SABER GUARDIAN– The Romanian Foreign Ministry has hailed the 2017 Saber Guardian multinational military exercise, held on Romanias territory by the United States Ground and Service Forces Europe. According to a Ministry press release, the exercise brings together over 20 NATO and partner states, with a significant number of troops and technical equipment, being the largest and most comprehensive military exercise hosted by Romania in recent years. Saber Guardian is a key military exercise, contributing to consolidating defense and deterrence capabilities on NATOs eastern flank and to developing interoperability between participant countries. The exercise is also a sign of solidarity, highlighting the robust trans-Atlantic relation and the bilateral strategic partnership between Romania and the United States, signed 20 years ago.
NATO – Romania is a constant and reliable partner, said in Bucharest on Friday the chairman of the NATO military committee General Petr Pavel. He appreciated Romanias contribution to sharing responsibilities within NATO, both by allocating 2% of the GDP to defense and by participating in military missions and operations. General Petr Pavel mentioned the presence of Romanian soldiers in missions in Afghanistan and Kosovo, but also in the standing NATO maritime groups. Also, Romania plays host to the missile defense shield in Deveselu, in the south. The NATO official also mentioned Romanian soldiers participation in numerous drills and exercises, such as the one that is unfolding these days under the name of Saber Guardian.
JULY 14 – The National Day of France was celebrated on Friday at the French Embassy in Bucharest. The theme of the event was sport, and guests of honour were big Romanian and French athletes. The reception was attended by the new Romanian Prime Minister Mihai Tudose. He stated that, for two hundred years, Romania and France had overcome many obstacles thanks to the values they shared and the solid friendship between them. The Romanian Prime Minister extended an invitation to his French counterpart Edouard Phillipe to come and visit Bucharest. In turn, the French ambassador Michel Ramis said that the strategic partnership between France and Romania, concluded in 2008, was based on three pillars: proximity, the European family and the economic-industrial partnership. According to the Ambassador, there are some 2,400 French companies active in Romania, which circulate 4 billion Euros worth of direct investments. Thus France is the 5th largest foreign investor in Romania. Michel Ramis also said that Bucharest could count on Frances full support in its preparation for taking over the presidency of the EU Council in the first half of 2019.
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT – The Romanian Minister of the Environment Gratiela Gavrilescu will attend the High Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development hosted by New York between the 17th and the 21st of July. The event is organised under the aegis of the UN Economic and Social Council. The main issue on the agenda is eradication of poverty and promoting prosperity in a changing world. According to a communiqué issued by the Ministry of the Environment, at the event in New York 44 states will present national reports on the implementation of the 2030 agenda for Sustainable Development. The ministers meeting will be held on July 19-20, and the participants will sign a joint declaration.
WORLD EXHIBITION– Romanias pavilion at the World Exhibition hosted by Astana, Kazakhstan, is visited on average by 1,500 visitors per day, Mihail Dediu, the head of the Romanian delegation told Radio Romania. The theme this year is the energy of tomorrow. Romanias pavilion is devoted to the high-power laser in Magurele, southern Romania, the largest research project in Romania in the last 50 years. Romania thus wants to promote Romanias potential for innovation in the field of research, Mihail Dediu said.
CLIMATE CHANGE– Climate change will prompt a swift temperature spike, intensifying extreme meteorological phenomena and heavy downpours, causing crop failures and coral loss in the Asia-Pacific area, climate experts have warned. These developments are the result of the failure to observe the Paris Accord on Climate Change. Signed in 2015 and enacted in November 2016, the agreement provides for keeping a global temperature rise below 2 degrees Celsius as compared to pre-industrial levels. To reach this target, swifter and harsher measures are needed, climate experts argue. If the worlds population keeps emitting greenhouse gases fueling global warming, the average global temperature will rise by at least 4 degrees by the end of the century, and even by 6 degrees Celsius in some regions.
FOOTBALL– Romanias champion FC Viitorul Constanta will play against the winner of the match between APOEL Nicosia of Cyprus and F19 Dudelange of Luxembourg, in the third preliminary round of the Champions League. Vice-champion FCSB (former Steaua Bucharest) will also play in the third round against the Czechs from FC Viktoria Plzen. In Europa Leauge, CS Universitatea Craiova will taken on the Italian AC Milan and FC Dinamo Bucharest will play against Athletic Bilbao. On Thursday, the Romanian football club Astra Giurgiu defeated 3-1 Zira FK of Azerbaijan in the first leg of the Europa League second preliminary round. The return leg will be played on July 20 in Baku.
WIMBLEDON — The pair made up of Monica Niculescu of Romania and Hao-Ching Chan of Taiwan on Friday qualified for the Wimbledon doubles final, after defeating Markota Ninomiya of Japan and Renata Voracova of the Czech Republic 2-1. Niculescu and Chan will play the final against the Russians Ekaterina Makarova and Elena Vesnina. This is Niculescu’s best performance in a Grand Slam doubles competition, after reaching the Roland Garros quarterfinals in 2010 and the Australian Open quarterfinals in 2012. The best-rated player from Romania right now, Simona Halep, WTA no. 2, was knocked out in the quarterfinals after losing to Johanna Konta of Great Britain.