the ‘new context’. At the same time, the British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he was looking forward to working with Donald Trump in the coming years. NATO Secretary General, the former Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, said that Donald Trump’s leadership will be ‘again essential to keep our alliance strong’.

The Beijing leader Xi Jinping called the winner of the US presidential election and pleaded for the relationship between the two powers to be ‘stable, healthy and sustainable’. We hope that both sides will uphold the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and mutually beneficial cooperation, said Xi Jinping, who called for finding the right way for China and the United States to get along in this new era. He emphasized that a good relationship between Beijing and Washington will benefit both countries and the world. The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, spoke on the phone with Donald Trump, congratulating him on his victory, which he called historic and convincing. Zelensky stated that he agreed with him to maintain a close dialogue and develop cooperation between Ukraine and the US. From Romania, the head of state, Klaus Iohannis, conveyed that Bucharest is a strong and committed strategic ally of Washington. In turn, Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu mentioned that Romania is ready to work to strengthen the strategic partnership with the United States. (LS)

7 November 2024
November 9, 2020

COVID-19 IN ROMANIA – Another 3,240 new cases of
COVID-19 and 130 related fatalities have been reported in the last 24 hours in
Romania. 1,076 patients are in intensive care. As of today the authorities have
introduced restrictions to limit the spread of the virus. All classes will move
to online until December 9. Stores will close at 9 PM and the wearing of masks
becomes compulsory in public areas. Nighttime mobility will be restricted for
work and health emergencies only. Delivery services, pharmacies and gas
stations will remain open from 9 PM till 5 AM the next day. Produce markets in
interior spaces will be shut down for the following month.

COVID-19 IN THE WORLD – The global number of
infections has exceeded 50.8 million, while the global death toll stands at
1.26 million, according to the latest worldometers.info update. The United
States continues to have the highest number of infections, some 10.3 million,
followed by India and Brazil. Numerous states have returned to restrictions in
an attempt to thwart a new wave of the pandemic. In Europe, France is facing
difficulties, with over 40.000 fatalities caused by COVID-19. Schools remain
open, but teachers have expressed concern and announced a strike on Tuesday.
They are calling for restricting the number of in-class students, reorganizing
cafeterias, taking on additional cleaning staff to sanitize all areas and
additional funds for ventilation systems. Other countries are reintroducing
lockdown restrictions across Europe, although most Governments decided schools
should stay open. Schools in Italy, Slovakia, Belgium and Austria have moved to
remote teaching exclusively, while online teaching has been imposed only for
the secondary education system and high schools in Greece.

2021 DRAFT BUDGET – Liberal Prime
Minister Ludovic Orban will today present the drafts for the 2021 state budget
and social security budget before the Chamber of Deputies. The Social-Democrats
claim the budget law should be made known to the public, adding that, according
to their data, the Government is planning tax rises. Prime Minister Orban said
his Liberal Cabinet wants to adopt the 2021 budget laws by December 31 this
year, most likely after the Cabinet is sworn in. The Prime Minister pointed out
no additional taxes will be introduced. The budget for next year will seek to
ensure investments in transport infrastructure, healthcare and education, and
will also provide all the necessary funds required to pay salaries and
pensions.

VISIT – Foreign Minister Bogdan
Aurescu is today paying an official visit to the Hague, invited by his Dutch
counterpart, Stef Blok. The visit is part of an effort to boost bilateral
dialogue in the context of marking in 2020 140 years since the establishment of
diplomatic ties between the two states. According to a Foreign Ministry
release, the two officials will review the status of bilateral relations and
discuss strengthening cooperation in areas of mutual interest. Minister Aurescu
will tackle hot topics on the European agenda, such as the COVID-19 pandemic,
the 2021-2027 multiannual financial framework, the Recovery Plan, the upcoming
EU-UK partnership, Romania’s Schengen accession and climate change. The
Romanian official will also underscore the importance of stepping up security
cooperation at NATO and EU level as well as promoting robust trans-Atlantic
ties.

US ELECTION – Democrat Joe Biden has won the US
presidential election, but Republican Donald Trump, the acting president, wants
to organize a series of rallies to challenge the results of the ballot. Trump
took again to Twitter accusing the Democrat camp of defrauding the election,
particularly the postal voting process in Philadelphia and Detroit, without,
however, providing any evidence to substantiate his claims. Meanwhile,
President elect Joe Biden continues to work with his team to take over his
mandate in January 2021. Today he is due to announce the setting up of a task
force made up of public health experts, charged with the management of the
COVID-19 pandemic as an immediate priority. On Sunday, his team launched a
transition website listing the top priorities of his mandate, which include the
economy, combating racism and climate change. Joe Biden wants the US to
immediately rejoin the Paris Agreement and the World Health Organization.

