October 2, 2024 UPDATE
A roundup of local and world news
Newsroom, 02.10.2024, 20:00
ALERT A new RO-Alert message was issued for the northern part of Tulcea County (south-eastern Romania), after the national defence and security structures detected a possible attack by the Russian Federation on some targets on the territory of Ukraine. These messages are aimed at informing the people in the Romania-Ukraine border area that there are possible Russian attacks on Ukrainian territory and that some objects might fall on Romanian territory. The Romanian defence ministry firmly condemns once more these attacks carried out by the Russian Federation against Ukrainian civilian infrastructure, which are unjustified and are serious breaches of international law.
WARNING The Ministry of Foreign Affairs strongly advises Romanian nationals who are in Lebanon to leave that country by the air routes still available. The travel warning regarding major security risks is still valid, and commercial flights and travel routes may also be affected, according to the ministry. Some 1,136 Romanian citizens and their family members have so far registered their presence in Lebanon, at the Romanian Embassy in Beirut. On the ground, Iran announced that its attack on Israel had ended, after it launched more than 180 missiles in its direction on Tuesday night. Tehran says it targeted the infrastructure of the enemy state. According to international media, targets included the headquarters of the Israeli intelligence service, Mossad, as well as the most important air base, Nevatim, which is also used by Israel’s F- 35 long-range stealth strike fighter fleet. According to the Radio Romania correspondent in Israel, there is no information regarding the loss of human life and damages.
VISA WAIVER Romania meets all the technical conditions to be part of the Visa Waiver Program, the Romanian ambassador to the US, Andrei Muraru, said in a social media post. He also said that Romanians would most likely be allowed to travel visa-free in the first half of next year. “Should all the conditions and preparations proceed successfully, the program could take effect sometime in 2025” the US ambassador to Romania, Kathleen Kavalec, said on Tuesday. However, Ambassador Kavalec said, a number of important steps still need to be completed in the coming months to establish whether Romania is, in fact, eligible to participate in the Visa Waiver Program.
ELECTIONS The president of the National Liberal Party in the ruling coalition in Romania, Nicolae Ciucă, has officially entered his candidacy in the presidential election with the Central Electoral Bureau. He has submitted lists of over 1.5 million signatures supporting his bid. Also today, the president of the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians has also announced his candidacy, after gathering over 270,000 signatures. So far, candidates for the top position in the Romanian public administration also include George Simion (AUR party), Elena Lasconi (USR party), and Călin Georgescu, running independently. The deadline for entering candidacies for the presidential election is October 5, and lists of at least 200,000 supporters are required. The first round of the presidential election is scheduled on November 24, and the second one on December 8.
NATURAL GAS OMV Petrom, a corporation in which the Romanian government holds 20% of the stock, announced that 2027 will see the first natural gas supplies extracted via the “Neptun Deep” project. “Neptun Deep” is the largest natural gas project in Romania’s exclusive economic zone in the Black Sea and the first Romanian deep-water offshore project. OMV Petrom says works on the gas platform to be installed in 2026 have already started in shipyards in Italy and Indonesia. The platform will be approx. 140 high, with a 40 sq m base and will weigh over 7,000 tone. It will support the upper section of the Neptun platform, an element of the infrastructure required for the development of natural gas deposits. OMV Petrom also pointed out that “Neptun Deep” will contribute to the country’s energy security.
DEFENCE The Romanian defence minister, Angel Tîlvăr, had an official meeting on Wednesday with his Portuguese counterpart, Nuno Melo. The 2 officials discussed the Romanian-Portuguese cooperation in the defence and security sector, both in bilateral terms and as members of NATO and the EU. other topics on the agenda included the Black Sea security situation and measures to consolidate NATO’s defence and deterrence posture on the Eastern flank. Angel Tîlvăr appreciated Portugal’s contribution to joint exercises and activities, the country’s commitment as part of the NATO Enhanced Vigilance Activities, with the deployment of a military unit to the Multinational Brigade South-East, headquartered in Craiova, and its presence in other Allied structures on Romanian territory.
TENNIS The Romanian player Simona Halep made her comeback to professional competitions, with a 6-2, 4-6, 6-4 win against Arina Rodionova (Australia), in the first round of the WTA 125 tournament in Hong Kong. A former WTA leader, Halep last played in May, when she was forced to exit the first round at Trophee Clarins, in Paris, in a match against McCartney Kessler (US). In Hing Kong, Halephas secured 15 WTA points, and in the round of 16 she will face Russia’s Ana Blinkova, the 2023 winner of the Transylvania Open. (AMP)
