Radio România Internațional

Tag: visit

  • September 4, 2024 – UPDATE

    September 4, 2024 – UPDATE

     

    VISIT PM Marcel Ciolacu makes a one-day visit to Israel on Thursday, to express solidarity with the authorities of that country in the current context in the Middle East. He is accompanied by the foreign minister Luminiţa Odobescu, and by the economy minister, Radu Oprea. The Romanian PM will have a meeting with his Israeli counterpart, Benjamin Netanyahu, and will be received by the Israeli president, Itzhak Herzog, and the Parliament speaker. The Romanian delegation travels to Israel on a military aircraft.

     

    DEFENCE A meeting of the B.9 defence ministers will be hosted by Bucharest this September, under a resolution passed by the Government on Wednesday. B.9 meetings are held regularly at head of state, foreign minister and defence minister level, as “opportunities to harmonise” member states’ national positions on topics to be included on the agenda of NATO summits and assemblies. Launched at the initiative of Romania and Poland in 2015, the Bucharest 9 format is a platform to strengthen dialogue and cooperation between the Allies on NATO’s eastern flank: Bulgaria, Czechia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Hungary.

     

    BUDGET The Romanian government Wednesday passed measures to improve the collection of budget claims, to better utilise the funds earmarked for public services and to support investments implemented by local and central authorities from foreign financing sources. Bonuses are stipulated for those who pay their taxes on time. Another set of measures concerns taxpayers with debts at the end of August 2024. In their case, interests and late filing and late payment penalties are written off, provided that the principal debt is paid by November 25, 2024. The budget deficit target for this year could be reached, the finance ministry says, if measures are implemented to improve the collection of debts to the state budget, which were over EUR 14 bln at the end of August. Economists expect the budget deficit to be over 7% of GDP this year.

     

    UKRAINE Ukraine needs “fresh energy” after two and a half years of war against Russia, president Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Wednesday, to explain an on-going government reshuffle that includes the country’s foreign minister, AFP and Reuters report. The reshuffle is the largest in Ukraine since the start of the Russian invasion in February 2022. The Ukrainian foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba, 5 other ministers and deputy PMs, as well as the official in charge of the privatization of state assets, have submitted their resignations to Parliament. Dmytro Kuleba has been one of the most vocal Ukrainian officials since the start of the war against Russia. He has constantly requested stronger Western assistance for Ukraine, and has tried to win over the countries wooed by Moscow, especially in Africa and Asia.

     

    FOOTBALL Romania’s national football team Friday begin their new season in the UEFA Nations’ League. The Romanian footballers will play their first match away from home against Kosovo, and on Monday, September 9, they will face Lithuania at home. Cyprus is also part of Romania’s group, C2. First place in the group means direct promotion to League B in the next edition of the League, while second place leads to play-offs for promotion. On the other hand, the 4th place leads to direct relegation to League D, while the 3rd place keeps the national team in League C for the next edition as well. Being ranked in the League of Nations groups also has a direct influence on the European qualifiers for the 2026 World Championship. The new coach of the national team is Mircea Lucescu, who returns to this post after almost 4 decades. Edward Iordanescu left the post after Euro 2024, in which Romania qualified for the round of 16. (AMP)

  • August 30, 2024 UPDATE

    August 30, 2024 UPDATE

    Visit – Romania’s president Klaus Iohannis will be paying a formal visit to Chişinău at the invitation of his Moldovan counterpart, Maia Sandu. The visit comes against the background of the two countries’ celebrating the Day of the Romanian language on August 31st. Iohannis is expected to deliver a firm message of support and encouragement for the authorities and citizens of the Republic of Moldova in their efforts to modernize and democratize the country and for the irreversible implementation of the rule of law and the European roadmap – the presidential administration has announced. The president will also be making an appeal to international partners to carry on their multidimensional assistance to the Republic of Moldova mainly in the context of the aggression war Russia is presently waging on Ukraine and all the risks entailed by this situation.

     

    Sanctions – Romania supports the adoption of new sanctions against Russia. During Thursday’s informal meeting, in Brussels, of the European Foreign Ministers with their Ukrainian counterpart, Dmitro Kuleba, the Romanian FM Luminiţa Odobescu emphasized that the pressure on Moscow must be maintained and the military and energy support given to Ukraine must be continued. The issue of military aid for Kyiv was also discussed on Friday at the informal meeting of the defense ministers of the member states. The agenda of the meeting also included the operational commitments carried out under the auspices of the Common Security and Defense Policy, the EU’s level of preparation in the field of defense and the prospects for the development of the EU Satellite Center. The Secretary of State for Defense Policy, Planning and International Relations, Simona Cojocaru, who represented Romania, highlighted the essential role of the European Union Military Assistance Mission to support Ukraine (EUMAM UA), as well as of the European Peace Facility. She also reiterated the existence of challenges in the extended Black Sea region, caused by the Russian Federation’s war of aggression.

     

    Football – The Romanian football champions, FCSB, qualified to the Europa League groups after the victory obtained, on Thursday evening, in Bucharest, against the Austrian team LASK Linz, with the score 1-0, in the decisive leg of the play-off. The first leg had ended in a draw, 1 all. The vice-champions CFR Cluj (north-west) failed to qualify to the Conference League groups, after losing, away from home, score 3-0, the play-off decisive match against the Cypriot team FC Pafos. In the first leg, Cluj won 1-0. The English team Manchester United and the Scottish team Glasgow Rangers are among FCSB’s opponents in the main phase of the Europa League, according to Friday’s drawing of lots in Monaco. The other opponents of FCSB are the Greek teams PAOK Thessaloniki and Olympiakos Piraeus, FC Midtjylland – the champion of Denmark, Qarabag FK – the champion of Azerbaijan, the German team Hoffenheim and FK RFS – the champion of Latvia.

     

    Internship – 148 young Romanians finished the government internship program that started on July 1 on Friday. For two months, they worked in government departments, ministries and other central public institutions. Mihai Ghigiu, the head of the Prime Minister’s Chancellery, told them that they are needed in the public administration. He showed that the average age in the administration will reach 50 years, which means that in the next 6-7-8 years many areas will be left without specialists. Mihai Ghigiu encouraged the young people to go and study abroad, and to use the acquired knowledge in Romania. (LS)

     

  • August 21, 2024 UPDATE

    August 21, 2024 UPDATE

    Visit – The Romanian Prime Minister, Marcel Ciolacu, is visiting Brussels, accompanied by the Minister of Investments and European Projects and the Finance Minister. He will discuss with the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, including about Romania’s portfolio in the future community executive. Ciolacu said that his option is Victor Negrescu, who is currently the vice-president of the European Parliament. Marcel Ciolacu and Ursula von der Leyen will also discuss the implementation stage of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan. The Romanian prime minister might also present the general principles that he wants to put into practice to reduce the budget deficit.

     

    Drought – The drought has seriously affected cereal production in Romania, especially in the south of the country. The authorities say that an area of ​​approximately 2 million hectares is affected. According to some estimates, approximately 40% of the wheat, corn, rape and sunflower crops are allegedly compromised. It is the fourth year of drought in the last five years, and the losses of farmers are piling up. They put their hopes in the compensation that they can receive from the state. The Romanian Agriculture Minister, Florin Barbu, has recently declared that this year farmers will receive 200 Euros worth of aid per hectare for crops affected by the drought. He added that a unique mechanism in Europe was drawn up by which Romania should ensure 7 million hectares against the drought.