HANDBALL – The Romanian men’s
handball team on Sunday evening defeated Montenegro on home turf 36-27 in
preliminary Group 7 of the 2022 European Championship, to be hosted by Hungary
and Slovakia. In the other group fixture, also on Sunday, Sweden trounced
Kosovo away from home, 30-16. Sweden is top of the group tables with 4 points,
followed by Romania and Montenegro, each with 2 points, and Kosovo with 0
points. Romania will next play Kosovo away from home on March 10, 2021. A
four-time World Champion in the 1960s and the 1970s, Romania last qualified to
a European championship in 1996. In the women’s competition, Romania has been
drawn in a group with Norway, Germany and Poland in the 2020 European
Championship, due to kick off next month.

(Translated by V. Palcu)

9 November 2020
November 6, 2020

COVID-19 RO. A new pandemic record was reported in Romania for the past 24 hours: 10,260 new cases of infection with the new coronavirus reported today, mostly in Timis, in the west. Next come Cluj (west) and the capital Bucharest. Since late February, some 287,000 people have tested positive. 123 deaths have been reported today, raising the death toll to 7,663. 1,001 patients are in intensive care. Outside Romanias borders, 6,853 people have been confirmed as infected, and 126 have died of Covid-19.

RESTRICTIONS. New restrictions to limit the spread of the coronavirus pandemic will be introduced in Romania on Monday. Thus, at the proposal of the National Committee for Emergency Situations, the mask would be mandatory in closed and open spaces throughout the country. Traffic restrictions will be imposed between 23:00 and 5:00 in the morning. Courses in the pre-university education system will be held exclusively online, public or private meetings and parties will be banned, and shops will close at 21:00. The measures will be valid for 30 days and must be approved by government decision.

PANDEMIC. The total number of people infected with the new coronavirus worldwide has exceeded 49,000,000, according to data centralized by worldometers.info. The death toll is above 1,240,000. The USA, India and Brazil are the most affected. In Europe, too, the situation is getting worse. France is the European country with the highest number of infections, 1.6 million. Paris authorities have announced a record number of cases of coronavirus infection in 24 hours – more than 58,000. The Minister of Health, Olivier Véran, has warned the population that, in the absence of responsible behavior, the second wave will be much more violent and longer lasting than the one in the spring. In Italy, night traffic will be banned next month, museums are closed and shopping malls are only open on weekends. In regions with many cases of Covid-19, such as Lombardy, Piedmont and Vale dAosta, the population cannot leave their localities. Greece will instate a state of national quarantine by the end of the month.

CAMPAIGN. In Romania, the electoral campaign for the December 6 parliamentary elections has started today. Just like with the local elections, which took place in late September, authorities have limited the number of participants in election rallies and imposed strict sanitary rules. Romanians abroad will be able to vote in two days, on December 5 and 6. The Diaspora will be represented in the future legislature by 4 deputies and two senators.

US ELECTION. Counting continues in the United States, two days after the end of the presidential election. According to CNN estimates, the Democratic candidate, former Vice President Joe Biden, has so far secured 253 of the 270 required electoral votes, while current Republican President Donald Trump has 213. Electors are nominated by states based on the majority vote in each of them. Joe Biden has said he has “no doubt” about his victory over Donald Trump once all the results are known, while his Republican rival is challenging the vote count.

HAGUE. Hashim Thaci, who resigned as president of Kosovo on Thursday after being officially indicted for war crimes by the special court in the Hague, has been detained, the international court has announced. In June, 52-year-old Thaci, the former political leader of the Kosovo separatist rebellion, was indicted for war crimes during the 1998-1999 conflict with Serbia. According to the indictment, he is guilty of nearly 100 crimes, involving hundreds of identified victims, Kosovars, Albanians, Serbians, Roma and others, including political opponents. Belgrade refuses to recognize Kosovos independence proclaimed in 2008 after the war in the late 1990s, which left 13,000 dead. Serbia is backed by allies such as Russia and China, while the United States is among the countries that immediately recognized the new Kosovo state.

