August 3, 2023

A roundup of domestic and international news

Newsroom, 03.08.2023, 13:55

Investments. In todays session, the Romanian Government has adopted the financing contract with the European Investment Bank for the support of the A7 Ploieşti (south) – Paşcani (northeast) highway project, worth 600 million euros. It is estimated that the work will be ready in 2025, one year earlier than the deadline assumed under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan. Also, the executive is to adopt the program for schools by means of which students will receive milk, vegetables and fresh fruit at school. Funded by European money, it will continue for the next six years, the main goal being to teach the little ones healthy eating habits. Also today, a draft decision will be discussed regarding the establishment of the national registry for the collection of information on all types of cancer, in order to monitor the incidence at the national level, for the evaluation and control of the impact of the disease and the development of public health policies.

Budget. The Bucharest government is preparing an extensive plan to reduce state spending and to meet the deficit target of 4.4% of the GDP. Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu and the Minister of Finance, Marcel Boloş, have presented a package with 50 measures. These aim, among other things, to reduce management positions in public institutions, the number of secretaries of state, undersecretaries of state and similar positions by 20%, capping the income up to which vacation vouchers and food allowances can be granted, merging some institutions public bodies with similar responsibilities or the abolition of vacant positions in the budgetary apparatus. Norms will also be introduced for staff, per diem, transport, accommodation or mobile phone expenses for public companies, public institutions or autonomous institutions subordinate to Parliament. According to information appearing in the public space, the package also includes measures regarding the increase in taxes for small and medium enterprises, as well as changes in the VAT rates. Marcel Ciolacu has announced that, regarding the increase in revenues, the measures will be discussed at the Ministry of Finance, together with the budget adjustment, but also with decisions aimed at reducing tax evasion and digitizing the public sector. The opposition criticized the plan of measures assumed by the governing coalition, which it says will not help maintain the deficit target.

Air Force. A ceremony dedicated to the end of the mission of the Italian Air Force, deployed in Romania to carry out reinforced Air Policing missions, takes place today, at the 57 Mihail Kogălniceanu Air Base (south-east). Representatives of the leadership of the Ministry of National Defense from Bucharest, of the Italian Ministry of Defense, as well as of the Italian Embassy in Romania are participating. The approximately 150 soldiers (pilots and technical personnel) and Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft that formed the Italian detachment performed, together with soldiers of the Romanian Air Force, Enhanced Air Policing missions under NATO command. “It is the third rotation at Mihail Kogălniceanu of the Italian Air Force, after those carried out in 2019 and 2021 and the present one, which took place between 01.12.2022-31.07.2023”, reads a press released issued by the Defense Minsitry. The joint air policing missions contributed to increasing the reaction and deterrence capacity, as well as to strengthening the interoperability between the Romanian and Italian Air Forces.

Evacuation. The four Romanian citizens in Niger, who requested support for evacuation were picked up by two flights organized by the French authorities and arrived safely in Paris, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has informed. The ministry says there are currently no other requests for consular assistance and protection. According to the data available at the moment, there are another 20 Romanians on the territory of Niger who carry out their activities within the framework of two EU economic and military cooperation missions, and their evacuation procedures are managed by each mission separately. In order to avoid special situations in which Romanian citizens could find themselves, the MAE reminds that a travel warning has been issued for Niger. The United States has ordered the partial evacuation of its embassy in Niger following last weeks coup. Hundreds of foreign citizens have already been evacuated from the country, and the French embassy was attacked by protesters on Sunday.

Pope. Today, in Lisbon, Pope Francis participates in the World Youth Day, a major event within the Catholic Church. About one million pilgrims from all continents are expected to participate. On Wednesday, the Sovereign Pontiff, who is on a five-day trip to Portugal, met with victims of sexual abuse committed by clerics of the Catholic Church and spoke about the need for its purification. Nearly 5,000 minors have been abused in Portugal by Catholic clergy over the past seven decades. Pope Francis also made a plea for peace and specifically referred to the war in Ukraine.

UNTOLD. The 8th edition of the UNTOLD Festival, one of the largest in Europe, begins today in Cluj-Napoca (north-west Romania) and brings, for four days, on its eight stages, over 250 top Romanian and international artists. The theme of this years edition is “Phoenix Light, inspired by the legend of the Phoenix bird. The epicenter of the festival is the Cluj Arena stadium, where the main stage is set up. One of the best DJs in the world, Brazilian Alok, was chosen to officiate the opening ceremony. More than 400 thousand spectators are expected to attend UNTOLD. Among them are also music enthusiasts from Argentina, Germany, the USA or Great Britain, to enjoy artists such as Armin Van Buuren, Goran, David Guetta or Imagine Dragons. The organizers have taken special measures to ensure the safety of all participants.

Football. Several Romanian teams are playing today in the Europa Conference League preliminaries. Sepsi OSK Sfântu Gheorghe (center) plays, at home, with ŢSKA Sofia from Bulgaria, after winning away from, with a score of 2-0. The Romanian champion, Farul Constanța (south-east), meets the Armenian team Urartu, after winning 3-2 a week ago. CFR Cluj (north-west), faces, also away from home, the Turks from Adana Demirspor, after the match ended in a draw in the first leg. Finally, FCSB takes on another team from Bulgaria, CSKA 1948 Sofia, after the Romanians won 1-0 the first match. (MI)