     

    NATO – NATO is strengthening Romania’s defense capacity with the LANZA air defense radar moved from Italy, including the technical team. Located in Tulcea county (southeast), the radar offers a unique capability to NATO’s command and control center, which provides both passive and active radar detection. This state-of-the-art radar is designed for detection, tracking and surveillance in advanced conditions. It is used to provide comprehensive situational awareness and improve the operational capabilities of various platforms, including military ships and submarines. Mobile active radars are highly effective and provide additional protection over airborne and static command and control platforms as they improve interoperability through alliances and partnerships and strengthen NATO’s air and space power readiness.

     

    Program – The Romanian government has decided to continue the program “Hot meals in schools”, for the almost 1.9 million children who go to kindergarten or school. They will receive fruits, vegetables, dairy and bakery products, and the local authorities and directors of the education units will be responsible for the smooth running of the program. Moreover, they will be taught why it is important to eat healthy food, through educational actions. Also during Wednesday’s meeting, the Government set the timetable for the parliamentary elections, scheduled for December 1. The election campaign will start on November 1 and end on November 30. Romanians in the country will vote between 7:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. For the Romanian citizens in the Diaspora, the vote will begin on November 30, at 7:00 a.m. and will end on December 1, at 9:00 p.m..

     

    Washington – The American Democrats officially confirmed Kamala Harris as their candidate for the November 5 presidential election, on Tuesday evening in Chicago, during the party’s national convention. The delegations from all the states and U.S. territories once again cast their votes for Harris, accompanied by music, lighting effects, short speeches and much cheering in the event hall, after she had already been officially elected in an online roll call earlier this month. Vice President Kamala Harris (60 years old) is the second woman nominated by the Democratic Party for the presidential election since its creation in 1828 and could become, if elected, the first female president in US history. She replaces the current US president, Joe Biden (81 years old), who gave up his candidacy for a second term. The Republican counter-candidate in the presidential election is the former president, the billionaire Donald Trump (78 years old).

     

    Air show – The biggest air show in Romania will take place on Saturday, August 31 at the Băneasa Airport near Bucharest. More than 100 civil and military aircraft and more than 150 pilots and paratroopers from 13 countries will participate. The event will mark the 20th anniversary of Romania’s accession to NATO. The pilots of the Romanian Air Force will perform demonstrations with F-16 and IAR-99 Şoim and STANDARD aircraft, among others, as well as with Spartan and Hercules transport aircraft. Special guests this year are the aerial acrobats from the Baltic Bees, the Latvian jet team with a unique in the world style of piloting, performing artistic maneuvers of maximum difficulty. The famous Lithuanian pilot Jurgis Kairys, a multiple world champion in aerobatics, is not missing this year either. (LS)

  • August 21, 2024

    August 21, 2024

    VISIT The Romanian Prime Minister, Marcel Ciolacu, is paying a two-day visit to Brussels as of today. He will talk with the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, about the portfolio that Romania will receive in the future configuration of the Commission, as well as about the name of the future Romanian commissioner. Marcel Ciolacu and Ursula von der Leyen will also discuss the implementation stage of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan. The Romanian prime minister might also present the general principles that he wants to put into practice to reduce the budget deficit.

     

    RADAR NATO strengthens Romania’s defence capabilities with a new sophisticated radar called LANZA, which has been relocated from Italy, together with its operational team. Located in Tulcea County, south-eastern Romania, this state-of-the-art facility provides a unique tracking and surveillance capability to the NATO command and control center. The aforementioned radar has been designed to improve the operational capabilities of various platforms, including military vessels and submarines. Mobile active radars are extremely effective and offer additional protection as compared to their airborne or static counterparts and they also improve interoperability within alliances and partnerships strengthening NATO air and space power.

     

    MEASURES The Romanian government will adopt, today, a series of provisions that will support energy producers in the cold season. Thus, the government will allow the local public authorities to guarantee bank loans that the energy producers under their authority will take in order to be able to buy natural gas with which to produce thermal energy for the coming winter. Through another law, the government will adopt the budget for the program of distributing vegetables, milk and fruits in schools for the 2024-2025 school year. Also in the education field, the executive will supplement the budget of the relevant ministry with 40 million lei (approx. 8 million Euros) for the finalization of seven student dormitories, which are in various stages of execution.

     

    TAROM ‘Romania’s air carrier, ‘TAROM’ doesn’t plan to give up other routes in the following period, but the volatile situation on the market can prompt further changes’ – the company’s interim director Costin Iordache said. The statement comes after TAROM announced its intention to sell the slots it has on Heathrow airport in London to Qatar Airways. The strategic deal is to be completed on October 26th as TAROM is presently in full restructuring and streamlining process.

     

    ELECTION During their national convention on Tuesday night in Chicago the US Democrats officially confirmed Kamala Harris as the presumptive nominee for the presidential election of November 5th. Democrat delegations from all over the USA again voiced their support for Harris in a ceremonial vote after President Biden dropped his bid for reelection. Harris is to deliver a major speech during the convention on Thursday marking the end of the four day event aimed at celebrating and giving an impetus to the Democrats nominees for the rest of the campaign. Vice President Harris, 60, has been the second woman nominee of the Democratic Party since its foundation in 1828 and could become, if elected, the first female president of the United States. Her opponent in the presidential election is the former US president the Republican billionaire Donald Trump.

    (bill)

  • August 20, 2024 UPDATE

    August 20, 2024 UPDATE

     

    CANDIDACY The leader of the Social Democratic Party, PM Marcel Ciolacu, will run for president of Romania. Just days ahead of the party congress, he announced his fellow party members of his decision. “I am confident that together we will manage to once again win a presidential election, after 20 years. Romania needs stability and balance,” Ciolacu said.

     

    CSP10 The geopolitical environment is marred by mistrust and disrespect for the international order, which leads to the escalation of regional conflicts and a new arms race, said the Romanian Foreign Minister, Luminiţa Odobescu. The head of Romanian diplomacy is taking part until Friday in the Conference of States Parties (CSP10) to the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), which is being held in Geneva, under the presidency of Romania. In her address, the Romanian minister highlighted the celebration of 10 years since the entry into force of the Arms Trade Treaty, underlining its essential role in the current geopolitical context, as well as the importance of cooperation between all actors involved in reducing human suffering, promoting peace, security and international stability. Also, Luminiţa Odobescu pointed out the priorities of the Romanian Presidency of the CSP10, which ends on 23 August, 2024. Romania’s priorities included encouraging a dynamic dialogue between member states regarding the effective implementation of the Treaty, universalisation activities and measures to increase the transparency of conventional arms exports and imports.

     

    AGRICULTURE Romania is safe in terms of food security, even if this year was a dry one, the Agriculture Minister, Florin Barbu, said on Tuesday in a specialised conference. According to him, Romania produced almost 1.7 million tons of wheat more than last year, and it will have a very good corn crop. Florin Barbu also pointed out that the agriculture ministry must take urgent measures, because this year, due to climate change and drought, more than two million hectares have been affected throughout the country. He also mentioned the importance of investments in the irrigation system in Romania, stating that currently over 1.6 million hectares of land are rehabilitated and irrigated. According to the National Institute of Statistics, last year Romania’s wheat output was over 9.6 million tons, on an area of ​​2.2 million hectares, while the corn kernel output was over 8.5 million tons on almost 2.4 million hectares.