HANDBALL. Romanias mens handball national team was defeated by the Swedish team, 33 – 30, on Thursday evening, in Gothenburg, in its first match in Group 8 of the second stage of the EURO 2022 preliminaries. Sunday, Romania will play, on home turf in Baia Mare (northwest), against Montenegro. The mens national handball team has not qualified for a continental final tournament since 1996. Also on Thursday evening, the Romanian football champion, CFR Cluj (northwest), was defeated by AS Rome 5-0, in the Italian capital, in the third stage of Group A of the Europa League competition. On November 26, the two teams will meet again, this time in Romania, in Cluj-Napoca. (M. Ignatescu)

6 November 2020
November 5, 2020 UPDATE

COVID-19 RO. The daily number of new COVID-19 cases in Romania is constantly growing. Another 9,714 cases, the highest number since the onset of the pandemic, were reported on Thursday by the Strategic Communication Group, out of 37,685 tests performed. The total number of people infected with the new coronavirus exceeded 276,802. Another 121 people died, the total number of deaths in Romania reaching 7,540. 12,061 people with COVID-19 are hospitalized in the specialized health units, of which 1,014 in intensive care, the largest number so far. The Government is to decide the mandatory use of masks in all public spaces, where the rate of infection is 1.5 per one thousand inhabitants.

PANDEMIC. European countries facing a new wave of the coronavirus pandemic have stepped up restrictions in an effort to curb the spread of the virus. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Thursday declared a lockdown for the entire country until the end of November. During this period all stores will be closed except for supermarkets and pharmacies. Middle schools will remain open but high schools will be closed and civilians will need a self-declaration to leave their homes. In England, a four-week quarantine has come into force, as the latest daily figures show that nearly 500 people diagnosed with COVID-19 died within 24 hours, the worst toll since May. Restaurants, pubs, cafés, non-essential shops, gyms, swimming pools, hairdressers and beauty shops stay closed until 2 December. Schools and churches remain open. In Spain, several regions have closed non-essential activities, restaurants and gyms. The region of Castilla y León has announced that, as of Friday, it closes restaurants and gyms and bans visits to homes for the elderly.

TELEWORK. Working from home came with advantages, but also with disadvantages for Romanian companies, especially for those in which, before the pandemic, the use of email, video conferencing systems and other platforms was unknown, reveals a study conducted at national level by the consulting company Frames. The biggest inconveniences are related to the absence of social interaction with colleagues, mentioned by about 60% of those surveyed, the lack of an optimal work environment and the higher workload in the new conditions. The increase in cybersecurity risks is also on the list of challenges. Most of the respondents did not benefit from any form of training in the field of management, information security and personal data protection. According to the study, the elements that can reduce the dangers of working from home are related to online training of employees on recognizing fake websites and avoiding scam emails and phishing, to use the work laptop only for professional activities and to proper manage passwords and other security measures.

PROTEST. Representatives of the Sanitary Solidarity Federation protested in Bucharest on Thursday, demanding decent working conditions for employees in the sector. They say that such actions will continue every Thursday until the requests are resolved. The list of demands includes, among other things, the adoption of all necessary measures to protect the health and safety of health workers, so as to significantly reduce the number of employees infected and killed by COVID-19. The trade unions also demand access to all relevant information on the impact of COVID-19 on health workers and the granting of all bonuses for maximum working conditions. The protest took place two days after the Exhaustion Rally organized on November 3 by health and social workers, members of the SANITAS Federation, who expressed dissatisfaction with what they describe as the incoherent crisis strategies of the authorities regarding the approach of the epidemic.

ECONOMY. Romanias economy will register a contraction of 5.2% this year, less severe than initially estimated, thanks to investments and construction works, according to the autumn economic forecasts published on Thursday by the European Commission (EC), taken over by Agerpres. The Community Executives estimates are more optimistic than in the spring. Then the Commission forecasted that the Romanian economy will register a contraction of 6% this year. For the next 2 years, the EC estimates that the Romanian economy will gradually recover, with a growth of 3.3% in 2021 and 3.8% in 2022, respectively. However, uncertainty remains very high, given the recent pandemic developments, and real growth will not return to pre-crisis levels until the end of 2022. Instead, the Commission estimates that Romanias government deficit will increase to 10.3% of GDP in 2020, compared to 9.2% of GDP as forecast in spring and will continue to grow in the coming years, reaching 11.3% of GDP in 2021 and 12.5% of the GDP in 2022.

