Radio România Internațional

Tag: WWI

  • March 5, 2024 UPDATE

    March 5, 2024 UPDATE

    Treasure – The National Bank of Romania and MEP Eugen Tomac organized an exhibition at the European Parliament on Tuesday about the Romanian Treasure owned by Russia and which has not been returned to our country for over a hundred years. It is a unique case in history, and Bucharest wants to bring it to the attention of the European Union as another example of violation of international law by Moscow. Next week, the European Parliament is expected to demand the reparation of this injustice, through a resolution supported by all political groups. The treasure consists of 91 tons of gold, works, artifacts and archival documents, which were sent to Moscow in 1916 and 1917, during the First World War, when much of the country was occupied by the forces of the Central Powers. Later, after the Bolshevik Revolution of 1918, the Soviet Union and then the Russian Federation refused to return the treasure, except for works of art and other cultural values. The exhibition at the European Parliament presents legal evidence and historical documents regarding the sending of the Romanian Treasure to Moscow, as well as Russia’s commitments to return it at the request of our country.

     

    Meeting – The President of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, had a meeting, on Tuesday, in Bucharest, with his counterpart from the neighboring Republic of Moldova, Maia Sandu. Earlier, Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu also discussed with Maia Sandu. In the context he reconfirmed his “firm” support for Chisinau’s European path. The meetings took place a day before the Congress of the European People’s Party (EPP), scheduled in Bucharest on Wednesday and Thursday. Led by Iohannis before he became president, the National Liberal Party – PNL (today in the governing coalition with the Social Democratic Party – PSD) is affiliated with EPP. Present in Bucharest, the president of the European People’s Party, Manfred Weber, said that he supported the decision to have “someone from a Central or Eastern European country” at the head of the EU, in the next mandates of the community institutions. Over 1,500 representatives of the European People’s Party, including 13 heads of state and government, are in Romania to participate in the congress of this political group in the next two days.

     

    Motion – The Chamber of Deputies on Tuesday dismissed the simple motion against Finance Minister Marcel Boloș, filed by Save Romania Union – USR and Force of the Right opposition parties. The motion was debated on Monday, opposition members criticizing the Minister for introducing a 10% tax on medical leave to cover the holes in the state budget. Minister Boloș is also accused of violating the law that stipulates that any tax must be enacted six months after its introduction. Marcel Boloș denied all accusations, slamming the opposition’s motion as a politicized initiative. The healthcare system is underfunded, and the government sought to discourage medical leave, which would bring less benefit to working employees, the Finance Minister said in response.

     

     

    Tennis – The Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne has shortened tennis player Simona Halep’s sentence for doping from 4 years to nine months. The Romanian, the former world number one, will be able to return to the court, as her provisional suspension began on October 7, 2022. The Court decision, published on the court’s website, is final. We remind you that the tennis player has always claimed that she took a contaminated supplement, and at the hearings in February, she sought the help of a French expert specialized in pharmacology, toxicology and biology. The International Tennis Integrity Agency stated in September 2023 that Simona intentionally violated the anti-doping rules and suspended her for 4 years.

     

    Drugs – In Romania, high-risk drug traffickers will no longer be able to receive suspended sentences, and trading psychoactive substances will be punishable by 3 to 10 years in prison. A draft law in this regard was adopted on Tuesday by the Chamber of Deputies, which is a decision-making body. The MPs emphasized that the phenomenon of drug use has been ignored for a long time and that additional measures are needed to combat it: border scanners, rehabilitation and prevention centers. (LS)

     

  • The Coronation of 1922

    The Coronation of 1922

    On October
    15th, 1922, Romanians witnessed an unexpected event, an event with a strong
    impact in the mind of every Romanian, who had seen the years of the First World
    War: the coronation of Romania’s sovereigns, King Ferdinand I and Queen Marie
    in Alba Iulia. The kingdom of Greater Romania, took shape in the wake of WWI, being
    the result of an incommensurable sacrifice of human and material resources, as
    well as superhuman diplomatic efforts. Following that huge price in human lives
    and material resources, the new Romania became the country where any citizen
    could freely develop their personality and contribute to the general happiness
    and wellbeing. The publications of the
    time abounded in details on the organization of the aforementioned event. First
    off they published the special venue, the city of Alba Iulia, where in 1600
    Wallachian prince Michael the Brave entered in front of his army, an event
    considered by historians the first political union of the Romanian
    principalities.


    Then there was the religious service
    and the emotions caused by the coronation, the rituals going on and the leading
    personalities attending the event. The press also wrote about the political
    rivalries which didn’t cease to exist even during this event. The Liberal
    government led by Ion I.C. Brătianu staged the entire coronation, which was
    boycotted by the political opposition. At the same time, publications wrote
    about the Pope’s disapproval of a Catholic king who was to be crowned in an
    Orthodox church. However, these were all minor elements and the coronation went
    on as planned, because there was nothing to hinder that major event in the life
    of a nation.


    In the
    following minutes historian Ioan Scurtu is going to help us understand how that
    moment was perceived by the main participants in the event, the king and the
    queen. According to Ioan Scurtu the two very different personalities of the
    king and his wife became very visible on that occasion.


    Ioan
    Scurtu: King Ferdinand was less
    active and didn’t love public appearances, but he eventually accepted the
    coronation protocol just like he did during the Crown Council in 1916 when he
    announced he had to go against his will and accept Romania’s joining the war as
    the Council had asked. Queen Marie had a more active role in politics unlike
    Queen Elizabeth, who wasn’t allowed by her husband, King Carol I, to get
    involved in Romania’s political life. Ferdinand believed that it was the
    sovereigns’ right to coronation for their major contribution to the 1918 union
    of the Romanian principalities. And that was also visible in the crowns of the
    two royal figures. Ferdinand took over the steel crown of his predecessor, king
    Carol, which had three precious stones added, representing Bessarabia, Bukovina
    and Transylvania. Queen Marie decided that the crown she took over from Queen
    Elizabeth was too modest, so she ordered one made up of gold adorned with a lot
    of jewels, which was weighing more than two kilograms.


    The extremely
    strong personality of Queen Marie became very visible during the coronation,
    but that strong personality was actually completing that of her husband. Here
    is historian Ioan Scurtu at the microphone.


    Ioan Scurtu: The
    central figure in the programme of the Coronation Committee was of course King
    Ferdinand. Queen Marie tried all the time to be close to the king, she wouldn’t
    be overshadowed although she hadn’t had the king’s contribution to the union.
    In her diary she wrote about a difficult moment for her when she had to kneel
    before the king to have the crown placed on her head. However, the king helped
    her to stand up and kissed her forehead. The king placed the crown on his head
    like Napoleon Bonaparte.


    The general happiness and the feeling of victory at the end of 1918
    persisted right until the coronation. Here is historian Ioan Scurtu again.


    Ioan Scurtu: The king was himself, he behaved in his style. After
    the war, an armistice was signed and high officials, including the clergy had
    to come to Bucharest those days. The queen was very happy and told him ‘Nando,
    do you realize you have become the king of all Romanians, you’re a great man, a
    historic personality?’ But the king had only a laconic reply ‘It was God’s
    will!’ As if he hadn’t made such an extraordinary contribution to that union.
    They were so different from each other, like I said, different personalities,
    but what was important was the fact that they stayed together and everyone saw
    the event as the coronation of King Ferdinand and Queen Marie.