     

    INFLATION The annual inflation rate in the European Union went up to 2.8% in July, from 2.6% in June, according to data released on Tuesday by the EU statistical office, Eurostat. The EU members with the highest inflation rates last year were Romania (5.8%), Belgium (5.4%) and Hungary (4.1%). The EU countries with the lowest inflation rates were Finland (0.5%), Latvia (0.8%), and Denmark (1%).  As compared to the month of June, the inflation rate went down in 9 EU members, remained stable in 4 countries and grew in 14 other. In July Romania reported an inflation rate of 5.8%, from 5.3% the previous month.

     

    VISIT The Romanian Defense Minister, Angel Tîlvăr, Monday received the Minister of Defense Pål Jonson and the Minister of Civil Defense Carl-Oskar Bohlin from the Kingdom of Sweden. High on the agenda of talks were the security situation in the Black Sea and Baltic Sea regions, against the backdrop of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, cooperation within NATO, the implementation of the decisions of the Washington Summit, the evolution of projects developed within the European Union, as well as participation in missions and operations under the EU aegis. “Sweden has a significant contribution to Euro-Atlantic security, once it has joined NATO. We act together to promote and implement Allied measures on the entire eastern flank of the North Atlantic Alliance and to strengthen bilateral cooperation, including in terms of preparing our armies for the challenges of the future”, said Angel Tîlvăr. The officials reiterated their constant support for Ukraine, as well as for the Republic of Moldova, and highlighted the importance of maintaining a constant political and military dialogue, in order to streamline and harmonise joint efforts in the field of defence. (AMP)

  • The cultural-tourist route of open-air museums in Romania

    The cultural-tourist route of open-air museums in Romania

    The cultural-tourist route of open-air museums in Romania, developed at the national level and recognized by the Ministry of Entrepreneurship and Tourism, has been launched in Romania considering the large number of tourists who showed interest in these objectives. Developed at the initiative of the County Museum of Ethnography and Folk Art in Baia Mare, the tourist program offers tourists a foray into traditions, in 11 tourist and cultural sites in Romania’s ethnographic heritage.

     

    Monica Mare, the manager of the Maramureș County Museum of Ethnography and Folk Art from Baia Mare says that the idea was born out of the need to promote museums, being a good opportunity to capitalize on the heritage of traditional Romanian architecture:  “The idea of ​​the project initially started with eight museums. We have also created several leaflets on which one can find a map with these museums. If you are in Bucharest, you can start the route from there, from the Dimitrie Gusti Village Museum in Bucharest, which is probably the most visited among the ethnographic museums in Romania, and after that, you can head towards the center of Romania. Tourists can go through the Golești Museum, after that they can reach Brașov, then Sibiu, where they can go to the ASTRA Museum, then travel to Transylvania, to the museum in Cluj and get closer to Maramureș, where they will find two ethnographic museums included in the route, the Village Museum from Baia Mare and the Maramureș Village Museum from Sighetu Marmației, respectively. Also here, in our area, in Oraș Country, in the vicinity of Maramureș, we have the Negrești Oaş Museum, and if we cross the mountains, to Bukovina, we find the Bukovina Village Museum. It depends on how much time the tourist has to visit and we thought that this route can be fully covered or the visitor can choose, in a first phase, a few museums in the area of ​​interest and after that we can arouse their curiosity to reach other areas of the country.”

     

    All open-air museums develop projects throughout the year, but especially in the warm season, which is the high season for visiting. You will be able to see folk craftsmen at work and you will be able to buy items they have created. Moreover, you’ll even be able to participate in the crafting art of the artisans:  “The Baia Mare Village Museum also has such programs. Throughout the year, we organize fairs, and we also have a souvenir shop, where we try to capitalize on the work of the Maramureș craftsmen. The other museums in the country also have such stores. Craftsmen need to be promoted. For the traditions to be passed on to future generations, the craftsmen must understand, especially the younger craftsmen who take over the crafts, that one can live from one’s craft and it is our duty, as ethnographic museums, to support the craftsmen, to make them known. Together with the centers of traditional culture, which have records of these craftsmen, we try to promote them at the travel fairs we participate in, and in the activities carried out by the museum.”

     

    As soon as you enter the Maramureş-style gate of the Baia Mare Village Museum, you are transposed into a world of the authentic Maramureş village, says Monica Mare, manager of the Maramureș County Museum of Ethnography and Folk Art:  “If the Museum in Sighet only preserves objects of traditional architecture from Maramureș Voivodeship, the Village Museum in Baia Mare takes you to the Maramureş villages from all four ethnographic areas. We call them countries: Codru, Chioar, Lăpuș and Maramureș Voivodeship. You can visit a house in Lăpuș, with its thatched roof. You can go inside and see how people used to live, where the fire was made, you can see the oven, or how the baby was rocked in the cradle, or what the guest room looked like, where the most beautiful textiles and the dowry chest were kept and where people met at major life events. The oldest monument we have is our little church, a monument from 1630, which is placed on the hill, as are most of the churches in the Maramureş villages, and practically the museum was formed around it. It was the first monument brought here to the Village Museum. It makes our village alive. The village on the hill, as we call it, is alive, because services are still held in the church on the big holidays and on Sundays. There is a whole community that comes here to worship.”

     

    Another tourist asset promoted at Baia Mare’s Village Museum is the oldest house as part of the museum’s heritage, dated 1758.

    Monica Mare: “The team I coordinate for the time being can boast the fact that, although the years are complicated and the budget is tight, as usual, last year we succeeded to open, for the public, a new traditional architecture asset we transferred to our museum. A house from Chioar Country, a very beautiful one, typical for the Chioar Country style, which we placed in the vicinity of the church, is also from Chioar Country. The blue of the house is so very specific for Maramures, it can be visited by tourists. Also, from Maramures Country we boast the Petrova House, where the founder of the Romanian School of Stomatology, Gheorghe Bilașcu, was born, and these are but a few of the landmarks we offer so you can pay us a visit. I am just saying, “Come on, come to Maramures !” Visit the Village Museum in Baia Mare and all the museums included in the Romanian open-air museum’s ethnographic route! ”

     

    We found out from the manager of the Baia Mare-based Maramures County Ethnography and Traditional Art Museum, Monica Mare, that the available prospectuses are in Romanian and English. At the main assets as part of the visiting circuit there are plaques with a QR code for additional info, which direct you to the site of the institution, where translations are available in the most widely-spoken languages. In another move, children and youngsters can participate in a treasure hunt. They will be dared to cut themselves off from their own cell phones and visit the musem in a different manner. Also, the bigger museums lying along the cultural-tourist route of open-air museums in Romania have a wide range of promotion materials. The Museum in Sibiu, for instance, has Astra App, an application offering guidance, audio guidance included, in several of the most widely-spoken languages. (LS, EN)

  • June 19, 2024

    June 19, 2024

    Visit – The President of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, has today received his Italian counterpart, Sergio Mattarella, on the occasion of the latter’s official visit to Bucharest. “We have deep ties with Italy, an exceptional economic dynamic, and the soul of the relationship is the Romanian communities in Italy, very well integrated,” said Klaus Iohannis. At the same time, Iohannis expressed his appreciation for the solid community of Italian entrepreneurs in Romania. He pointed out that, last year, the two countries had bilateral exchanges worth 20 billion Euros. In terms of security, Klaus Iohannis stated that Romania and Italy would continue to work together to strengthen NATO’s deterrence role on the eastern front, as well as on the southern front. In turn, the Italian president, Sergio Mattarella, said that bilateral relations are excellent on all levels. According to a Presidential Administration press release, in 2024, Romania and Italy celebrate 145 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations, as well as 60 years since these relations were taken to embassy level.