NATO. NATO and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Romania are jointly organizing the 16th annual NATO Conference on Weapons of Mass Destruction, Arms Control, Disarmament and Non-Proliferation, in videoconference format. The hosting and organization of the event is a concrete expression of Romanias contribution to the Allied efforts to consolidate the global architecture on arms control, disarmament and non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. The event will be opened by Romanian Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. The Conference marks the 50th anniversary of the entry into force of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons and will provide a framework for debate in the perspective of the Evaluation Conference of this Treaty, scheduled for August 2021. We recall that in 2019, the Romanian Mircea Geoana took over the office of Deputy Secretary General of NATO.

US ELECTION. The final results of the US election, in which the Americans had to choose between the current president, the Republican Donald Trump, and the former vice president, the Democrat Joe Biden, are still awaited, given that most people resorted to postal voting and the states have different ways of counting votes. Meanwhile, Donald Trumps campaign team has filed a lawsuit in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Georgia, demanding that the counting of votes be stopped. A campaign official has accused the Democrats of trying to overturn and weaken the Republican vote. International observers say there is no evidence of widespread electoral fraud, but the presidents lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, insisted that the counting of votes in big cities was somehow fraudulent. Earlier, Donald Trumps campaigners announced that they were calling for a recount of votes in another crucial state, Wisconsin, where they complained about irregularities. The election came against the background of a country severely affected by the coronavirus pandemic, with the highest number of contaminations and deaths in the world. However, according to Radio Romanias correspondent in Washington, the turnout was impressive, showing Americans interest in the election. ( M. Ignatescu)

5 November 2020
November 4, 2020

COVID-19 RO. In Romania, the number of cases of infection with the new coronavirus has increased by 8,651 in the last 24 hours, a new unwanted record. To date, more than 267,000 cases of infection have been confirmed. 146 deaths have also been reported, and 1,001 patients are in intensive care. Meanwhile, authorities are constantly evaluating measures to manage the coronavirus epidemic and adapting them to the latest developments. President Klaus Iohannis has announced that the first tranche of COVID-19 vaccine could arrive in Romania in the first quarter of next year. The head of state has specified that those in the medical system and people in risk groups will have priority for vaccination. On the other hand, Klaus Iohaanis has stated that, at the moment, there are no reasons for imposing a state of emergency, but restrictions are needed in order to slow the spread of the pandemic.

PANDEMIC. The number of cases of infection with the new coronavirus has exceeded 47.25 million worldwide, and the number of deaths due to COVID-19 has reached 1,209,590. The United States, Brazil and India are the countries with the most cases of infections and deaths. In Europe, several states have imposed new restrictions amid a rapid increase in the number of new cases of coronavirus infection. France, Germany, Belgium and Austria have banned night traffic and closed museums, theaters and swimming pools. The Netherlands has announced similar measures. Greece has also closed non-essential restaurants and shops in Athens and other crowded areas. Britain will be in lockdown for four weeks as of Thursday. In Spain, several regions have closed non-essential activities, restaurants and gyms, but for the time being, the isolation of citizens at home is avoided.

VISIT. Romanian Prime Minister Ludovic Orban is in Ramallah in the West Bank today, where he will discuss with his Palestinian counterpart Mohammad Shtayyeh ways of strengthening bilateral cooperation. On Tuesday, Orban held talks in Jerusalem with top Israeli officials. Ludovic Orban and his Israeli counterpart, Benjamin Netanyhu, reconfirmed the privileged relations between the two countries and welcomed the recent launch of the Romania – Israel Working Group in the economic field.

CCR. In Bucharest, the Constitutional Court discusses the notifications filed by the governing National Liberal Party and the Save Romania Alliance regarding the appointment of the opposition Social Democrat Florin Iordache as president of the Legislative Council. The signatories claim that the necessary number of votes for Florin Iordache to be appointed president has not been met. On the other hand, they claim that he does not meet the condition of good professional and moral reputation provided by law. He promoted, as Minister of Justice, the Emergency Ordinance no. 13 and the amnesty and pardon bill. That ordinance generated widespread protests, in the winter of 2017, in Bucharest, in other cities in the country and in the Diaspora. The government at the time, formed by the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats, was accused of adopting an ordinance amending the Criminal Codes to clean up politicians with legal problems. Under street pressure, the Executive announced that it was renouncing the amendment of the Criminal Code and the Code of Criminal Procedure.

