Radio România Internațional

Tag: wildfire

January 11, 2025

A roundup of local and international news.

ENERGY – Electricity and thermal energy production is expected to register a 2% decrease this year compared to 2024, but will go up in the next three years, according to the autumn forecast of the National Strategy and Forecast Commission for 2024-2028. Thus, in 2026, electricity and thermal energy production is estimated to increase by 1.4%. In 2027, it will increase by 1.5% and in 2028 by 1.3%.

TRANSNISTRIA – The regime in Transnistria, an autonomous region part of the Republic of Moldova, has extended the state of energy emergency until the beginning of February. Since January 1, the Transnistrian region has no longer received natural gas from Russia, and more than 50,000 households have been left without gas and almost 1,500 blocks of flats have had no heat or hot water. The authorities in Tiraspol refused the help offered by the Chisinau administration, which so far has managed to ensure the supply of natural gas and electricity to the right bank of the Dniester. Since the beginning of the year, more than half of the electricity needed has been ensured thanks to imports from Romania. Meanwhile, Chisinau has started the steps to connect several localities in the security zone to the energy system on the right side of the Dniester, which are now connected to the gas and electricity networks of Transnistria.

CATHEDRAL – The construction of the National Cathedral in Bucharest will be completed this year, in fall. On October 26, it is to be consecrated by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople and Patriarch Daniel of the Romanian Orthodox Church. According to the Patriarchy’s press agency, the event will also mark the 140th anniversary of the Romanian Orthodox Church’s recognition of its status as an autocephalous church and 100 years since it was elevated to the rank of patriarchacy. The works on the cathedral are almost complete. This year, the cross on the main spire is to be installed. Other works are also needed, such as completing the interior installations or installing the exterior stained glass windows. At the same time, over 200 painters are working on the completion of the mosaic icons. In fact, the mosaic iconostasis on an area of over 400 square meters is the largest of its kind in the Orthodox world.

CULTURE – The President of the Romanian Cultural Institute and of the European Union National Institutes for Culture, Liviu Jicman, is in the United States, from January 10 to 17, for a series of meetings, in New York and Washington DC, with leaders of the cultural sector, the American administration and technology. Jicman will convey the message of the importance of culture and the arts in international relations, including transatlantic ones, and will advocate for the intensification of cultural-artistic partnerships between cultural institutions and personalities located in Europe and the United States. Liviu Jicman will also open, together with the Romanian Ambassador in the US, Andrei Muraru, the New York and Washington performances of the North American tour of the show inspired by Marin Sorescu’s novel “Vision of the Burrow”, performed by Simona Măcănescu and Mircea Florian. The show is performed on the occasion of National Culture Day both in the United States and in Canada, in Vancouver, with the support of the Romanian Embassy in the US and the Consulate General of Romania in Vancouver.

LEGISLATION – The Bucharest Government will adopt, next week, the necessary legislation for the presidential elections, according to the calendar agreed on by the PSD-PNL-UDMR ruling coalition, with the first round on May 4 and the second on May 18. It is one of the priorities announced by Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu in the most recent meeting. Another priority, Ciolacu said, is the completion and approval of the draft budget for this year by the end of the month, so that the document is debated and voted on by Parliament in the very first week of the Parliament’s session. The third major priority mentioned by Marcel Ciolacu is establishing the best way to continue supporting the population through capped prices for energy and gas, after April 1. At the end of March, the current support scheme expires, and its short-term extension – three or six months – was also mentioned by the Minister of Energy as an option. There are, however, other options to be considered, and the decision must be made by February 1.

WILDFIRE – The American authorities have requested the evacuation of the Consulate General of Romania in Los Angeles, in the context of the severe wildfires that have mainly affected Los Angeles in the State of California, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Bucharest has announced. Thus, the consular office temporarily suspends its activity. Emergency consular services continue to be provided for Romanian citizens through a mobile consular team, which can be contacted at the emergency phone number of the Consulate General of Romania in Los Angeles: +13107210474. The MFA advises Romanian citizens who are in Los Angeles to follow the instructions of local authorities and to call the single emergency number 911 in case of imminent danger. So far, there are no reports of deceased Romanian citizens, and, at the consular office level, no requests for consular assistance have been received.

11 January 2025
European cooperation against wildfire

A consequence of the high temperatures recorded this summer, wildfires are wreaking havoc across several European countries. Like in previous years, Greece is the worst hit, with dozens of fires on its hands. Similar situations seen in the last three years have resulted in the destruction of large sections of the forested area around Athens and on the islands of Euboea and Rhodes. At the time, the fires were effectively dealt with thanks to support from many European states, including Romania. This is also the case right now, thanks to a EU-funded assistance programme intended as a support measure for the Greek authorities following the devastating fires in the past years. This is part of Brussels’ new policy to limit forest fires in the south of Europe, with fire fighting units being dispatched to Greece from Bulgaria, Malta, the Republic of Moldova and Romania.