     

    Election results – The final results of the European Parliament elections were announced by the Central Electoral Bureau and published in the Official Gazette of Romania. The Social Democratic Party (PSD) – National Liberal Party (PNL) alliance ranked first with 48.5% of the votes, followed by the Alliance for the Union of Romanians, with a little under 15%, the United Right Alliance, with 8.7%, the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania with almost 6.5% and the SOS Romania party with a little over the required threshold of 5%. The independent candidate Nicolae Ştefănuţă was voted by 3.08% of Romanians and managed to obtain another European Parliament mandate. The voter turnout was 52.4%. The Central Electoral Bureau pointed out that, of the 33 MEP mandates going to Romania, 19 went to the PSD-PNL alliance, 6 to the Alliance for the Union of Romanians, 3 to the United Right Alliance and 2 to the SOS Romania Party and another 2 to the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania.

     

    Citizenship – The Romanian Senate has adopted, as the first chamber notified, a draft law to amend the Citizenship Law, initiated by the Government, which establishes that the Romanian citizenship can be granted, upon request, to a foreign person who is married and lives outside the borders with a Romanian citizen for at least 10 years. The current legislation stipulates that, in order to grant citizenship to a foreign citizen married to a Romanian citizen, he or she must live in Romania for at least five years, which represents, in the opinion of the initiator, ‘an obstacle’. The law also provides for the necessary measures needed to acquire the Romanian citizenship and for rules to prevent its fraudulent acquisition. Thus, biometric checks are provided for persons applying for being granted the Romanian citizenship. The draft law will be debated by the Chamber of Deputies, which is a decision-making body.

     

    Euro 2024 – Today, the European Football Championship in Germany schedules one match in Group B, Croatia-Albania, and two in Group A, between the host country team and Hungary and between Scotland and Switzerland respectively. We remind you that on Tuesday, in Group E, Romania defeated Ukraine 3-0, and Slovakia won 1-0 against Belgium. Romania’s next matches are on Saturday, against Belgium, and next Wednesday, against Slovakia.

     

    Champions League – The Romanian football champions, FCSB, from Bucharest, will play in the first preliminary round of the Champions League with the San Marino team AC Virtus 1964, according to the drawing of lots made at the UEFA headquarters in Nyon. FCSB will play the first away match on July 9 or 10, and the decisive leg in Bucharest on July 16 or 17. The winner of Romania’s Cup, the second division Corvinul Hunedoara (south-west), will face the Hungarian vice-champions, Paksi FC, in the first preliminary round of the Europa League. Corvinul will play the first away match on June 11, with the second match being scheduled in Romania on July 18. (LS)

  • May 21, 2024

    May 21, 2024

    goVisit – The Romanian Prime Minister, Marcel Ciolacu, is paying an official visit to Ankara today, at the invitation of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The PM is accompanied by a delegation of ministers, in the context of which they will sign a series of agreements in the field of tourism, SMEs and urban planning. A joint meeting of the governments of the two states will also take place. Marcel Ciolacu and Recep Tayyip Erdogan will sign the joint declaration regarding the setting up of the high-level Strategic Cooperation Council between the two countries. According to a press release of the Romanian government, the prime minister’s intention is to increase bilateral trade exchanges to 15 billion dollars through future projects in energy, transport, agriculture, agri-food industry and defense. Last year, bilateral trade amounted to over 10 billion dollars, and Turkey is Romania’s main economic partner outside the European Union. In the context of the visit, the Turkish authorities have today published in the Official Gazette a decree under which the Romanian citizens can enter Turkey for transit or for tourism purposes only with the ID. They can stay in Turkey for 90 days at the most.

     

     

    Iran – Iran will hold elections on June 28, after the death of President Ebrahim Raisi. Today, the funeral ceremonies for the former president have begun near the place where he died on Sunday, following the crash of the helicopter he was in. Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, declared five days of national mourning on Monday after the death of President Ebrahim Raisi and appointed the First Vice President Mohammed Mokhbe as interim president.

     

    Royalty – Her Majesty Margareta, the Custodian of the Romanian Crown, and His Royal Highness Prince Radu are paying a visit to Luxembourg these days, in order to emphasize “Romania’s role in the European Union and NATO and to support the European aspirations of the Republic of Moldova”. In the presence of His Royal Highness Henri, Grand Duke of Luxembourg, Her Majesty Margareta is giving a speech today at the Pierre Werner Institute on the security of the eastern borders of the EU and NATO. In the following days, the Custodian of the Crown and the Prince Consort will visit the University of Luxembourg and meet with students and staff from Romania. A visit is also scheduled to the Notre-Dame Saint-Sophie School, as well as to the NATO Support and Procurement Agency, where they will meet the Romanians who work there. The program also includes a meeting with the members of the Romanian community in Luxembourg, as well as the inauguration of the photography exhibition “Contribution of the Royal Family to the consolidation of Romania’s role in NATO and the EU 2002-2023”.

     

    Tennis – The Romanian tennis player Ana Bogdan was voted the winner of the Heart Award, for her contribution in the Billie Jean King Cup qualifiers, according to the competition’s Instagram page. Ana Bogdan won two of the three matches played in April in the meeting with Ukraine, as the Romanian team came back from 0-2 to 3-2. Thus, Romania qualified for the first time to the final tournament of the competition. The Romanian team will face Japan in the round of 16 of the Billie Jean King Cup, and if they win, they will play in the quarterfinals with Italy. The final tournament will take place between November 12-20, in Seville. On the other hand, in Strasbourg, the pair made up of the Romanian player Monica Niculescu and the Spanish Cristina Bucşa qualified, on Monday, to the quarterfinals of the doubles event of the WTA 500 tournament, after defeating the Czech-Slovak pair Marie Bouzkova/Tereza Mihalikova, 6-1, 6-3. In the quarterfinals, Niculescu and Bucşa will play against the Americans Ashlyn Kruger/Sloane Stephens.

     

    Law – Penalties for trafficking in persons and minors, slavery or child pornography will no longer be suspended, according to a draft law that will receive the final vote in the Bucharest Chamber of Deputies. According to the new regulations, an increase in the penalties for these crimes will be applied. Thus, for slavery, child pornography and human trafficking, the prison sentence can reach up to 12 years, and if minors are involved, the sentence will be up to 20 years. We come back to that after the news.