    The coronation of King Ferdinand and Queen Marie on October 15th
    1922 was a triumph for an entire nation, which paid a huge price and the
    sacrifice they made at that time will never be forgotten by the generations to
    come.


    (bill)

  • Romania and the Bolshevik Revolution

    Romania and the Bolshevik Revolution

    Russian soldiers entered
    Romanian territory during WWI as allies, following an agreement on 16th August
    1916 when Romania joined the war alongside France, Britain and Russia. Russia’s
    help did not arrive immediately and even when it did, it was weak and
    unconvincing. The Romanian army was defeated and in December 1916 the
    authorities were forced to leave the capital and take refuge in Moldovia. It wasn’t
    until early 1917 that Russia sent in more significant reinforcement consisting
    in the presence of 1 million soldiers. Romanian-Russian cooperation worked
    well, also owing to the direct involvement of the French, and the Central Powers
    were thus unable to penetrate the defence in 1917. However, the year would not
    finish as promising as it began, on the contrary.




    The revolutions in
    Russia destroyed the morale of the Russian troops and the disintegration of the
    Russian army endangered not only the front in the Carpathian Mountains, but
    also the existing social order. When Lenin and his group triumphed and put in
    place the Bolshevik system in November 1917, in Romania the situation got out
    of control. The Russian soldiers were behaving not like allies, but like
    enemies, and the Romanian army soon realised that they were at least as
    dangerous as the German enemy. Through great effort, the Romanian army managed
    to quell the rebellion of the Russian soldiers and stabilise the situation.




    Historian Șerban Pavelescu from the Institute
    of Political Studies, Defence and Military History is the editor of a book called Aliatul inamic (Enemy Ally) which
    contains the memoirs of two Russian generals, Nikolai A. Monkevits and Aleksandr
    N. Vinogradski. The two were on the Romanian front in 1917 and 1918 and
    remember how Romania coped with the Bolshevik revolution:




    Many of these troops were behind the frontline,
    with a large group of Russian troops being located in the Nicolina area, near Iași.
    The Bolshevik upheaval created there by the revolutionary committees set up after
    October 1917 threatened the political and administrative structures of the
    Romanian state. A conflict soon appeared, at the end of 1917 and the beginning of
    1918, when the Romanian troops were eventually forced to step in against its former
    ally in order to drive it away from Romanian territory. This would give rise in
    1918 to genuine battles between the Romanian and the Russian troops, with the
    former trying to prevent the latter from abandoning the front with the weapons
    and the munition. Behind the front, the lack of discipline, the chaos and the revolutionary
    turmoil transformed the Russian troops into bands of looters who destroyed everything
    in their wake.




    Some Russian soldiers perpetrated extreme acts
    of violence, especially in Bessarabia, the present-day Republic of Moldova. Historian
    Șerban Pavelescu explains:




    These troops defeated and driven out by the Romanian troops by force would
    cross the Prut river and unleash terror there. The intervention of the Romanian
    troops in Bessarabia in March 1918 was nothing but an attempt to bring back
    order at a time when the lives and property, not to mention the decisions of
    the democratically elected structures of the Romanians living between the Prut
    and the Dniestr rivers, were threatened by Bolshevik hegemonic ambitions.




    The memoirs of the two Russian generals are full of details about how people
    perceived the war and the changes taking place under their very eyes. Historian
    Șerban Pavelescu:




    There are many interesting details about the situation within the
    Russian army at the time. We can understand how general Shcherbachev, the last commander of the Russian troops on
    the Romanian front, ended up being protected from his own troops by a Romanian
    infantry unit. The memoirs also describe how different ways were being looked
    for to motivate the troops to continue fighting. The provisional government would
    reluctantly accept to motivate its own troops and convince them to keep on
    fighting, as it had promised to its western allies. As far as the Bolsheviks were
    concerned, things were completely different, and they would be willing, as was
    to be seen on the Romanian front, to make any compromise in order to retain the
    power they had just conquered.




    Despite this situation and the huge damage caused by
    the Russians, historian
    Șerban Pavelescu says the intervention of the Romanian army was decisive in the
    case of many of the former. Some of them changed their views and gave up their
    revolutionary ideas:




    It is worth noting that
    owing to the distance of the Romanian front from Moscow and the central
    command, the way in which the Russian troops acted, even the example set by the
    Romanian troops, who would not let themselves be contaminated by Bolshevism, the
    level of defection and Bolshevisation among the Russian troops was the lowest
    on the entire eastern front. Most of the troops who would go on to fight
    alongside the Whites would be recruited from among those on the Romanian front.
    I don’t just mean units made up of officers, non-commissioned officers and cadets,
    but regular troops as well, who would join the White Army.




    During WWI, Romania was forced to confront both the
    enemy in front and the enemy behind its own lines, and the Bolshevik revolution
    was the enemy it least expected.

  • Russian troops on Romanian territory during WW1

    Russian troops on Romanian territory during WW1

    In the First World War, Romania was an ally of France, England and Russia. Defeated in the 1916 campaign in the south, the Romanian army retreated to the east, to Moldavia, where 1 million Russian soldiers were dispatched to fight back the German-Austrian-Hungarian attacks. However, in only a year and a few months, the Russian soldiers stationed in Romania moved from order to anarchy. Historian Șerban Pavelescu with the Institute of Political Studies, Defense and Military History is the author of the book “The Enemy Ally” which comprizes the memoirs of two Russian generals, Nikolai A. Monkevitz and Aleksandr N. Vinogradski, who fought on the Romanian front in 1917-1918. The two Russian generals described the state of affairs in the war, interpersonal relations and glimpses of everyday life. Șerban Pavelescu explained the choices made by Romania during the Great War.




    Finding itself between Germany and Russia, Romania entered the battle on the side the Entente, although it was part of the Triple Alliance: “Romania did not want to become an ally of Russia, as it had never trusted it. Romania had even joined the Triple Alliance to counterbalance the military threat posed by Russia. On the other hand, Romania wanted to forge an alliance with France, just as it had wanted to become the ally of Germany in 1883 and had to swallow the Austro-Hungarian bitter pill. This time Romania wanted to become the ally of France and Great Britain, so it had to swallow the Russian pill.”




