July 14, 2019 UPDATE

A roundup of domestic and international news

Newsroom, 14.07.2019, 19:20

TENNIS – On
Saturday, the Romanian tennis player Simona Halep won the first Wimbledon
trophy in her career, after a perfect match against the US multiple champion
Serena Williams. The international media were quick to react to Simona’s
victory. One of the finest performances in a final in the
tournament’s recent history the CNN wrote on its webpage. Simona Halep won her first
Wimbledon title and crushed Serena Williams’ latest bid for a record-equaling
24th Grand Slam success with a devastating 56-minute display of
athleticism wrote the BBC on its sports page. The organizers of the
tournament were the first to congratulate Simona, on Twitter, saying that her
dream came true and defeated Serena Williams with a magical game. France Presse
and Reuters also praised Simona’s performance. This is the second Grand Slam
trophy for Simona after last year’s Roland Garros.

GOVERNMENT
RESHUFFLE – The leadership of the Social Democratic Party, the senior partner
in the ruling coalition in Romania, is to decide on Monday on a cabinet
reshuffle. The Social Democrat PM Viorica Dancila has stated that the activity
of eight ministers has been analyzed, but she has not given the names of the
officials in question. Ms Dancila has stated she will make proposals for the
ministers that are to be changed. The evaluation was made taking into
consideration several criteria, including the governing program, efficiency and
communication, the Prime Minister has also said.

FOREIGN AFFAIRS -
On Monday, the Romanian Foreign Minister Teodor Melescanu is attending the
Foreign Affairs Council, according to a communiqué released by the Romanian
Foreign Affairs Ministry. The main topics on the agenda of talks are the recent
developments in Iran, Iraq and the Central African Republic. The foreign
ministers will also tackle topics relating to the foreign component of
migration. According to the Romanian Foreign Ministry, a working brunch will be
held on the sidelines of the meeting, with the Moldovan Foreign Affairs
Minister Nicolae Popescu as special guest.

ROMANIA – FRANCE
SEASON – The 2019 Romania – France Season, the largest Romanian – French public
and cultural diplomacy project ended on Sunday, on the National Day of France,
with an extraordinary concert held in one of Bucharest’s central parks. During
the season, for almost one year, hundreds of projects were held in 160 towns
and cities in both countries. The French Ambassador to Romania, Michelle Ramis,
has said on the public radio station that it’s been an extraordinary experience
between two countries and two peoples. Romania and France have shared
experiences, actors, artists, cultural, economic and academic projects, the
French diplomat has stated. According to Ms Ramis, thanks to the Romania -
France Season, created under the motto Forget about Clichés, new roads
have been opened in terms of technological innovation and the bilateral
cultural relation has been reinforced.

NATIONAL DAY – The
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and another five European leaders were guests
of honor in Paris on Sunday, on the National Day of France. They watched the
traditional military parade on Champs-Elysee, in a bid to reinforce the idea of
European cooperation in the field of defense, supported by the French President
Emmanuel Macron. Military from 10 countries, which are part of the European
Intervention Initiative, including from France and Germany, participated in the
parade. Authorities have strengthened security around the public events held in
Paris, to ensure protection against the so-called Yellow Vests, who
mobilized on social media to protest on the National Day.

BREEZE
2019 – Some 2000 military staff from 11 NATO member countries – Albania,
Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Greece, France, Italy, Poland, Romania, Turkey and
the US are taking part in the international exercise Breeze 2019, unfolding
until the 21st of July in the Black Sea, in the territorial waters of Bulgaria.
26 vessels, 10 planes and helicopters, the Standing NATO Maritime Group 2, the
Standing NATO Mine Countermeasures Group and representatives of various
state-owned organizations and NGOs are taking part in the exercise. The main
objective of the exercise is to increase the interoperability and interaction
between the naval forces of the participating countries.