     

    Moldova – The Republic of Moldova signs, today, a security and defense pact with the European Union. Cooperation in this field is intensifying against the background of the war in Ukraine and in the context in which Chişinău accused Russia of waging a hybrid war against it. The security pact will be signed within the Association Council between the two parties and takes place on the sidelines of the General Affairs Council in Brussels. The collaboration thus extends on several security levels, from the military or cyber security to the fight against manipulation and disinformation, from border management to the fight against corruption. According to the Financial Times publication, the partnership with Brussels in the field of security and defense will allow the Republic of Moldova to exchange information and carry out joint military exercises, as well as to be included in the common arms procurement system of the EU. (LS)

  • May 20, 2024 UPDATE

    May 20, 2024 UPDATE

     

    VISIT The Romanian Prime Minister, Marcel Ciolacu, pays an official visit to Turkey, Romania’s most important trade partner outside the European Union, on Tuesday. The visit takes place at the invitation of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The agenda includes a joint meeting of the governments of the two countries. The parties aim for bilateral trade to exceed 15 billion dollars. A joint declaration will also be signed, concerning the establishment of a Romania-Turkey high-level strategic cooperation council, the equivalent of joint government meetings. The council will be coordinated by the prime minister of Romania and the president of Turkey, and will act as a catalyst to strengthen cooperation in strategic areas. The two countries are also set to establish a bilateral dialogue mechanism between the two foreign ministries. A number of cooperation agreements will be signed on the same occasion, in sectors such as social security, SMEs, tourism, diplomatic missions and town planning.

     

    MONITORING Starting October 1, the Romanian Ministry of the Interior will expand, on a national level, a project on the electronic monitoring of restraining orders against aggressors. The system is currently applied in the capital city Bucharest and in several other counties, and covers only domestic violence cases for which a restraining order has been issued. In another move, an international meeting is taking place in Bucharest, which focuses on domestic violence. Official data show that in Romania, in the first 3 months of this year, around 3,000 provisional protection orders were issued, almost half of which were upheld in court. In the same period, the police intervened in almost 30,000 cases of domestic violence. The number of domestic violence offences has increased, compared to the first 3 months of last year.

     

    MINERS’ RIOTS The former leader of the Valea Jiului coal miners, Miron Cozma, was heard at the General Prosecutor’s Office on Monday, in the case concerning the June 1990 miners’ riots. A number of Romanian officials, including the ex-president Ion Iliescu, the then-PM Petre Roman, deputy PM Gelu Voican Voiculescu and the former chief of the Romanian Intelligence Service Virgil Măgureanu are charged with crimes against humanity in this case. Military prosecutors say that on June 11 and 12, 1990, the authorities initiated a violent crackdown on the protesters in Bucharest’s University Square, who were peacefully expressing their opposition to the government at the time. Over 10,000 coal miners were brought to Bucharest to restore order. Four people were shot dead, nearly 1,400 were wounded and some 1,250 others were detained.

     

    SHIP The sinking of a ship sailing under the Tanzanian flag in the Black Sea off the Romanian coast this weekend occurred following a collision with another vessel, flying the Comoros flag, the Romanian authorities announced on Monday. After the collision, the second vessel participated in rescue operations, and subsequently left for the Bulgarian port of Varna. Romanian prosecutors ordered a criminal investigation into suspected offences including the destruction or damaging of a sea vessel and leaving the scene of an accident. The sunken ship had a crew of 11 people, 8 of whom were rescued. The other 3 are still missing.

     

    IRAN Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has declared five days of national mourning after president Ebrahim Raisi died in a helicopter crash, and appointed the vice-president Mohammed Mokhber as interim president, the official Iranian news agency IRNA reports. When a president dies in office, the Constitution of the Islamic Republic requires the senior vice-president to serve as interim president for a period of 50 days, with the approval of the supreme leader, who has the final say in all matters of state in Iran. The announcement of the president’s death opens a period of political uncertainty in Iran, a major player in the Middle East, a region rocked by the war in Gaza Strip between Israel and Hamas, press agencies note. Ebrahim Raisi had been the president of the Islamic Republic of Iran for almost three years. A hard-line cleric, he was elected in June 2021 in the first round of a vote marked by record-high absenteeism in the presidential elections and the absence of strong competitors. (AMP)

  • May 16, 2024 UPDATE

    May 16, 2024 UPDATE

    VISIT The Romanian foreign minister Luminiţa Odobescu received the Hungarian minister for European affairs, János Bóka, who is visiting Romania, in the run up to Hungary taking over the six-month presidency of the EU Council, on July 1. The European and international context marked by multiple challenges and the transition period between two European electoral cycles were tackled. The Romanian official emphasised the interest in advancing the decisions regarding the EU enlargement policy in relation to Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova, as well as those regarding Romania’s accession to Schengen with its land borders too. The Hungarian side reconfirmed its support for the achievement of this goal. As regards the current state of bilateral relations, the importance of the strategic partnership between Romania and Hungary and the opportunities for sectoral cooperation were mentioned.

     

    SHOOTING The Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico is in intensive care, and his health condition is stable. He underwent several hours of surgery after having been shot in the chest and abdomen on Wednesday, while in a city in the centre of the country, where he had chaired a government meeting. The suspected attacker was detained by the police. According to local media, he is a 71-year-old man, a poet and civic activist. The politicians in power say the attack was politically motivated. Robert Fico is a controversial left-wing politician, accused of pro-Russian sympathies. Returning to power last year, he cancelled military support for Ukraine and announced plans to reform public radio and television, opposed by citizens in street protests. World leaders condemned the attack on the Slovak prime minister, unprecedented in recent European history. Romania’s President Klaus Iohannis said that such extremist acts threaten fundamental European values.

     

    FESTIVAL The city of Craiova (south), is hosting until May 26 the 14th edition of the International Shakespeare Festival. More than 300 world-class theatre performances, concerts, parades, workshops, book launches, installations, VR trips will cover the entire city of Craiova and its surroundings, in conventional spaces, and also in the most original and unexpected places. Shakespeare Village – a British village from the 1600, rebuilt from scratch on the Craiova Hippodrome, will be the venue for dozens of concerts and shows. Famous names in international theatre and performance creators can be found in the festival program, including Robert Wilson, Peter Brook, Declan Donnellan, Robert Lepage, Philip Pârr, Jesus Herrera, and Christian Friedel.

     

    FOOD WASTE The Romanian agriculture ministry Wednesday released for public review a draft resolution aimed at reducing food waste, given that Romania disposes of over 2.5 million tons of food per year. All food operators, prior to destroying foodstuffs past their expiration date, will have to enter annual plans to reduce food waste and annual reports on the amounts of food given away in a dedicated National Platform. According to the European Commission, food loss and food waste increase food insecurity risks and affect the environment, and account for some 16% of the total greenhouse gas emissions in the Union’s food system.

     

    GOVERNMENT In Thursday’s Cabinet meeting the government passed a number of road and railway infrastructure investment projects. Over EUR 2.2 bln will be spent on revamping the approx. 150 km Focşani – Roman railway route in the east of the country in the next 3 years, the Romanian PM Marcel Ciolacu said. According to him, a rough EUR 200 mln has been earmarked for the revamping of a 42-km long segment of the A1 Bucharest-Piteşti motorway. A similar amount will be used by the agriculture ministry to support farmers in the poultry and the pig farming sector. Next week the government is to come up with a decision concerning the salary issues notified by the culture ministry with respect to museum personnel around the country, as well as other professional categories, the PM added.