US ELECTION. The election for president of the United States has come to an end. The Americans had to choose between the current president, Republican Donald Trump, and his Democratic rival Joe Biden. Although the counting of votes has begun, the final results will be known later this year, due to the fact that most of the votes were cast by mail, and states have different ways of counting those votes. Some do it before counting the ones in the ballot boxes, others after. CNN reports that in terms of postal voting, Joe Biden seems to be the favorite. Donald Trump, however, has declared himself convinced of victory. The election was held against the background of a country severely affected by the coronavirus pandemic, with the highest number of infections and deaths in the world. However, according to Radio Romanias correspondent in Washington, the turnout was impressive, which shows the Americans interest in this presidential election.

CLIMATE. United States has become the first nation to officially withdraw from the Paris Agreement on climate. Although the decision was announced by incumbent President Donald Trump in June 2017, according to the UN rules, the United States had to wait until November 4 to officially leave the agreement. Countries that have ratified the document so far are committed to keeping the rise in global temperatures below two degrees Celsius this century. As a presidential candidate in 2016, Donald Trump made leaving the Agreement a key goal, arguing that it was unfair to the United States. The agreement, he says, allows India, China and other states to continue using fossil fuels, while the United States has been asked to reduce carbon emissions.

MOURNING. The Austrian government has declared three days of national mourning for the victims of Mondays terrorist attack in Vienna, which left four dead and 22 wounded. Authorities are continuing the investigation, after the Austrian attacker of North Macedonian origin was shot dead by the police. 14 arrests were made after searches of 18 homes. Authorities believe he was a lone attacker, who ran the streets and opened fire on passers-by and customers in bars and restaurants, just before the national quarantine came into force. Chancellor Sebastian Kurz has sent a message of unity to the people, promising that Austria will defend its democracy, fundamental rights and its liberal lifestyle.

HANDBALL. Romanias mens handball team, on Thursday, will have its debut in Group VIII of the preliminaries of the 2022 European Championship, organized in Hungary and Slovakia, with a match against the team of Sweden. The match will be followed, on Sunday, by the one its home turf with Montenegro. The top two in the group that also includes Kosovo qualify for the next round. The four-time world champion in the 60s and 70s, Romanias mens team has not qualified for a continental final tournament since 1996. In the womens competition, Romania has qualified into the group that includes Norway, Germany and Poland, for Euro 2020, which will be held next month. (M. Ignatescu)

4 November 2020
November 6-12

Romanian reactions to the US presidential election

Romanian authorities have hailed Donald Trump’s victory in the US presidential election and have conveyed messages of congratulations. The Romanian President, Klaus Iohannis, underlined Romania’s firm commitment to deepening cooperation with the future American Administration in the field of security and to developing the economic side of the US-Romania Strategic Partnership.

Klaus Iohannis: We are willing to cooperate in order to strengthen the Strategic Partnership between Romania and the US. In the event of changes, they will be in the sense of consolidating this partnership with focus on its three components: politics, security and economy. I have repeatedly said that although the first two components are functioning extremely well, we still need to boost economic cooperation, and maybe this is an opportunity.

The PM Dacian Ciolos has talked about the importance of the bilateral Strategic Partnership saying that increased importance should be attached to developing and boosting economic relations.

Start of election campaign in Romania

Friday marks the start of the election campaign for the December 11 parliamentary elections in Romania. This year’s elections will unfold according to new legislation. The party-list system will be used again, just as in 2004, and there will be new regulations in terms of representation: 1 deputy for 73 thousand inhabitants and 1 senator for 168 thousand people. 6,493 persons have signed up and are currently running for the 466 MP seats.

Most candidates are members of the parties with big chances to enter Parliament, namely the Social Democratic Party, the National Liberal Party, the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats, the People’s Movement Party, the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania and the Save Romania Union. There are also independent candidates running. A first for this winter’s elections is postal voting for the Romanian citizens who have their residence or domicile outside Romania. Ion Barbu, a director with the Romanian Post National Company, says a first envelope has already arrived from abroad.

Ion Barbu: I can confirm that a voter from Austria has already returned by post the ballot papers received. The Electoral Bureau will keep safe and store the papers until December 11, the date of elections, when they will be opened and counted.

NATO ministerial meeting in Bucharest

The Foreign Ministers of nine NATO members from Central and Eastern Europe (Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania) have this week met in Bucharest. Launched last year upon the initiative of Romania and Poland, the talks held in this format represent a platform for cooperation on issues specific to the region and on the initiatives which the participating countries want to promote within the Alliance. NATO’s Deputy Secretary General Rose Gottemoeller also attended the meeting in Bucharest.