    This is how the Romanian-Russian alliance formed, an alliance kept alive by the French. Șerban Pavelescu: “The relations between the Russian and Romanian command were most times acceptable, but had many ups and downs. What kept the alliance in place until the February 1917 revolution was the constant presence of the French military mission led by General Henri Mathias Berthelot. In addition to equipping, training and rebuilding the Romanian army, in 1916-1917 the French military mission also made constant efforts to maintain good relations with the Russian ally. Thus, it supervised the transport of equipment, ammunition and other war supplies that were transported across the entire Russian territory to Romania. There were members of the French military mission present at every rail junction, making those transports possible, given that the needs of the Russian front were a priority. ”




    But the Romanian-Russian alliance was built on suspicion on the part of the Romanians and on arrogance on the part of the Russians. Șerban Pavelescu: “When the Russians entered the war, they told the French that for them the Romanian front was nonsense and that it was impossible to defend it. In their opinion, what the Romanians had requested and the allies had committed themselves to, namely defending the southern front, was impossible. The Russians set the ideal front line on the Siret River. There was also the delay with which Russian troops entered the battle while the Romanian army was struggling to defend the passes in the Carpathians and push back the enemy on rivers Jiu and Olt. The Russians entered much too late the battle for Bucharest. On the southern front, in Dobruja, they only sent several sacrificial troops, among which the heroic Serbian division that lost almost half of its soldiers in battles that did not change the fate of the war. “




    In their memoirs, the two Russian generals say their soldiers in Romania were well trained and well nourished, had enough weapons and ammunition and had not been affected by the recurrent waves of typhoid fever. However, the revolution of February 1917 would change everything. It brought about the disintegration of the Russian army due to Bolshevik propaganda and the abolition of military discipline and hierarchy by the provisional Russian government. The German-Austrian-Hungarian offensive in the summer of 1917 was only stopped by the huge efforts of the Romanian army, while in the north, in Ukraine, entire Russian units defected in front of the Central Powers’ armies. According to Șerban Pavelescu, in a short time, the fragile Romanian-Russian alliance turned into a ferocious enmity. Track: “The Russian army turned from an ally into an imponderable insecure matter, and in the fall of 1917 became a real enemy. Most Russian troops were behind the front line, and many of them were also in the Nicolina area, near Iasi. The Bolshevik movement there and the revolutionary committees set up after October 1917, were a threat for the political and administrative structures of the Romanian state. The situation was very close to conflict, which eventually happened in the winter of 1917-1918 when the Romanian troops finally intervened against the former ally in order to expel it from Romania’s territory. Real battles were fought between the Romanian and Russian troops in 1918, with the Romanian troops trying to prevent the Russians from leaving the front with equipment, weapons and ammunition. Behind the front line, the lack of discipline, the disorganization, and the revolutionary agitation turned the Russian troops into gangs of robbers who destroyed everything in their way. ”



    At the end of the First World War, Russia and Romania went to opposite directions and remained in unfriendly terms. Russia chose the communist regime while Romania chose Romania the liberal democracy.


  • Centenary of the Treaty of Trianon

    Centenary of the Treaty of Trianon

    On June 4th, 1920, the Grand Trianon Palace of Versailles hosted the signing of the peace treaty between the Entente Powers, winners of World War I, and Hungary. As a result of the treaty, new countries emerged on the map of Europe, such as Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia and Hungary, alongside countries that had doubled their territory and population, such as Romania. Thus, the new Kingdom of Greater Romania would also comprise the regions of Banat, Bukovina, Crisana, Maramures and Transylvania, all provinces in Austria-Hungary with predominantly Romanian speaking populations.



    In March 1918, Bessarabia, a Romanian province in Russia, joined the new pan-Romanian construct based on the principle of national self-determination. The Treaty of Trianon was signed to establish the borders between the new Hungary and its neighbors: Austria, Czechoslovakia, the future Yugoslavia and Romania.



    The end of WWI had occurred in the month of November of the year 1918, when Germany had capitulated to the French, English and American forces. However, the Hungarian population and its elite in particular had not peacefully accepted the outcome, and resorted to a method of toppling the existing order after the model of the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917, headed by Lenin in Russia. So, the Hungarian Soviet Republic, set up in 1919, started a war against Czechoslovakia and Romania, in order to get back its territories. The victories of the Romanian and Czechoslovakian armies led to the occupation of Budapest and the dismantling of Soviet Hungary. In early 1920, the long-awaited peace with Hungary was therefore finally signed.



    Historian Ioan Scurtu described the atmosphere in the eastern half of the former Austria-Hungary, in the early 1920, before the signing of the peace treaty:


    “The Treaty of Trianon was signed after fierce debates with the Hungarian delegation, starting in January 1920, as they tried to maintain the integrity of Hungary by contesting the claims and decisions made by Romanians, Slovaks, Croats and Slovenians, which had created new states. It was a belated signing, also because the Hungarian delegation, headed by Albert Apponyi, realized it had no chance of success at the peace conference, because the decisions made there were based on the principle of national self-determination, that is the will of the people. The chairman of the conference, the French Prime Minister Alexandre Millerand, stated that the peoples had spoken in the autumn of 1918, when they freely decided their fate. Therefore, the arguments presented by the Hungarian delegation, which said the dismantling of millennial Hungary would be a catastrophe, did not stand.”




    Romania won at Trianon not only because it was part of the winners group, but also because it had some solid arguments. Ioan Scurtu explains:


    “The main argument was the decision of the National Assembly in Alba Iulia, which was a representative gathering. The 1228 delegates from all of Transylvanias districts had imperative mandates to vote for the union of Transylvania with Romania. Secondly, it was the convention of August 1916, on the basis of which Romania had entered the war at the request of the Entente, and there Romanias borders were clearly established, including those with Hungary. The third argument was the contribution of the Romanian Army to the victory of the Entente Powers, because when Romania joined the war in the summer of 1916, the western front in France was relieved, which in turn meant the transfer of Austrian and German troops to the Romanian front. Some big battles where held in Romania, such as those of Marasti, Marasesti and Oituz, in the summer of 1917, where the military forces of the Central Powers suffered significant losses, and that facilitated the victory of the Entente Powers in 1918.”



    Talking about the Union of 1918, consolidated by the Treaty of Trianon, signed in 1920, the Romanian historian Nicolage Iorga wrote: “our homage must go to all Romanians, from the highest-ranking military to the last peasant dressed in military clothes.” All Romanians had indeed contributed to the triumph, but Romania did have an exceptional generation of exceptional personalities that made the victory possible. The two sovereigns, Ferdinand and Mary, must definitely be top of the list when we speak of the 1918 generation. There follow Ion I.C. Bratianu, Iuliu Maniu, Vasile Goldis, Stefan Cicio-Pop, George Pop de Basesti, Ion Inculet, Pantelimon Halipa, Ion Nistor, military such as sub-lieutenant Ecaterina Teodoroiu, captain Grigore Ignat, generals Constantin Prezan, Alexandru Averescu, Eremia Grigorescu and many more. However, Romania paid dearly for that triumph.



    Here is Ioan Scurtu once more:


    “Little Romania paid dearly, because it paid in lots of blood. It is estimated that some 800,000 Romanians died in battle because of diseases, famish and other hardships they had to endure in two years of war. The country also lost major material and spiritual assets, as a result of the fact that the German, Austrian-Hungarian, Bulgarian and Turkish occupiers plundered the occupied territories and sent those assets to their territories. Also, we should not forget that the Romanian Government in Iasi sent to Russia Romanias Treasure, part in December 1916 and the rest in July 1917, which has not been returned ever since. The official document signed on the occasion clearly stipulated that the Russian side took responsibility for carrying the treasure and bringing it back to Romania.”