Under the programme, 40 Romanian fire-fighters and 8 pieces of equipment left on Tuesday on a pre-positioning mission in Greece. The mission will last until 15^th September and the aim of the programme is to reduce response time in the event of forest fires, achieve a more effective preparation of intervention units from member states and improve interoperability between the participating forces. The head of Romania’s Department for Emergency Situations Raed Arafat told fire-fighters that although they are leaving on a support mission, the situation in Greece is difficult and that they will most likely take part in interventions on the ground.

Interior minister Cătălin Predoiu praised the professionalism of the fire-fighting service and the current structure of the emergency intervention system:

“You have demonstrated your ability to save lives and to protect communities, both in Romania and abroad. This expertise was not achieved randomly, but because a number of years ago, Romania managed to create an emergency intervention system for civilian protection, a coherent, integrated system that brings together different professions and specialisations. This system is integrated with the Mobile Emergency Service for Reanimation and Extrication, the emergency healthcare service, paramedics, the police, the gendarmerie, the mountain rescue service and other institutions, as part of a mechanism that has demonstrated its effectiveness in the last ten years”.

On 29^th July, a group of 20 fire-fighters from the Republic of Moldova also left for Greece to replace their colleagues who ended a mission begun in the early days of the month. On the same day, a fire on the Bulgarian-Greek border expanded, entering Bulgarian territory in two places, and two French planes joined in the efforts to extinguish it. Also, at the request of their French counterparts, Romanian fire-fighters recently contributed to putting out a wildfire in the south of France, in a busy tourist region and home to many camping sites.

31 July 2024
August 9, 2021

Covid-19.
The daily number of new coronavirus infections
stands at over 200 in Romania. 208 infections were reported on Sunday, as well
as 3 related deaths. The number of those admitted to intensive care increased
to 79. Also on Sunday, about 7,000 people were vaccinated against COVID-19. Worldwide,
the number of infections reported since the
start of the pandemic has exceeded 200 million, but the curve indicating new
infections is stabilizing, without reaching the peaks reported in April. Although the numbers are still high, a slight
decrease in weekly cases in Europe and the Americas is expected in the coming
period. Almost 30% of the world’s population has received at least one dose of
vaccine, and over 15% have been fully immunized. Globally, the number of COVID-19-related
deaths has reached 4.2 million.

Aid. A Romanian Air Force
aircraft will transport to Tunisia approximately 180,000 doses of COVID-19
vaccine produced by Astra Zeneca, as well as antigen tests and sanitary
materials, to help manage the pandemic
in that country, the Romanian Defense Ministry has announced. Romania was among
the states that received a request for international assistance from the
Tunisian government, by activating the European Civil Protection Mechanism.
This mechanism coordinates the response to natural and man-made disasters at EU
level, enabling coordinated, effective and rapid assistance to support affected
populations.

Wildfires. 45 Romanian
firefighters continue their missions in the Spatari area on the Greek island of
Evia. The intervention is facilitated by six fire engines and two tanks, and
six rescuers have the mission to ensure the supply of trucks with water and use
chainsaws to create corridors that help contain the fires. According to the General Inspectorate for
Emergency Situations, Romanian firefighters use drones to monitor new fire
outbreaks. These are the deadliest fires in Greek history and have devastated
northern Evia, burning more than 35,000 hectares of pine forest and hundreds of
homes. Thousands of residents and tourists have been evacuated by sea from the
affected regions. Many regions and countries across the globe have been
increasingly affected by extreme weather. UN researchers will present today a report on the impact
of climate change, in which they analyze how the oceans, ice caps and the
earth’s surface could change in the coming decades. Scientists have confirmed
that if the temperature does not exceed 1.5 degrees Celsius above
pre-industrial levels, catastrophes could still be avoided.

Budget. In Bucharest, the
Liberal Prime Minister Florin Cîţu continues, this week, discussions on budget
adjustment, with his ministers, but also with the leaders of the ruling center-right
coalition. According to the draft, the Ministry of Health will receive the
largest amount, followed by the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of
Development. On the other hand, the Ministry of Labor, the Court of Accounts
and the Senate will get less. The Prime Minister has reiterated that additional
funds will be received only by ministries that reported a good budget execution
in the first six months of the year. For his part, the Deputy Prime Minister
Dan Barna, from USR-PLUS, has expressed his conviction that an adjustment formula
will be found that will guarantee investments in the coming months of this year
as well.