  • May 12, 2024

    May 12, 2024

    Visit – The European commissioner for agriculture, Janusz Wojciechowski, will visit Romania on Monday and Tuesday. According to the European Commission, he has scheduled meetings with the Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu and the Minister of Agriculture, Florin Barbu, after which he will have a dialogue with farmers’ associations and with representatives of the University of Agronomic Sciences and Veterinary Medicine in Bucharest. A visit to the port of Constanţa (on the Black Sea Coast), where most of the exports of grain and agricultural products from Ukraine take place, is also planned. According to the European Commissioner, Romania made exceptional efforts to provide vital aid to Ukraine’s economy during its deepest crisis, facilitating the largest alternative export route for grain and other goods outside the Black Sea corridor. We remind you that the EC has recently approved a state aid scheme for Romania worth 126 million Euros, to support the necessary investments in those ports facing increased commercial flows.

     

    Protest – On Monday, the National Trade Union Bloc, together with the 29 affiliated federations, organizes a rally in front of the Romanian Government headquarters in Bucharest, followed by a protest march to the Ministries of Economy, Labor and Finance. The trade unionists demand a reform of the tax system with the aim of reducing inequalities and combating poverty. According to the Trade Union Bloc, Romania currently has one of the highest tax burdens on labor costs in the EU: almost 43%, compared to the European average of around 39%. Also, the Bloc states, Romania is the only country in the world where the contributions of the business environment to the social security system have been shifted to the responsibility of employees since 2018, so that contributions to health and pensions have doubled for employees, while for employers were reduced to zero. And according to Eurostat, the low wages and the high taxation made Romania register the third lowest employment rate in 2023, after Italy and Greece. Only 69% of Romanians aged between 20 and 64 work, which means that almost a third of Romanians do not work, shows the National Trade Union Bloc.

     

    Tennis – The Romanian tennis player Sorana Cîrstea (34 years old, 32 WTA) qualified, on Saturday, in the round of 16 of the WTA 1,000 tournament in Rome, with total prizes up for grabs worth around 5 million Euros, after defeating the Czech Marketa Vondrousova, 6th seed, with the score 7-6 (7/1), 6-3. In the round of 16, Cîrstea will face the American Madison Keys. Also in the third round of the tournament, Jaqueline Cristian (25 years old, 68 WTA) was defeated by Coco Gauff (USA), world number three, 6-1, 0-6, 6-3, on Saturday evening. Romania is also represented in Rome by Irina Begu (161 WTA), who meets, today, in the third round, the Belgian Elise Mertens (seed no. 27). The Italian competition founded in 1930 was won three times by Romanian athletes: Ilie Năstase, the 1970 and 1973 editions, and Simona Halep the 2020 edition.

     

    Birth rate – The Romanian Ministry of the Family has put up for public debate until May 20, a bill to modify the National Program for the Support of Couples and Single Persons in order to increase the birth rate. One of the proposals is that only one member of the couple should be a Romanian citizen, as, currently, it is necessary that both partners have Romanian citizenship, and another proposal is that the registration documents can be submitted in electronic format. According to official data, 9,300 contracts were signed last year, 2,200 pregnancies were confirmed and 156 children were born. The support offered by the Romanian state is 15,000 lei (about 3 thousand Euros).

     

    Epidemic – The Health Minister, Alexandru Rafila, stated that there is still an epidemic of measles in Romania, and the disease is reported mainly in counties with a low degree of vaccination coverage. He encourages parents to immunize their children because measles is an infectious disease that is easily transmitted. According to the health ministry, vaccination coverage with the first dose at the national level is 78%, and 62% with the second dose.

     

    Gaza – The UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, on Sunday launched a call for an “immediate” ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, for the release of hostages and for an increase in aid for the Palestinian enclave under Israeli siege, AFP reports. Previously, he had warned of a “colossal humanitarian catastrophe” in the event of a large-scale Israeli assault on Rafah, a city in the south of the Gaza Strip. On Saturday, US President Joe Biden estimated that a ceasefire is possible “tomorrow” in the war between Israel and Hamas, if the Palestinian group releases the hostages. Meanwhile, Israel carried out airstrikes in several areas of the Gaza Strip after issuing new mass evacuation orders for the Palestinians there. Israel says that the city of Rafah, where it continued its bombing last night, is the last stronghold of the Hamas group. Tens of thousands of Palestinian refugees have already left the city out of the more than one million who took refuge in Rafah, fleeing other war-torn areas. (LS)

     

  • May 7, 2024

    May 7, 2024

    Visit – Romania’s President, Klaus Iohannis, will be received, this evening, at the White House by his American counterpart, Joe Biden. Starting today, the Romanian head of state is on a working visit to the United States. According to a statement from the White House, quoted by Radio Romania’s correspondent in Washington, the two leaders will celebrate 20 years since Romania became a NATO member, and President Biden will thank his counterpart for hosting the American military in Romania and will acknowledge the numerous contributions that Romania, a staunch NATO ally, has made to the security of the Alliance’s eastern flank. The White House also says they will emphasize continued support for Ukraine, which is defending itself against Russian aggression. The two presidents will also review the many areas in which Romania and the United States work together, including energy, economic cooperation and common democratic values. On Wednesday, President Iohannis will participate in the Atlantic Council’s 2024 “Distinguished International Leadership” awards ceremony. The President of Romania will receive the highest distinction of the Atlantic Council “for his remarkable career, the exemplary leadership of Romania and the role of European and transatlantic leader”.

     

    Drill – The multinational NATO exercise “Swift Response” 24, which is also taking place on the territory of Romania, has begun. The drill will include one of the largest airborne operations in Europe since World War II, with approximately 2,000 paratroopers. All in all, 5,000 soldiers from seven allied and partner states are participating in the exercise. Romania provides air bases and ranges and participates with 2,300 soldiers and 220 technical means – the Defense Ministry announced.

     

    Cars – New car registrations in Romania increased in March by 34% compared to April 2023, the number standing at 13,276 vehicles – data published today show. In the first four months of 2024, new car registrations reached the value of 46,500 units, a level similar to that of the same period of last year. Regarding the second-hand cars registered for the first time in Romania, their volume reached almost 29,900 units in April this year. In this case, there is an increase of almost 37% compared to April 2023. In the first four months of the year, 114,000 vehicles were registered, an increase of 15.8% compared to the same period of last year. Regarding new car brands, the first five places are occupied by Dacia, Toyota, Skoda, Volkswagen and Hyundai – mentions a press release from the Romanian Automobile Manufacturers Association.

     

    Football – Today, Romanian sport is celebrating 38 years since Steaua Bucharest won the European Football Champions Cup. On May 7, 1986, in Spain, in Seville, the team, made up exclusively of Romanian players, defeated the famous FC Barcelona 2-0 in the final, after a penalty shootout. Steaua’s goalkeeper, Helmuth Duckadam, then entered the Book of Records, after he saved all four shots executed by the Catalans. In February 1987, in Monte Carlo, Steaua also won the European Supercup, with the score 1-0 with the Soviets from Dinamo Kiev. Two of the authors of those unique performances in the history of Romanian football, midfielder Lucian Bălan and defender Ilie Bărbulescu, have died in recent years.