    100 years ago, the Treaty of Trianon confirmed peoples will. It was the start of an era that they had dreamed of for a long time. (M.Ignatescu)




  • The Central Bank of Romania, 140 years of history

    The Central Bank of Romania, 140 years of history


    The two
    principalities inhabited by Romanians, Moldova and Wallachia united
    in 1859. The young Romanian state gained its independence following a
    war in 1877-1878, and added Dobrogea to its territory. The third move
    was to set up a central bank, a crucial element in building a
    sovereign country. The institution came to being back in 1880 and in
    the following year Romania became a kingdom, which meant that the
    fresh state got legal personality on the world’s map.


    The central bank,
    also known as the National Bank of Romania, appeared after the
    promulgation of a law on setting up a bank for accounts and
    circulation, published in the Official Gazette on April 17th
    1880. It had an initial capital of 30 million lei, out of which a
    third was state capital while the other two thirds were private
    capital. Its most important mission was to issue banknotes accepted
    in various transactions and deals.





    The first banknotes
    issued were of 20, 50, 100, 500 and 1000 lei and its first director
    was economist Eugeniu Carada, who linked his name to the
    institution’s early days, its expansion all over the country and
    the first issues of banknotes and coins.


    The bank’s premises were located in
    downtown Bucharest, the old city center and works on these premises
    commenced in 1884 under the guidance of two architects from France,
    Albert Galleron and Charles Garnier.


    Since its birth until the First World
    War, Romania’s Central Bank offered credits and a lower discount
    rate. Between 1890 and 1892 the bank shifted from the silver-gold
    monetary standard to only gold.





    The First World War threw the Romanian
    society in turmoil as it happened with the entire continent. The bank
    supported the war efforts just like the entire Romanian society but
    the latest developments on the battlefield forced the bank’s
    relocation to Iasi, in northern Romania, together with the other
    state institutions. Romania’s treasure was transferred to Moscow
    for safekeeping during the gloomy days of the war but was never
    returned by the Russians. After the end of the Great War, the central
    bank got the mission to integrate the economy of the Romanian state,
    which had taken back its provinces until then occupied by the former
    Russian Empire and Austria Hungary.



    After the loss of
    its treasure to Russia and the devastating WWI, Romania’s Central
    Bank got a new mission, to stabilize the national currency and make
    it convertible. The bank also fought to stabilize the currency and
    credit system during the big economic crisis between 1929 and 1933.


    Just like in the previous war, the
    bank supported the country’s efforts in the Second World War.
    During the war, the bank was forced to hide the country’s treasure
    at the Tismana Monastery in western Romania, a lesson learnt from the
    first world war.


    Ioan Lesenciuc curator with the
    Treasure Museum of the National Bank of Romania gave us a brief
    history of the treasure odyssey in mid-1940s.

    Ioan Lesenciuc:
    Romania
    managed to recover its gold resources between the two world wars but
    1944 proved to be another bad year. After the battle of Stalingrad,
    the German troops had to fall back and the Soviet advance was
    threatening the treasure housed by the bank. In April 1944, the heavy
    allied bombing of the oil fields in Ploiesti and Campina, southern
    Romania, as well as the capital Bucharest proved to be another threat
    for the bank. The authorities decided to move the treasure to safer
    places and talks were held with representatives of two countries,
    Turkey and Switzerland. Turkey announced that its laws didn’t allow
    for the transfer whereas Switzerland voiced readiness to host the
    treasure adding that the passing of the convoy through Central
    Europe, under German control at that time, wouldn’t be a good idea.
    General Antonescu who was ruling Romania at that time said, the
    treasure must remain on the Romanian territory and not be divided. He
    gave the bank the green-light to hide the treasure wherever it
    considered safe.





    After the end of the war, Romania
    entered a new era, communism, and its political regime brought major
    changes to the national economy, which was being controlled by the
    state. The national bank became state-owned and the credit system was
    reformed after the Soviet model. Until 1970, the taxes and interests
    were controlled by the state but after 1970 the bank was allowed to
    make its own decisions. Construction works on the new premises of the
    country’s central bank started in 1940 and the new building was
    inaugurated ten years later.


    After the fall of the communist regime
    in 1989, Romania’s Central Bank resumed the prerogatives it was
    stripped off between 1945 and 1989.





    (translated by bill)

  • Romania and the Roots of the 1919-1920 Peace Conference

    Romania and the Roots of the 1919-1920 Peace Conference

    At the end of WWI, the victory of the Alliance (formed by the UK, France, the US, Italy, and Japan, which Romania had joined in 1916), did not mean that peace was easily come by. Theoretically, the war had winners and losers, but the peace had to provide a balance, to eliminate the possibility of another war in the future. An idea emerged according to which an international organization could manage local conflicts, preventing them from becoming global crises. The protection of minorities in the newly formed states had to be taken into account, much more seriously than it had before. The Great War was followed by regional conflicts which would prolong the war locally. For instance, the Romanian-Hungarian war of 1919 lasted for about half a year, but the Greek-Turkish War started in 1919 lasted until 1922. Peace was very difficult to achieve, proportionally to the amount of animosity involved.

    Romania had to fight for its national aspirations to be recognized by the Allied powers, which were playing a balancing game of their own, either among themselves or with the newly emerged states. Romanian diplomacy was trying to obtain at the negotiation table what it had managed to gain on the field of battle with great sacrifices. Historian Ioan Scurtu proved that the PM of Romania, and one of the main artisans of the French-British alliance, Liberal politician I. C. Bratianu, had the difficult mission of defending his countrys interests in the Supreme Council formed by the US, France, the UK, and Italy:

    “When I. C. Bratianu went to the Paris peace conference, he had in his pocket the political convention signed with the Allies based on which Romania had joined it in the war, an act that established very clearly what the boundaries of Romania were to be after the war, based on the Austro-Hungarian territories inhabited by Romanians. Also, he was holding the union acts signed in Chisinau, Cernauti, and Alba-Iulia. Last but not least, he was banking on the blood shed by Romanians in aiding the Allies gain their victory. Bratianu fought with acrimony to impose equality of treatment, and initiated a collaboration between the delegations from Romania, Czechoslovakia, the Serbian Kingdom, Croatia, Slovenia, and Greece, so that they could take common action that would be taken into consideration by the Allies. Unfortunately, of the members of the coalition, Greek leader Venizelos declared that he did not consider himself the head of an independent and sovereign state like Greece, so that the rest of them stepped aside too. Bratianu was left to his own devices in the struggle to have Romania treated properly. What was memorable was the confrontation with the members of the Supreme Council, including American President Woodrow Wilson, and the support he had for the rights of Romania, including in the matter of minorities.”