At a joint press conference, the Romanian Foreign Minister Lazăr Comănescu said:

We have made similar assessments of the special importance that is to be attached to consolidating the presence of the Alliance in our region. We need to pay increased attention to the southern component of NATO’s eastern flank, given that the biggest challenges in terms of security come from that area.

Romania supports Serbia’s EU accession

Romania has reiterated its support for Serbia’s accession to the European Union on the occasion of the meeting, in the western Romanian city of Timisoara, between the PM Dacian Cioloş and his Serbian counterpart Aleksandar Vučić.

Dacian Cioloş: It is also in our interest to have an all-European Serbia in the Western Balkans. We have signed an agreement and have assured the Serbian prime minister that he will have Romania’s full support for the reforms Serbia intends to carry out in order to prepare its EU accession.

The two prime ministers have tackled issues related to the consolidation of cooperation including in the fields of labor force, economy and minorities. Several agreements have been signed among which a Protocol on the setting up of common patrols along the border between the two states and its activities, and another Protocol on preventing and responding to disasters. Also progress has been reported with regard to the common project of building a highway linking Belgrade to Timişoara.

The laser facility in Măgurele introduced to businesspeople and civil society

Early this week, researchers with the National Institute for Physics and Nuclear Engineering in Măgurele presented to businesspeople and civil society the domains in which the high-power laser facility will be used. The government’s representative responsible for the project , Adrian Curaj, has conveyed a message of the PM, which highlights the project’s capacity to generate development and economic growth.

Adrian Curaj: Măgurele is a unique scientific and technological project. It has an extraordinary force to generate development. It is not a project of the region, it is rather a project of Romania because Romania is willing to and can achieve many things. The results obtained at the laser facility in Măgurele will have a strong impact on the Romanian economy in the sense of creating jobs and welfare. I am confident that the scope of this project will make it a priority for each government. Of course, each government can relate to it in its own way, but the importance and scale of the project cannot be ignored.

The facility in Magurele, which aims to host the highest-intensity laser system in the world, is to become operational by 2019.

13 November 2016
November 10, 2016

US PRESIDENCY – The President in office of the USA, Barack Obama, is to receive his successor, Donald Trump, at the White House today, for talks on the presidential transition. On Wednesday, thousands gathered in several American cities to protest the election of the Republican Donald Trump as the 45th President of the US, criticising his rhetoric against immigrants, Muslims and other groups. The protesters, who carried anti-Trump banners and flags, blocked traffic in several cities, but according to police sources most rallies were without incidents.

HIGH-LEVEL MEETING – The PM of Romania, Dacian Cioloş, has a meeting today in Timisoara, western Romania, with his Serb counterpart, Alexandar Vucic, with whom he is to discuss mainly about Serbias EU accession, including ways in which Romania is able to support this process. The two will also look at how the rights of the Romanian minority in Serbia are respected. Several agreements will be signed, including one on preventing and managing disasters. Under this agreement, the two countries will provide mutual assistance in the event of disasters whose consequences cannot be fully removed through the efforts of the affected or threatened state.

JUSTICE – The Romanian Justice Minister, Raluca Prună, offered Bucharests support for the reform process in the Republic of Moldova. At a Forum organised in Chisinau and focusing on fighting corruption, she emphasised that a state cannot be modernised and reformed without an independent judicial system. According to a news release issued by the Romanian Justice Ministry, the Forum is organised by Ms Pruna jointly with her Moldovan counterpart, Vladimir Cebotari, and is intended to become the main communication platform leading to the development of bilateral cooperation in this sector.

INFLATION – The National Bank of Romania has kept its inflation estimate for this year at negative 0.4%, but has revised its forecast for next year from the 2% estimated in August to 2.1%, reads the Quarterly Report on Inflation presented today by the central bank governor Mugur Isărescu. The National Bank chief mentioned, among the factors that influence inflation, several international elements, like the uncertainty in financial markets induced by the outcome of the US presidential election and by the decisions of oil exporting countries, as well as domestic elements, such as the increase in consumption. The international factors reduce the inflation, whereas the domestic ones encourage it, Isarescu says. According to him, domestic demand has been stimulated excessively, which led to an increase in imports.