     

    Olympics – The presidents of France and China, Emmanuel Macron and Xi Jinping, pleaded on Monday for an Olympic truce in all conflicts in the world during the Summer Olympic Games in Paris, a truce that could also be an opportunity to find solutions to end those conflicts, the press agencies report. The two leaders expressed this position in a joint statement given to the press in Paris, after a meeting in which they addressed international and commercial issues of bilateral interest. The French president hailed what he described as a commitment by China not to sell arms to Russia and generally not to provide it with any military aid. In turn, the Chinese president called for peace negotiations between Kyiv and Moscow, within an international conference recognized by Russia and Ukraine. We are opposed to using the Ukrainian crisis to shift the blame to others, to smear a third country and start a new Cold War, Xi Jinping underlined, referring to the recurring criticism of Western countries on the close relations between China and Russia.

     

    Drills – NATO, the EU and the US labeled as irresponsible the military exercises for the use of tactical nuclear weapons announced by Moscow, which motivated this decision following the statements of some Western officials and the increasing involvement of the West on the part of Ukraine in the conflict with Russia. Russia’s nuclear rhetoric is dangerous and irresponsible, and NATO remains vigilant, an Alliance spokeswoman told EFE news agency. The Russian nuclear exercises are a continuation of Russia’s irresponsible behavior, a spokesman for the European Commission said in turn. And the Pentagon denounced what it called Moscow’s irresponsible rhetoric. President Vladimir Putin has ordered the Russian army to soon carry out military maneuvers in which, according to an announcement released on Monday by the Russian Ministry of Defense, a series of measures will be taken to train troops in the preparation and use of non-strategic nuclear weapons.

     

    Table tennis – The Romanian pair made up of Ovidiu Ionescu and Bernadette Szocs qualified for the mixed doubles event of the Paris Olympic Games, the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) announced on Tuesday, after the publication of the world ranking for this event. Ionescu and Szocs missed two chances of direct qualification last month, at the pre-Olympic tournament in Havirov (the Czech Republic), but they got the tickets for the Olympic Games thanks to the world ranking. If Bernadette Szocs had already secured participation in the Paris Games, with the Romanian women’s team, Ovidiu Ionescu thus becomes the 82nd Romanian athlete qualified for the 2024 Olympic Games.

     

    Statistics – The unemployment rate decreased slightly, to 5.3%, in March of this year, compared to February, according to the data issued on Tuesday by the National Institute of Statistics. Among young people (15-24 years old), unemployment remains at a high level of 22.1%. The unemployment rate among men exceeded that among women by 0.8%. (LS)

  • May 6, 2024 UPDATE

    May 6, 2024 UPDATE

    EASTER Orthodox and Eastern-Catholic Christians in Romania are celebrating Bright Week, the first week after Easter. Easter, the most important religious holiday in the Christian world, is also the only one that lasts 3 days.

     

    STATISTICS Romania has the 3rd-lowest life expectancy in the EU, 76.6 years, according to a report released by Eurostat. The only 2 countries in the European bloc with poorer rates in this respect are Bulgaria and Latvia (below 76 years). Spain has the longest life expectancy in the European Union, 84 years, followed closely by Italy and Malta. According to Eurostat data, lower rates are reported in Eastern Europe and in the three Baltic states, whereas in Mediterranean, Scandinavian and Central European countries people live longer. On the other hand, the EU statistics office said, Romania sees the steepest increase in life expectancy, with one year gained between 2019 and 2023.

     

    MILITARY A multinational exercise called Swift Response 24 takes place until May 24 in Romania and other countries. Thousands of troops and hundreds of vehicles and other equipment from 7 Allied and partner states are taking part. The exercise is organised by the US Army Europe and Africa, and according to the Romanian defence ministry it will include one of the largest air assault operations conducted in Europe since WWII, with around 2,000 paratroopers from France, Germany, Romania, Spain, the US and the Netherlands taking part. Romania contributes 2,300 troops, several air bases and 3 firing ranges. The drills on Romanian territory are coordinated by the German Armed Forces jointly with the Romanian Land Forces, with support from the Romanian Air Forces.

     

    COMPANIES The number of companies deregistered in Romania increased by nearly 15% in the first quarter of this year, to over 12,000, according to the National Trade Registry Office. Most of these companies were registered in Bucharest and Ilfov County (south), Constanţa (south-east), Cluj (north-west), Timiş (west) and Iaşi (north-east), and operated in sectors like vehicle repair, wholesale and retail, and constructions.

     

    RUSSIA Russia’s president Vladimir Putin ordered nuclear weapons drills “in the near future,” involving in particular troops deployed close to Ukraine, France Presse and Reuters report. According to the Russian defence ministry, the drills are designed to keep the Army trained, following “provocative statements and threats of certain Western officials regarding the Russian Federation.” Missile units from the Military District South and naval forces will take part in the drills. Russia currently has the largest nuclear arsenal in the world. The 2022 invasion of Ukraine ordered by Vladimir Putin led to the worst deterioration of Russia’s relations with the West since the Cuban missile crisis, both US and Russian diplomats said. While Moscow claims the war is a response to NATO’s attempts to control Ukraine while expanding its military presence eastwards, the West and Ukraine define Putin’s war as intended to occupy new territory and bring Ukraine under Moscow’s control, Reuters says.

     

    UKRAINE Russia’s army announced on Monday having seized another 2 Ukrainian villages, one in Donetsk, in the east, and the other one in Kharkiv, in the north-east. Commentators say Russia has the initiative against an enemy struggling to recruit new troops and facing a slow-down in Western aid. With the US military assistance resumed after a USD 61 bln aid plan for Kyiv approved in late April, Ukraine should be able to strengthen its forces and to try to stabilise the front.

     

    VISIT The war in Ukraine and economic relations between China and the European Union were the main topics on the agenda of Monday’s talks in Paris, held as part of a 2-day state visit by China’s president Xi Jinping to France. The Chinese official called for a consolidated strategic coordination between China and the EU, as major world powers, at the start of a 3-party meeting with president Emmanuel Macron and with the European Commission chief, Ursula von der Leyen. President Macron pleaded in turn for “fair rules for all” in the trade between China and Europe. “The future of our continent will very clearly depend on our ability to continue to develop relations with China in a balanced manner,” Macron said, and added that “coordination” with Beijing on “major crises” including Ukraine and the Middle East was “absolutely decisive.” In turn, the EC president Ursula von der Leyen said that China and the EU have a shared interest in peace and security, and emphasized the determination to end Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and to achieve just and long-term peace.