Inflation.
The National Bank of Romania has revised
its inflation forecasts to 5.6% by the end of this year and to 3.4% by the end
of next year, according to a presentation made today by the Central Bank Governor,
Mugur Isărescu. The National Bank estimates that the inflation rate for July will
stand at around 5%, mainly due to higher energy prices. Mugur Isărescu has specified,
however, that Romania is not the only country in this situation, the inflation
rate being high in the United States, Hungary or Poland, but also in Germany, a
country where prices are stable. However, compared to the previous forecast,
the price increases are significantly higher, Mugur Isărescu also said.

Deficit.
In Romania, the trade balance deficit in
the first six months of this year went up to 10.659 billion euro, almost two
billion euro higher than in the same period last year. According to the
National Institute of Statistics, exports amounted to 36 billion euro between
January and June 2021, and imports amounted to almost 47 billion. Exports
increased by 26.5%, and imports increased by 25.6%, according to NIS. (MI)

9 August 2021
August 3, 2021 UPDATE

Budget. In Bucharest, the Liberal PM
Florin Cîţu announced a first draft of the state budget adjustment
bill is ready and will be forwarded soon to the leaders of the right-of-centre
ruling coalition. The prime minister also said he was still waiting for all
ministers to report on the budget execution for the first half of the year, and
called for more responsibility in public spending in the next 6 months. In an
internet post, Cîţu reminded his cabinet members that they must reach all the
budget targets undertaken at the beginning of this year.

Attack. The
European Union and NATO firmly condemned last Thursday’s drone attack off the
coast of Oman on an oil tanker managed by an Israeli billionaire in which two
crew members were killed, one Romanian and one British national. NATO warned
that freedom of navigation is essential for allies and must be respected in
keeping with international law. According to the Alliance, the UK, the US and
Romania reached the conclusion that Iran is most likely responsible for the
attack, and the allies are worried about Tehran’s destabilising actions in the
region. Iran rejected the accusations and said it will not hesitate to defend
its security and national interests. Israel described the incident as a clear
violation of international law. In Bucharest, the foreign ministry also
condemned the attack and summoned the Iranian ambassador in Bucharest. A similar
measure was taken in London, where prime minister Boris Johnson said Iran must
face up to the consequences. The government in Tehran summoned the chargé d’affaires of the British and Romanian embassies to protest against the
accusations against Iran.

COVID-19. Tuesday saw 233 new Covid cases in Romania, the highest number in the last two months. Over 400 Covid patients are receiving hospital treatment, including 60 in intensive care. Five COVID-related deaths were also reported on Tuesday. The number of new coronavirus cases is growing across Europe, while in Romania containment measures are more relaxed than in other countries, state secretary Raed Arafat said. Despite this, he said, Romanians are still failing to observe the restrictions and many have given up wearing face masks on public transport. In spite of repeated warnings of an imminent new wave of infections, the vaccine rollout is also lagging behind in Romania, where 5 million people have received at least one dose, a target set for early June but which was only met a few days ago.

Vaccination. The European Union has reached a major goal of providing at least one dose of the Covid vaccine to 70% of the adults in the Union, but member states must step up vaccination rates in order to contain the faster-spreading variants, the European Commission chief warned on Tuesday. Ursula von der Leyen said that, apart from the first dose target being met, 57% of EU adults are now fully vaccinated against Covid. According to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, 68% of the adults in the EU plus Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland have received their first dose, whereas 53.7% of the approximately 400 million adults in the 31 countries are fully vaccinated.

Wildfires. Efforts are being ramped up to put out the wildfires
raging in several Balkan countries. The fire is still blazing in many areas,
owing to strong winds and high temperatures. Greece is faced with its highest
temperatures in the last 30 years, with highs of 40 to 45 degrees Celsius. The
Greek authorities took a series of measures to extinguish the wildfires and in
Turkey, the fire fighting services, which have been struggling to contain the
fire for almost a week, said there are still active fires. They received help from
fire fighters from Spain, Croatia and Russia. The heat wave has also affected
southern Bulgaria and Serbia, where hundreds of hectares of forest have caught
fire. The authorities are on alert, given that high temperatures are also
expected in the next few days.