RADIO LICENSE FEE – The President of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, is taking part today in a debate on the write off of the public radio and television license fee. The event is designed to facilitate the dialogue between the head of state and journalists, representatives of mass media organisations and civil society members, about the current state of the public broadcasters. The meeting takes place after Parliament endorsed a bill that scraps more than a hundred taxes and fees, including the radio and television license fees. In a separate debate on the same topic, held on Monday at the Romanian Television Corporation, participants emphasised that by eliminating the radio and television license fees, the direct connection between citizens and public services is cut off. Moreover, this would endanger the very operation of the two public broadcasters as of January 1 next year.

FOOTBALL – Romanias national football team is preparing for tomorrows game on home turf against Poland, in the qualifying stage for the 2018 World Cup hosted by Russia. In the first 3 matches in Group E, Romania has a 5-0 win in Yerevan, against Armenia, and 2 draws, 1-1 at home against Montenegro and 0-0, away from home against Kazakhstan. With 7 points each, Montenegro and Poland top the group standings, with Romania ranking 3rd with 5 points. During this qualifying campaign, the national team is for the first time in history managed by a foreign coach, the German Cristoph Daum.

10 November 2016
November 8, 2016

US ELECTION 145 million registered voters are expected to elect the 45th president of the US today, after a year and a half of electoral fighting of an unprecedented violence, international news agencies report. Agencies recall the surprise made by the Republican Party when announcing its candidate, the 70 year old tycoon Donald Trump, the scandal triggered by the Democrat candidate Hillary Clinton’s e-mails, and the fierce debates that the two had. According to the latest polls, Hillary Clinton, who might soon become the first woman president in the history of the US, benefits from an advantage of 3 to 4%. Therefore, the winner will be decided by the votes from the so-called ‘swing states’, such as Ohio, Florida and North Carolina. Barack Obama’s successor will take over the office in January 2017.

PAY RISES The Romanian Government has decided to challenge at the Constitutional Court the law providing for 15% pay rises for doctors and teachers as of January 1st 2017, the Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos has announced. He has explained that the Government was not asked for an opinion about the measures, as the procedure in force would have required, and there was no transparent debate on the bill. The Social Democratic Party, the initiator of this law, supported by the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians, the national minorities’ group and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats in Romania, claims there is enough money for such pay rises. The liberal opposition did not support the law and did not take part in the final voting.

NATO The foreign ministers of 9 NATO countries from the Eastern Flank – Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Hungary – have gathered in Bucharest to attend a meeting organized by the Romanian and Polish foreign ministries. The participants are discussing the security situation in the region and will analyze the stage of implementation of the decisions made at the NATO summit in Warsaw. The meeting is also attended by the new NATO Deputy Secretary General Rose Gottemoeller. On Monday, she met in Bucharest with the Romanian Foreign Minister Lazar Comanescu, and the two talked about the anti-missile system in Deveselu and the activation by Romania of a multinational division within the NATO Division Southeast, aimed at supporting defense and security in this part of Europe. Mrs. Gottemoeller also held talks with the Defense Minister Mihnea Motoc about the importance of the Black Sea for the Euro-Atlantic security and stability. Gottemoeller stressed the interest in maintaining the unity, effectiveness and solidarity of the allied countries, against an extremely complex security background.

TV-RADIO FEE On Thursday, Romania’s President Klaus Iohannis will attend the debate titled: The elimination of the TV-radio license fee, support for or threat to the mission of public broadcasting?. The event, organized by ActiveWatch, is aimed at facilitating a dialogue between the head of state and journalists, representatives of media organizations and civil society representatives about the situation of public broadcasting companies, especially following the endorsement by parliament of the law providing for the elimination of several taxes and fees, including the TV-radio one. Radio Romania and the Romanian Television on Monday held a joint debate on the issue. The director of the Center for Independent Journalism Ioana Avadanei has stated that, by eliminating this contribution, the direct link between citizens and the public service is severed, and people will keep on paying from budget money.

ECOFIN The Romanian Finance Minister Anca Dragu is attending today the Economic and Financial Affairs Council (Ecofin) in Brussels. The European Commission will present a new package of proposals for the implementation of a fair, competitive and sustainable taxation system for companies in the EU. According to a communiqué issued by the European Commission, a modification of budget regulations in the EU is envisaged, under which the Eurozone member states must submit annually to the EC, in October, the draft budgets for next year. Also, the participants will tackle the draft directive that would grant fiscal authorities access to information held by the authorities responsible for the prevention of money laundering. The new set of rules, aimed at helping authorities hamper tax evasion and fraud, will come into force in January 2018.