     

    GAZA On Monday the Israeli armed forces started to evacuate Palestinian civilians from Rafah, ahead of a planned military move in this town in the south of Gaza, an Israeli radio station, Army Radio, has announced. The Israeli Army said it “encourages” residents in eastern Rafah to move to an extended humanitarian area close by. Seven months since the start of its attack on Hamas, Israel says Rafah is hosting thousands of Islamist Palestinian fighters and that the town is critical for its victory. But with over one million Palestinian civilians relocated to Rafah, the prospect of a military operation with a large number of victims is a concern for the West and for neighbouring Egypt, Reuters reports. (AMP)

  • April 23, 2024

    April 23, 2024

     

    ELECTIONS – The ruling coalition made up of the Social Democratic Party and the National Liberal Party has decided to back separate candidates for mayor general of Bucharest, namely the Senator Gabriela Firea, a former mayor of Bucharest between 2016 and 2020,  supported by the Social Democrats, and the incumbent energy minister, Sebastian Burduja, for the Liberals. President Klaus Iohannis said the decision to have two separate candidates running for the same post in the local elections in Bucharest was not a success for the coalition. The politicians involved say the decision was made in order to fully mobilise the voters of the two parties. The announcement came at the end of a coalition meeting held following media allegations that the joint candidate Cătălin Cîrstoiu was in an incompatibility situation. The physician is accused of taking advantage of his post as manager of Bucharest’s Emergency Teaching Hospital to treat patients in a private clinic. The coalition leaders also decided to keep joint candidates for the Bucharest district mayors and for the local councils. The Social Democrats and the Liberals also have joint candidate lists for the European Parliament elections, due on June 9th, concurrently with the local ballots.

     

    VISIT The president of Romania Klaus Iohannis, while on an official visit to South Korea, had a meeting this morning in Seoul with his counterpart, Yoon Suk Yeol. After the official welcome ceremony, the two presidents and the Romanian and South Korean delegations had bilateral talks. According to Radio Romania’s special correspondent, the political consultations between the two heads of state focused on the consolidation of bilateral relations, on political, diplomatic, and defence cooperation, and on the main challenges at regional and global level. On the same occasion, a joint declaration was adopted on the consolidation of the strategic partnership between Romania and South Korea, a document setting the key cooperation directions for the coming 10 years. In the presence of the two presidents, other documents were also signed, concerning cooperation in fields like defence, nuclear energy, investments, foreign trade and culture. The Romanian president’s agenda also includes meetings with the Romanian community in Seoul and a visit to a Romanian traditional art exhibition.

     

    AUTOMOTIVE The vehicles produced in Romania are in demand in over 60 markets in the world, so that 2024 may end with a new profit record, says Adrian Sandu, the secretary general of the Board of the Romanian Carmakers Association. According to him, in 2023 the domestic automotive industry saw a record output of 513,000 units produced. On the other hand, Adrian Sandu says that, apart from the inadequate transport infrastructure, Romania’s economy loses huge amounts of money because of bottlenecks in the customs process, due to Romanian land borders not being accepted yet in the Schengen area.

     

    FILM Two Romanian films are included in the official selection for the famous Cannes Film Festival in France: the feature film “Three kilometers to the end of the world,” directed by Emanuel Pârvu, describing the complicated relations between a teenager and his parents, and the documentary “Nasty”, about the life and career of the first Romanian tennis player to make it to the top place in the world ranking, Ilie Năstase, a film directed by Tudor Giurgiu, Cristian Pascariu and Tudor D. Popescu. The Cannes Festival also invited an Iranian filmmaker who criticizes the regime in Tehran, Mohammad Rasoulof. The 77th edition of the Cannes Festival takes place between May the 14th and 25th.

     

    TENNIS The Romanian tennis player Jaqueline Cristian defeated McCartney Kessler (USA) 7-6, 6-4 in the first round of the qualifiers for the WTA 1.000 tournament in Madrid, which has nearly EUR 7 million in total prize money. Cristian plays next against Daria Saville (Australia). Three Romanians are playing in the main draw of the Madrid competition: Sorana Cîrstea, qualified into the second round, Ana Bogdan, who will be taking on Xiyu Wang (China) in the first round, and Irina Begu, who plays her first match against Linda Fruhvirtova (Czech Republic). Simona Halep, former no. 1 in the world, announced she would not take part in the tournament in Madrid, for which she had received a wildcard. “Unfortunately, my body needs more time to be prepared,ˮ Halep posted on social media. (AMP)

  • April 21, 2024 UPDATE

    April 21, 2024 UPDATE

     

    VISIT The president of Romania Klaus Iohannis will be on an official visit to South Korea on April 22 through 24th, at the invitation of his counterpart, Yoon Suk Yeol. South Korea is the first Asia-Pacific country with which Romania upgraded its diplomatic relations to a Strategic Partnership level, in 2008. During the Romanian president’s visit to Seoul, this Partnership will be consolidated under a document setting the cooperation directions for the next 10 years. Agreements will be signed in fields such as defence, nuclear energy, investments and foreign trade, emergency cooperation and disaster management, culture, mass-media, youth and sports.

     

    ROBOTICS The AICitizens robotics team of the ‘Alexandru Ioan Cuza’ College in Focşani (eastern Romania) is the winner of the ‘First Tech Challenge’ World Championship held in Houston, USA between April 17th and 20th. The Romanian team reached the finals in an alliance with two other teams, The Clueless, from San Diego, California and Texpand, from Cape Town, South Africa, with AICitizens as the captain team. Taking part in the ‘First Tech Challenge’ world robotics championships were over 200 of the world’s top robotics teams.

     

    AID After months of postponements, the US House of Representatives Saturday night endorsed a USD 61 bln aid package for Ukraine. This is part of a bigger, USD 95 bln amount that also comprises security aid for Israel and Taiwan. The bill needs to be passed by the Senate as well, but the Democratic majority in the Senate is in favour of the aid. President Joe Biden has already called on the Senate to rush the vote. The aid comes at an extremely difficult time for Kyiv, which desperately needs weapons and ammunitions to withstand Russia’s growing offensive. The vote was welcomed by Western countries and Ukrainian leaders, but Moscow said the aid would only result in more Ukrainians getting killed because of the regime in Kyiv.

     

    EMPLOYMENT In Romania, the employment rate in the 15 to 64 age bracket was 63% last year, the National Statistics Institute announced. According to recently released data, the employment rate was higher among men (some 72%) than women (54%). The highest employment rate was reported last year among higher education graduates (nearly 90%), as opposed to 37% among people with little formal education. According to statistics, employees still account for 86% of the employed population, whereas self-employed and unpaid family workers only made up 13% of the total employed population. Also, around 83% of job holders were employed in the private sector.

     

    BREXIT The British PM Rishi Sunak rejected a European Commission proposal concerning a post-Brexit agreement enabling British youth to live, study and work in the EU and European youth in UK for up to 4 years, France Presse reports. The scheme was intended for young people aged 18 to 30, who would have benefited from visa exemptions and fair tuition fees. London said however it was unwilling to reopen talks concerning the freedom of movement and the strict regulation of the terms of stay in UK.

     

    MIDDLE EAST Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei Sunday thanked the country’s armed forces for the operation against Israel, urging them to “ceaselessly pursue military innovation and learn the enemy’s tactics”, Reuters reports, quoting the Iranian official news agency. Tehran attacked Israel for the first time on April 13, sending over 300 missiles and drones in retaliation for Israel’s suspected strike on its embassy compound in Damascus on April 1. Subsequently, blasts were reported over the Iranian town of Isfahan on Friday morning, in what sources say was an Israeli attack. Tehran played down the incident and said it did not plan to retaliate, which may prevent the current war in Gaza to spill over throughout the region. (AMP)