    In places where the Romanian politicians did not succeed, the one who succeeded was a formidable woman, Queen Marie, who, alongside her husband, King Ferdinand, had risked it all in order to win. The queen of Romania was where she was needed, and took part in the writing of one of the most glorious pages in the history of 20th century Romania. Here is Ioan Scurtu:

    “Bratianu had managed to antagonize all the members of the Supreme Council, who could not abide contradiction, and would not accept arguments against their decisions. Then Bratianu suggested to King Ferdinand to send Queen Marie to Paris, and she showed up right away. In the Central Station in Paris, asked by the journalists why she had come, she said that she wanted to display the beautiful face of Romania. She was received at Elysee Palace with an honor guard and decorations. US President Wilson was the star of the conference, and the queen approached him to be received in order to plead the cause of Romania. However, the American President sent her word that his schedule started at 9, and so she waited for him at 7 in the morning at the Ritz, in order to have the discussion she wanted. And Wilson did show up, with his wife, at 8:30 at the Ritz. A discussion took place, in which the American president pleaded for peace in the Society of Nations, in order to remove war, for a happy world, as he envisioned it. Queen Marie was almost shut out of the discussion, given the passion with which the president was speaking. As the time to leave approached, the queen addressed him: Mr. President, I hope you wont be so impolite as to not invite me for breakfast tomorrow. To which Wilson looked at his wife, and did invite the queen. This time, the tables turned: Queen Marie was the one speaking, and spoke mostly about the rights of minorities. She concluded by saying: President Wilson is the most appropriate person to speak about the rights of minorities, given all the rights that black people have in the US. Wilson was left speechless.”

    This is how history is written, with Messianic personalities from small countries that changed huge decisions. In that regard, Romania was lucky.

  • Writer Margarita Miller Verghy

    Writer Margarita Miller Verghy

    Of the plethora of women who contributed to Romanias war effort in WWI, working towards the Great Union of 1918, Margarita Miller Verghy stands out, not least for the way in which she coped with what fate handed her. In childhood she was plagued by several medical conditions, and yet she overcame them to become a teacher, a journalist, a writer, a feminist activist, and a volunteer nurse in the war.



    Here is Monica Negru from the National Archives of Romania, sketching for us a biography of Margarita Miller Verghy: “She was born in Iasi in 1865, the daughter of a professor and politician who was descended from a Polish noble family. Her father died when she was young. The girl was left with her mother, and soon after she contracted bone tuberculosis, and her mother made the decision to seek treatment abroad; for that reason she was educated in Geneva and Paris. There she learned six foreign languages. When she got back in the country, she got her baccalaureate at the Elena Doamna boarding school, and eventually she got an advanced degree and PhD in philosophy at the University of Geneva. Settling eventually in Bucharest, Margarita Miller Verghy was headmistress of the Elena Doamna Normal School for Girls, where she wrote the first textbooks: a textbook for learning French, and several textbooks for younger pupils.”



    In 1912, she published a book called “Razvans Children”, a book that got an award from the Romanian Academy, and a first among textbooks, as it was the first volume of supplementary reading for gymnasium students. Her educational endeavors were a natural extension of her literary preoccupations, as Monica Negru told us: “Margarita Miller Verghys debut was in a newspaper, with a short story. She was also the first translator of Queen Maries writings into Romanian. During WWI, Margarita, just like pianist Cella Delavrancea, was on the side of the Central Powers, not the Allies, as a Germanophile. However, when Romania joined the war in 1916, her school, Elena Doamna, was turned into a military hospital, so she enlisted as a volunteer nurse with the Romanian Red Cross. During the German occupation, just like other members of charitable organizations, she was caring for war orphans.”



    During the interwar period, Margarita Miller Verghy continued with her literary and journalistic activity. In the 1940s she contributed to radio theater productions for Radio Romania, in spite of her frail health. In 1924 she had a car accident which left her almost completely blind. Literary activity blended with activism in her life, even before the Great War. Monica Negru: “In 1915, together with other Romanian women writers, she founded the Romanian Women Scouts Association. Later, together with Adela, sister to historian Alexandru Xenopol, she founded the Society of Women Writers. She acted as its vice-president and contributed articles to the societys magazine. She was a member of various feminist organizations of her time. We found a document attesting that in 1935 she was active in the Romanian National Council of Women, led by Alexandra Cantacuzino. In the history of literature she is remembered as the first female writer to publish a detective novel, The Princess in Crinoline, which Margarita Miller Verghy wrote when she was 82 years old. She also wrote short stories, theater plays and ethnography works which the Romanian Academy granted her awards for. She also contributed to the book The Evolution of Feminist Writing in Romania. “



    Margarita Miller Verghy passed away in 1953, at 87 years of age, as a major figure in the world of Romanian literature, letters and activism.

  • Personalities of the Great War

    Personalities of the Great War

    In August 1916, after two years of neutrality,
    Romania entered WWI on the side of the Entente. After a period of heavy
    fighting and sacrifices, not to mention Bucharest’s occupation by the German
    army, Romania got out of the world war stronger and united, in 1918. The
    politicians and military of those troubled times have become national heroes,
    leaving behind a blazing trail, which is now being documented, with a special
    mention of the places and towns that had a special significance in their lives.
    A project titled Personalities of WWI and their Bucharest-based dwellings has
    recently been initiated by the Arts History Association. Some of their homes,
    more or less luxurious villas, have stood the test of time and can now be seen
    in the historical areas of the capital city. One
    of them is situated in a district which was laid out in the early 20th
    Century and called the Ioanid Parcelling Out, after the name of the garden
    stretching on a plot of land which was later parcelled out and put up for sale.
    Many beautiful villas were built there, and one of them belonged to Vintilă
    Brătianu, the then mayor of the capital and the younger brother of Liberal
    Ionel Brătianu, Prime Minister and one of the founding fathers of Greater
    Romania.

    Oana Marinache, a member of the Arts History Association is crayoning
    the biography of Vintilă
    Brătianu, the mayor of Bucharest when the Ioanid Garden was parcelled out:

    He
    endorsed the parcelling out of the Ioanid Garden in 1909, andafter he
    completed his mandate, he reserved for himself the biggest plot of land in the
    area. The vegetal area, the garden or the district’s park were not adjacent to
    his property, but Vintilă chose for himself the plot of land at no.25. It was a
    matter of fate that after Ionel Brătianu passed away in 1927, his younger
    brother, Vintilă, took over the party presidency. In his turn, Vintila, passed
    away in 1930. But before leading the party, between 1907 and 1910, he had been
    the mayor of Bucharest.


    The house built there in Neo-Romanain style by the
    prominent architect Petre Antonescu can still be admired today, on Aurel Vlaicu
    Street. Oana Marinache has more:


    We have a mixture of
    influences and styles. For instance the massive volume of the house is
    reminiscent of Oltenia’s cule, a sort of semi-fortified buildings, there is
    also a gate created under the influence of the vernacular architecture typical
    to the sub-Carpathian region. The architectural style specific to monasteries,
    particularly the interior of monasteries in Wallachia, has strongly influenced
    the building. The construction was soon to become emblematic for early 20th
    Century architecture. As a rule, great political personalities convey a message
    to the people, not only through the declarations they make, the political
    activities they carry out, but also through the lifestyle they embrace. Later
    on, after the Great Union, a Transylvanian stove was symbolically built in all
    these homes belonging to the personalities of the time. Thus, they tried to
    also showcase elements belonging to the province that many Romanians had been
    fighting for, some of them paying the ultimate sacrifice for it. It’s a stove
    with tiles with black or green drawings against a light background. All boyar mansions
    or houses owned by politicians have this type of stove, with motifs that are
    also political symbols.