IMF The IMF has approved a funding program for the Republic of Moldova, the former Soviet country with a predominantly Romanian-speaking population, worth more than 180 million dollars. Chisinau has not had an agreement with the IMF since 2013, and the signing of a new one depended on the resumption of funding from the EU, the WB and the disbursement of the next tranche from the loan offered by Romania. The decision was made in the run-up to the second presidential ballot in Moldova. According to the latest poll on voters’ intentions, 55.6% of them would vote for the pro-Russian socialist Igor Dodon, and 44.4% for the pro-Western Maia Sandu. The authors of the poll, quoted by Radio Romanian correspondents, say that the survey did not cover the representatives of the large Moldovan diaspora, of whom 75% voted in favour of Maia Sandu in the first round.

8 November 2016
July 29, 2016 UPDATE

CELEBRATION – Ceremonies were held on Friday in the capital Bucharest and several other Romanian cities to mark the Romanian Anthem Day, celebrated every year on July the 29th. The Romanian anthem, “Deşteaptă-te, române!” or “Awaken thee, Romanian!” in English was written by Romanian poet Andrei Mureşanu (1816-1863) and it was first performed during the European Revolution in 1848. It was banned during the Communist years in Romania until immediately after the country’s anti-Communist revolution in 1989.

PROSECUTION – The Liberal MP Ioan Oltean is prosecuted alongside the former head of the National Authority for Property Restitution Crinuta Dumitrean in a case of illegal damages paid for a bloc of land in the town of Pitesti. Prosecutors say that the damages to the state budget in this case stand at almost 100 million lei.

CORRUPTION — The deputy governor of the National Bank of Romania, Bogdan Olteanu, was placed under 30-day home arrest on Friday. Olteanu was taken into custody on Thursday night for influence peddling. According to prosecutors, between July and November 2008, while serving as Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, Olteanu requested and received 1 million euro and election support from a business man, in exchange for appointing someone as governor of the Danube Delta. The same source mentions that the individual in question was appointed Danube Delta governor in September 2008. Olteanu’s lawyer has announced that on Monday his client will submit his resignation from the position of deputy governor of the National Bank of Romania. A Liberal since 1991, Bogdan Olteanu has been a deputy governor of Romania’s central bank since 2009. The National Bank explained in a news release that the investigation targets Bogdan Olteanu’s activity before he was appointed deputy governor.

UNEMPLOYMENT — The unemployment rate went down by 0.2% in July, to 568,000 people between 15 and 74 years of age currently jobless, the National Statistics Institute has announced. Unemployment among men is higher than the corresponding rate for women. People aged between 25 and 74 account for 78% of the total number of people on welfare in July.

ECONOMY –Fitch rating agency lowered its long-term local currency debt rating for the city of Bucharest from “BBB” to ”BBB-”, with stable outlook. According to the Agency, the changes take into account developments related to the country rating, because the rating for specific administrative units cannot be higher than the national one. Last week, Fitch adjusted Romania’s long-term local currency rating to the ”BBB-”, stable outlook rating for long-term foreign currency debt. Fitch also confirmed the ceiling for Romania’s country rating at ”BBB+”.

US ELECTION – Hillary Clinton has officially accepted the Democratic nomination for president of the US. The former state secretary became the first female presidential nominee, and her speech closed the Democratic Convention, launching Clinton’s direct race against her Republican opponent Donald Trump. During the Convention, the latter was subject to several attacks by key Democratic leaders, including President Barack Obama and vice-president Joe Biden. They accused Trump, a billionaire brought to public attention by a reality show, of demagogically posing as a defender of the middle class. Hillary Clinton has also criticised Trump, saying his vision divides the Americans. In her address at the Democratic Convention, Hillary Clinton emphasised her political experience, both as a senator and as a secretary of state, and approached all the topics of importance to American voters, from gun control to the need to revive the middle class.

TURKEY — The European Commissioner in charge with Turkey’s EU accession negotiations, Johannes Hahn, warned Ankara with respect to its treatment of suspects after the attempted coup. He said that suspicions of treatment in breach of human rights legislation would have consequences. Hahn mentioned that the migrant subsidy agreement with Turkey was in force, and the migration wave towards the EU had been reduced. After the failed coup of July 15, Turkish authorities proceeded to a crackdown on all those suspected of involvement. Many observers speak about cleansing, given the scope of the campaign initiated by the authorities: over 60.000 army, judiciary, police, administration and education personnel have so far been arrested, fired or suspended from office.

(Translated bu Elena Enache)

29 July 2016