Recovery. The European Commission has made the
first payments under the European Recovery and Resilience Plan to Belgium,
Luxembourg and Portugal, worth in total almost 3 billion euros. These are the
first countries to receive 13% of the promised funds as part of a massive EU recovery
scheme worth 800 billion euros and aimed at overcoming the consequences of the
Covid-19 pandemic. The European Commission will this month make further
payments to other countries as soon as the latter finalise their national
plans. All states, with the exception of The Netherlands and Bulgaria have
submitted their plans. The Commission has so far given the green light to 16
countries, namely Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Italy,
Latvia, Luxembourg, Portugal, Slovakia, Spain, Croatia, Cyprus, Lithuania and
Slovenia. The plans submitted by 7 states, including Romania, are still under
assessment.

Unemployment. The unemployment rate at the end
of June in Romania was 3% lower than in the previous month and equal to that in
June last year, according to the national employment agency. Some 260,000
Romanians were out of job at the end of June, a third of them from urban areas
and the rest from the countryside.

Olympics. Bronze
medallists at the Canoe Sprint European Championship in Poznan this year, the
Romanian rowers Cătălin Chirilă and Victor Mihalachi on Tuesday finished in
fifth place in the final of the men’s canoe double 1,000 m at the Tokyo
Olympics. Victor Mihalachi has two world championship titles in this event,
which he won in 2010 and 2014. Also at the Tokyo Games, Romanian gymnast Larisa Iordache missed the beam final because
of an ankle injury. Romania so far won four medals in Tokyo, including one gold
and three silver. (CM)

3 August 2021
August 28, 2019

UK The President of Romania Klaus Iohannis had a telephone conversation with the British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, at the request of the latter, the Romanian Presidency announced. The 2 officials mainly discussed the relations between Romania and the UK, and aspects related to Britains withdrawal from the EU. With respect to Brexit, the Romanian President emphasised that an orderly exit is in the interest of both the UK, and the European bloc. Iohannis also told PM Boris Johnson that Bucharests top priority is to protect the rights of the Romanian citizens living in Britain. PM Boris Johnson assured the President of Romania that protecting the rights of the Romanians in the UK after Brexit was very important to London, and the British authorities would keep this goal in mind.

LAW Romanias Ombudsperson Renate Weber challenged the new Administrative Code at the Constitutional Court. She put forth 3 reasons for the action: the emergency order endorsing the Code comes against the rules on delegated legislation, against constitutional requirements on the powers of MPs, and affects the regime of fundamental public institutions. The Administrative Code has been introduced through a government emergency order, which triggered criticism from the Opposition and civil society.

PARLIAMENT The Chamber of Deputies, convening in special session at the request of the Opposition, Wednesday dismissed a bill on amnesty and pardons for certain offences. The document, initiated in 2017 by former justice minister Florin Iordache, from the Social Democratic Party, was passed by Senate that same year, and provides pardons for prison sentences of up to 5 years. The agenda of the Chamber of Deputies also includes a bill on repealing the Law on compensatory appeals and a bill endorsing Government Emergency Order no 114, which introduces fiscal and budgetary measures and measures concerning public investments.

OIL Romania is among the EU countries that rely the least on oil imports, with net imports accounting for 61% of the national consumption, according to data for the year 2017 made public by Eurostat. Smaller dependency rates are reported for the UK (35%) and Denmark (negative 4%). At the opposite pole, the EU member states with the highest oil import dependency rates are Estonia (115%), Malta (104%), Slovenia (103%) and Bulgaria (102%).

WILDFIRE Wildfires continue to ravage the Amazon rainforest in Brazil, in spite of the authorities sending the army to fight the flames with planes and ground troops. Apart from the air forces, scores of fire-fighting units have been mobilised to contain the fire. So far 7 Brazilian states have resorted to the Army, including to the 43,000 troops stationed in Amazonia, but the number of troops deployed for this operation and their intervention methods remain unclear, France Presse reports. According to governmental sources the number of wildfires in the Amazon rainforest went up 83% this year, destroying vast parts of an eco-system that is vital to combating global climate change.

TENNIS Three Romanian players have qualified into the second round of the US Open, the last Grand Slam tournament of the year. Simona Halep, number 4 in the world, defeated the American Nicole Gibbs, 6-3, 2-6, 6-2. Sorana Cîrstea beat the Czech Katerina Siniakova, 7-5, 6-2, and Ana Bogdan won against Britains Harriet Dart, 6-3, 6-1. The only Romanian in the mens competition, Marius Copil, also moved into the US Open second round, for the first time in his career, after defeating Ugo Humbert of France, in a match that lasted more than 4 hours.

(translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

28 August 2019
July 30, 2018

WEATHER – The weather is unstable in Romania, particularly in the centre, east and north. The authorities have issued a code yellow alert against rainfalls, thunderstorms and gusty wind valid for those regions until Monday evening. Rain water might exceed 20 l/square meter and even 50-60 l/square meter in places. The highs of the day range from 24 to 33 degrees Celsius. Hydrologists have issued code yellow and orange alerts along several rivers in the country, valid until Wednesday, at midnight. At least two people lost their lives because of heavy rains and flooding over the past few days, many households have been submerged and traffic has been disrupted on several national and county roads. The noon reading in Bucharest was 27 degrees.

BREEZE 18 – Three ships belonging to the Standing NATO Mine Countermeasures Group are currently docked at the Constanta Military Port on the Black Sea Coast, until Tuesday. The participating ships include ROS Lt. Lupu Dinescu, TCG Anamur, and FGS Rhein. The ships have made stops in the ports of Burgas, Bulgaria and Odessa in Ukraine. They participated in the multinational exercise BREEZE 18, in Bulgarias territorial waters and in the Black Sea international waters, and took part in joint exercises at sea, with Ukrainian ships. Exercise BREEZE provided training to the participants in various fields of maritime warfare and enhanced interoperability among NATO Navies. On Sunday, the ships were open to visitors.

GREECE – 91 people died in the wildfire that devastated the eastern coast of Attica in Greece, the latest provisional death toll made public by the Greek authorities shows. Several children are among the victims, as well as four foreign nationals-two Poles, an Irish and a Belgian citizen. An investigation carried out by the Greek fire-fighters shows a local would be at fault for starting the first fire and the Greek authorities know who he is. PM Alexis Tzipras has said he assumes full political responsibility for the tragedy, whereas the Opposition has accused the Government of being incapable of protecting the citizens lives. We recall the two Romanian military aircraft, one used for extinguishing fire and the other one providing logistical support, which were sent to Greece by the Bucharest authorities shortly after the wildfire broke out, completed their mission on Saturday and returned to Romania.

SUMMER SCHOOL – The Bucharest University is organising until August 6, the 58th edition of the Romanian language, culture and civilisation Summer School, which enjoys the participation of 28 foreign students from Europe and the US. This years edition is dedicated to the celebrations occasioned by the Centennial of the Great Union of 1918 Centennial and to the commemoration of the Romanian poet Nichita Stănescu. The young people have the opportunity to attend Romanian language courses, workshops and conferences on Romanian culture and civilisation, cultural events and to visit museums. A novelty this year is the introduction of two workshops “’Mass-Media and Advertising and “Comics for beginners.

PENITENTIARIES – Trade unions in the Romanian penitentiaries have today made public the timetable of protests against what they call “the indolence and incompetence of the justice minister Tudorel Toader and against the Governments lack of involvement in solving the problems they are facing. They call for the resignation of the minister, better working conditions, the elimination of payment disparities and drafting the status of policemen working in penitentiaries. Trade unionists also warn they will go on a token strike on August 10 and will take part in a rally and protest march on October 3.

HAMANGIA CULTURE – Bulgaria and Romania will join efforts to create a tourist product meant to promote the Hamangia prehistoric culture which existed on both sides of the border between the two countries. Tourist landmarks of the archaeological reserve in Durankulak will be developed during the project called ”Hamangia: the first civilization of old Europe”, run by the cities of Shabla in Bulgaria and Cernavodă in Romania, according to the administration in Shabla. The project will benefit from 1.5 million Euro funding, under the European program Interreg V-A Romania-Bulgaria 2014-2020.

ANTHEM – The national anthem, consecrated by the Romanian Constitution as a national symbol alongside the national flag, the countrys coat of arms and seal, is one of iconic elements which define the Romanians national identity and is a unique musical and symbolical synthesis of the Romanian spirit, according to a communiqué issued by the Romanian Foreign Ministry. This year, too, the Romanian diplomatic missions, consular offices and Romanian cultural institutes abroad have organised a series of events of public and cultural diplomacy to mark the Anthem Day. Celebrated on July 29, the National Anthem Day was proclaimed in 1998. The current anthem, considered to be a national symbol is “Awaken Thee, Romanian! and it was chosen after the fall of the communist regime, in December 1989. It is based on the patriotic poem by Andrei Mureşanu, published in 1848, and a tune collected by Anton Pann.

TENNIS – Romanian tennis player Simona Halep continues to be no.1 WTA, according to the world ranking made public today. She is followed by Denmarks Caroline Wozniacki and the American Sloane Stephens. Halep is no.1 for the 39th week, thus equalling the performance of French Amelie Mauresmo. Other best ranking tennis players are Mihaela Buzărnescu (24), Sorana Cârstea (54), Irina Begu (56), Monica Niculescu (60) and Ana Bogdan (87).

30 July 2018