    In an office in that house, a secret understanding was
    reached with the Entente on August 4th, 1916, a deal that would
    subsequently be approved by the Crown Council and which led Romania to war. And
    one of those who distinguished themselves during the war was General Henri
    Cihoski, a participant in the battle of Marasesti and a deputy with the General
    Staff. In December 1920 he became in charge of reorganizing the army in
    Transylvania, recently united with Romania, and in 1921 he was assigned the
    task to supervise the coronation of King Ferdinand, and also the construction
    of the union cathedral in Alba Iulia. His house in Bucharest, designed by Alexandru
    Savulescu and built in the modernist style, was finished in 1934 and it’s still
    standing in an area next to Ioanid Park, known as the Dumbrava Rosie plot. It
    was there that, in the early 1930s, king Carol II rewarded the officers that
    had distinguished themselves during the war, by giving them land. One of them
    was Henri Cihoski. From that house, where he was living with his family,
    Cihoski was arrested in May 1950 by the Communists. He died 11 years later, in
    Sighet prison. None of the officers that had taken part in WWI had a better
    fate. General Ioan Dragalina, a celebrated hero, died in 1916, after defeating
    Romania’s western border as commander of the 1st Infantry Division,
    in Drobeta Turnu Severin. Unfortunately, he died on October 24th, of
    a septicaemia caused by a shoulder injury.

    Here is Oana Marinache once more:


    On October 12th, 1916, he left
    by car, probably accompanied by another person, besides the driver, on a
    surveillance mission. They got caught in a burst fire and attacked by the
    Austrian-Hungarian army. Although wounded, he managed to get out alive and was
    taken to a hospital in Craiova, then to Bucharest, at king’s orders.
    Unfortunately, railway traffic was extremely heavy, the journal took too long
    and he developed septicaemia. He died on October 24th, in terrible
    pain.


    In the inter-war period, in honour of their father,
    the general’s children got land in ownership, in the
    Bonaparte plot, later renamed Park Ferdinand I. The plot is today home to one
    of the most elegant residential areas in the north of Bucharest.

  • 100 years since the end of WWI

    100 years since the end of WWI

    The ‘old demons and the ‘new ideologies are a threat to peace, the French president Emmanuel Macron warned on Sunday, at the ceremony for the commemoration of the Armistice Centennial that put an end to WWI. More than 70 heads of state and government from the entire world, among whom the Romanian President Klaus Iohannis, attended the ceremony in Paris upon the invitation of the French President. Before the start of ceremonies they walked together to the Triumphal Arch, in a move symbolizing commitment.



    The only presidents who came separately were the American and Russian Presidents. In the afternoon, the world leaders participated in the Paris Peace Forum, except for the American President who chose to leave France earlier. It was also President Trump who created consternation and discontent after he had previously cancelled a visit to an American military cemetery in the north of France simply because of the unfavorable weather.



    The Paris meeting, which is under way until Tuesday, is devoted to safeguarding multilateralism, a concept also ignored by the White House leader. Nationalism, racism, anti-Semitism and extremism are very sad sentiments whose recrudescence may create vulnerability, Emmanuel Macron said. According to him, the world we are living in is made vulnerable by all sorts of crises, be they economic, ecologic, climate or migration related. Humankind is made vulnerable also by the reemergence of threats able to hit at any moment: terrorism, chemical and nuclear weapons proliferation and cybercrime. In this context, multilateralism is essential.



    For the UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, without the support of everybody, humankind risks getting into a situation similar to that which led to the breaking out of WWI. Also, the prospect of the worst threats may be thwarted through peace, as happened on November 11, 1918. The peace treaty signed by the Entente and the Central Powers in Compiegne, France, put an end to hostilities on the western front of WWI.



    Historians dont like the concept of ‘luck, which is rather vague and hard to place in a scientific discourse. But, what happened in Romania, immediately after the end of WWI, is related to miracle. In the early 1918 Romanians were a defeated nation, obliged to leave the war after signing a terrible peace treaty with Germany. At the end of the same year, they were included by France in the winners camp.



    So, three weeks after the Armistice was announced, on December 1, 1918 Romania became a unitary state, with all the territories inhabited by a majority Romanian population becoming united in one single state. Therefore, after marking the WWI Armistice Centennial on November 11, Romania will mark the Union Centennial on December 1. (Translated by L. Simion)

  • November 11, 2018

    November 11, 2018

    ARMISTICE DAY – Sunday marks 100 years since the end of the WWI with Armistice Day events taking place across the globe. Australia and New Zealand launched global commemorations Sunday to mark the centenary of the end of WWI, remembering the more than 80,000 of their nationals who died in the carnage of the trenches on the other side of the world. Americans mark the 100th anniversary of the armistice on Sunday with celebrations ranging from high-tech light shows to somber gatherings in honor of the country’s military veterans. More than 100,000 Americans died in WWI, after the United States declared war on Germany. Remembrance Day services are also taking place across Britain. A hundred years after Armistice Day, the Queen and prime minister will attend a service at the cenotaph before travelling to Westminster Abbey to attend a religious service.




    WWI – Romanian president Klaus Iohannis is attending in France the ceremonies marking 100 years since the end of WWI. U.S. President Donald Trump, Russia President Vladimir Putin, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and dozens of monarchs, presidents and prime ministers from Europe, Africa, the Middle East and beyond, joined French President Emmanuel Macron to mark the moment guns fell silent across Europe a century ago. The commemoration is the centerpiece of global tributes to honor the 10 million soldiers who were killed during the 1914-18 war and the moment the Armistice, signed in northeastern France, came into effect at 11 a.m. on Nov. 11, 1918. The Romanian head of state is taking part in the centennial ceremony at the Triumphal Arch and also in the inaugural edition of the Paris Peace Forum, set up at president Macron’s initiative, focused on supporting and striving to improve global governance in the fields of peace and security, environment, development, technological advancement and economy.




    VETERANS’ DAY – Religious and military ceremonies are being held in Romania’s capital today, to mark the Veterans’ Day. All garrisons in the country, hosting military units, are today open to visitors and wreaths are being laid on the tombs of Romania’s heroes who died in the trenches. In Bucharest, the bust of Marshal Alexandru Averescu, the Romanian Army’s leader in WWI, one of the greatest Romanian commanders of all time, is being unveiled during a solemn ceremony. Also remembered on the Veterans’ Day is second lieutenant Iosif Silviu Fogoras, the first Romanian military who died in Afghanistan on November 11, 2003. Between 1996 and 2003 Romania lost 29 military while 180 were injured in the operation theatres.




    YOUTH CAPITAL – The city of iasi, in the north-east, will be the next Romanian Youth Capital between May 2nd 2019 and May 1st 2020. The winner was announced on Saturday evening in Baia Mare, the current holder of this title. Iasi will thus receive 50 thousand euros, an amount that is the starting point for the financing of new projects for the city. The programme runs on principles similar to those of the European Youth Capital. The first edition was held in 2016. On the other hand, the mayor of Baia Mare has publicly announced the town’s candidacy to the title of European Youth Capital in 2020.




    HANDBALL – Romania’s women’s handball champions CSM Bucharest is today playing away from home against FTC-Rail Cargo Hungary, in Champions League’s Group D. The Hungarian team ranks first, with 6 points, followed by CSM Bucharest with 4, and Kristiansand of Norway and Bietigheim of Germany with 3 points each. The first three highest ranking teams will qualify for the main groups. On Thursday, in the men’s competition, the current holder of the national title, Dinamo Bucharest, defeated Ademar Leon of Spain on home turf. Dinamo gained 10 points and now tops the group rankings. The main counter-candidates for play-offs qualification are Ademar Leon, which currently has 9 points, Wisla Plock of Poland and Elverum of Norway, with 8 points each.


    (Translated by Elena Enache)

  • The Wilson Principles

    The Wilson Principles

    World War One was far from being ended, early into 1918. The great clash between the two great military blocs, the Entente and the Central Powers had been gaining its momentum. Neither of the two sides intended to back off, so under the circumstances, US President Thomas Woodrow Wilson made an attempt to make peace. To that end, Woodrow Wilson and his entourage drafted the now famous declaration in 14 points, which was supposed to provide the grounding for a long-lasting peace.



    Historian Ioan Scurtu will put things into perspective: “Work had been done on a project so that it could be put forward to the belligerent countries, in the hopes that they might consent to it, in an effort to achieve a long-lasting peace. So the 14 points presented by President Wilson were in fact a peace proposal, nay, they created a way of organizing the world after the war, in what we might call long-lasting history. As we can see, they had in mind the idea that neither the defeated nor the winning side, that is neither the Entente nor the Central Powers, should benefit from the military confrontation, as they wanted to achieve a certain kind of democratization of international relations. First of all they thought about the withdrawal of troops from the occupied territories, so that national borders be restored. Secondly, they wanted multinational states to grant autonomy to the peoples within their structure, so that they benefit from rights and freedoms, but within the confines of those empires.



    President Woodrow Wilsons declaration ambitiously sought to be a pacifying one, reinstating the situation before 1914. However, President Wilsons declaration was equally meant to be an innovative one. All that was reflected in the way multinational empires had been dealt with, in the aforementioned declaration.



    With details on that, here is the professor Ioan Scurtu: As regards Russia, they wanted to maintain it within the existing borders, before the outbreak of the war. Therefore, consistent efforts were made to create a benevolent stance towards it, to show good will, so that Russia join what would later become the League of Nations, a society where the powers could send delegates and where solutions to international problems could be discussed. In January 1918, the Russian revolution had already entered its Bolshevik, radical phase, the civil war had broken out, Bessarabia had proclaimed its autonomy and was getting ready to proclaim its independence as well as its union with Romania. As for Austro-Hungary, the document stipulated that the empire should be maintained, but larger autonomy should be granted to the peoples within that empire.



    However, nations within multinational empires wanted a new order, that of nation states.



    Professor Ioan Scurtu highlighted the reactions of the nations within the Austro-Hungarian Empire: “These 14 points had an extraordinary political and psychological impact. First and foremost because it aimed to have a peace without annexations, a post-war organization of the world so that no wars would occur anymore, and included a word dear to oppressed people, namely autonomy. In January 1918, the Romanians in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, like other nations, only wanted autonomy. They had demanded that along the years, especially after 1867, and were still hoping for that at that moment. The issue of the union emerged in the autumn of the year 1918, when the empire was faring worse and worse, and dismantling was on the horizon. The various peoples decided to take their fate in their own hands and organized into states.



    At the 1918 congress in Rome, the nations of Austria-Hungary decided to start an ample campaign at a European and world level, in order to have recognized their right to decide their political future. In the US, meetings were held by representatives of nations in Austria-Hungary, mobilizing the diaspora in the United States. In addition, articles in the American press supported the demands of nations to the detriment of voices calling for Austro-Hungarian monarchy to be preserved. Starting in late August 1918, media campaigns by Romanian, Serbs, Croats, Czechs, Slovaks, Italians, and Poles were run jointly, issuing anti-monarchic resolutions.



    Wilson’s political principles were not seen in a good light by the great European powers. France and Great Britain wished for the Central Powers to be held to account for starting the war, and punished. In the end, President Wilson bowed to public pressure.



    Ioan Scurtu: “The campaign reached its peak on September 20, 1918, when President Wilson decided to host representatives of those nations at the White House. Each pleaded its own cause, and the president was informed on the campaigns they ran, and in conclusion he said that he was persuaded that the double monarchy, the Austro-Hungarian one, did not deserve to keep on being. The matter of the continued existence of the empire was settled. He was convinced that the peoples under the monarchy had a right to freedom, and had the support of the US in deciding their own fate.



    After the change in perspective in Washington, new nation states emerged, such as Poland and Czechoslovakia, while others, like Romania and Yugoslavia, were redefining themselves. If Woodrow Wilson’s political principles were redefined, the philosophical ones were there to last. The institution of nations had gained shape, an international agora to establish the basis of international law. Wilson’s idea of eternal peace, in spite of general skepticism, was a good beginning for dialogue. (Translated by E. Nasta and C. Cotoiu)

  • Romania commemorates its WW1 heroes

    Romania commemorates its WW1 heroes

    Romania has celebrated 100 years since the battle of Marasesti seen as the country’s most important military operation in WWI. In Marasesti, in the summer of 1917, the Romanian Army stood against the much better equipped German and Austrian-Hungarian troops. To honour the memory of the soldiers who lost their lives in the fierce battle, the authorities staged on Sunday impressive ceremonies at the Mausoleum in Marasesti, in eastern Romania.



    Thousands of people, among whom high ranking officials, representatives of public authorities, the diplomatic corps, political parties and religious denominations came to pay their homage to the over 25 thousand Romanian soldiers who were killed or went missing that year. President Klaus Iohannis said that 1917 was the most difficult period in Romania’s modern history, as the country was threatened not only by foreign armies but also by Bolshevism.



    Romania’s future was safeguarded, the President said, by the heroism of the Romanian Army and by the society’s cohesion around a project for a country not just united, but more democratic and inclusive. Iohannis also mentioned the role played by King Ferdinand, Queen Marie and the then government and politicians in ensuring the country’s future. The decisions taken in 1917 are very good examples of responsible ruling and deep sense of duty, Iohannis also added.



    The President evoked the support of the French military mission headed by General Berthelot, who had a vital contribution to the victories won in the summer of 1917. He also paid homage to the Russian soldiers who lost their lives on the battlefield in Marasesti alongside Romanian military. 100 years later, Iohannis went on to say, Romania is a stronger state that our allies and partners can count on and also a security pillar in the region, and this owes a great deal to the Romanian Army. Today, when the EU values are under siege by populism and demagogy, remembering WWI is a good opportunity to highlight its present significance, now when the history of Europe and of the whole world is at a crossroads.



    Klaus Iohannis: “There is full compatibility between the aspirations of the Romanian nation and the vision of the founding fathers of the united Europe. This compatibility is given by the high price we put on freedom and by the aspiration towards a society in which the law is the same for everyone.”



    In his turn, Senate Speaker Calin Popescu Tariceanu said: “Marasesti will always be in the national conscience a symbol of the Romanian people’s determination and a moment of glory in the country’s military history.”



    The heroes in Marasesti were also commemorated by the members of the Romanian Royal Family through a religious ceremony held in Savarsin in western Romania. Crown Princess Margareta said that the young people must know their country’s history which paved the way for the lives they live today.










  • August 5, 2017 UPDATE

    August 5, 2017 UPDATE

    HEAT WAVE – Romanian meteorologists have extended the code red alert against extreme heat for Sunday as well, but narrowed it from 12 to 2 counties in the south-west, where highs of 40 – 41 degrees Celsius are expected. Meanwhile, nearly 3-quarters of the country remain subject to a code orange alert, with temperatures of up to 39 degrees and lows between 22 and 25 degrees. The heat wave that has hit Romania these days will continue, and the thermal discomfort index will go over 80, to 82-84 units. On the other hand, starting on Sunday thunderstorms and heavy rainfalls are expected in the north-west and the north of the country, particularly in the mountains, and on Monday in the northern half of the country. Weather experts warn that the weather will remain extremely hot next week as well. Two people died because of the extreme heat, and hundreds required medical assistance. First-aid tents have been set up in all major cities. Speed restrictions are in place on the national railway network as well as on the countrys main roads, with heavy-duty vehicle traffic restricted during the afternoon.




    ALERT – Extreme temperatures are also reported across Europe this weekend. Code red alerts are in place in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro and Hungary, in most of Slovenia, south of Poland, south of Slovakia, south of Switzerland, in central and south-eastern Italy as well as in the islands of Sicily and Sardinia. High wildfire risks are reported in Portugal, Spain, Italy, France, Albania, Hungary, Serbia, Macedonia, Bulgaria, Greece, Cyprus and Turkey. The Foreign Ministry recommends that areas under alert should be avoided, and says that Romanian diplomatic missions abroad are prepared to provide assistance to those who request it.



    SAXONS – The President of Romania Klaus Iohannis urged the Saxon ethnics attending a meeting in Sibiu on Saturday to pass on to younger generations the traditions and values of the community. The head of state, himself a German ethnic, gave a speech both in Romanian and German and attended a parade of Saxon traditional costumes. The city of Sibiu in central Romania is hosting, until Sunday, the 27th and largest so far meeting of Transylvanian Saxon ethnics, under the motto “Home around the world, heart in Transylvania. For this occasion, thousands of Saxon ethnics currently living in Germany, Austria and the USA returned to their home country. The agenda of the event includes 50 events, from exhibitions and book launches to music and dance performances. The Saxon ethnics, a German population, settled in Transylvania starting in the mid-12th Century.



    HEROES Romania continues to commemorate its WWI heroes through a series of ceremonies held all over the country. The peak of these events organised by the National Defence Ministry and the Vrancea County Council will be on Sunday, when the country marks 100 years since the Battle of Marasesti, a watershed moment for Romania in the Great War. Regarded as one of the most impressive monuments in the country, the Mausoleum in Marasesti was built in the place where, in the summer of 1917, the Romanian soldiers stood their ground against a technically superior and better-trained German army, losing 480 officers and over 21,000 troops.



    CLIMATE – The USA gave written notice to the UN of its intention to pull out of the Paris Agreement on climate change, but will continue to take part in international negotiations, the American State Department announced. Washington will take part in the forthcoming annual UN conference on climate, due in November in Bonn, Germany. On June 1, US President Donald Trump announced the withdrawal of the country from this agreement aimed at containing global warming and signed in 2015 by 195 states. Trump says the deal damages the American economy, but he does not rule out the US rejoining the process after renegotiations or even the signing of a new agreement able to protect the US. Under the Agreement, an official withdrawal notification can only take effect 3 years after the agreement has come into force, that is on November 4, 2016. Donald Trump will therefore be able to pull out from the deal only at the end of 2019, with a one-year notice, AFP reports.


    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • August 5, 2017

    August 5, 2017

    HEAT WAVE – A quarter of Romanias territory has been placed under code red alert for extreme heat until Saturday night; in 12 counties in western Romania temperatures are expected to soar to 42 degrees Celsius. This is the second code red alert issued this summer, after the one in early July. The rest of the country remains under a code orange alert with temperatures of 39 degrees Celsius. The code red alert will stay in place on Sunday in 2 counties in the south-west, and nearly 3-quarters of the country will remain under a code orange warning. The thermal discomfort index went over 80 and could reach 82-84 units. Over the past two days 2 people died and hundreds required assistance because of the extreme heat. First-aid tents have been set up in all major cities to provide fresh cold water to people. Mobile ambulance and medical services have been placed on high alert and speed restrictions are in place on the national railway network as well as on the countrys main roads with a view to avoiding accidents. The drought Romania is currently facing has severely damaged the corn and sunflower crops. Weather experts say that the heat wave will last until mid-next week, but only in the south, while atmospheric instability will increase, particularly in the mountains and in the north of the country.




    ALERT – Extreme temperatures are also reported across Europe this weekend. Code red alerts are in place in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Montenegro and Hungary, in most of Slovenia, south of Poland, south of Slovakia, south of Switzerland, in central and south-eastern Italy as well as in the islands of Sicily and Sardinia. High wildfire risks are reported in Portugal, Spain, Italy, France, Albania, Hungary, Serbia, Macedonia, Bulgaria, Greece, Cyprus and Turkey. The Foreign Ministry recommends that areas under alert should be avoided, and says that Romanian diplomatic missions abroad are prepared to provide assistance to those who request it.



    SAXONS – The city of Sibiu in central Romania is hosting, until Sunday, the 27th and largest so far meeting of Transylvanian Saxon ethnics, under the motto “Home around the world, heart in Transylvania. Taking part are around 12,000 Saxon ethnics, most of them living at present in Germany, Austria and the USA. More than 50 events will take place in the medieval squares of Sibiu, from exhibitions and book launches to music and dance performances. The most eagerly awaited of them is a parade of Saxon traditional costumes, an event scheduled for today and in which the President of Romania Klaus Iohannis, himself a German ethnic, is expected to take part. The head of state said this years meeting is an opportunity for the younger generation of Saxons living in Germany to get to know and like more their parents home country. The Saxon ethnics settled in Transylvania starting in the mid-12th Century.



    HEROES Romania continues to commemorate today its WWI heroes through a series of ceremonies held all over the country. The peak of these events organised by the National Defence Ministry and the Vrancea County Council will be on Sunday, when the country marks 100 years since the Battle of Marasesti, a watershed moment for Romania in the Great War. Regarded as one of the most impressive monuments in the country, the Mausoleum in Marasesti was built in the place where, in the summer of 1917, the Romanian soldiers stood their ground against a technically superior and better-trained German army, losing 480 officers and over 21,000 troops.



    CLIMATE – The USA notified the UN on the intention to withdraw from the Paris Agreement on climate change, but will continue to take part in international negotiations, the American State Department announced. Washington will take part in the forthcoming annual UN conference on climate, due in November in Bonn, Germany. On June 1, the US President Donald Trump announced the withdrawal of the country from this agreement aimed at containing global warming and signed in 2015 by 195 states. Trump says the deal damages the American economy, but he does not rule out the US rejoining the process after renegotiations or even the signing of a new agreement able to protect the US. Under the Agreement, an official withdrawal notification can only take effect 3 years after the agreement has come into force, that is on November 4, 2016. Donald Trump will therefore be able to renounce the deal only at the end of 2019, with a one-year notice, AFP reports.


    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)