July 23, 2021

A roundup of domestic and international news

Newsroom, 23.07.2021, 13:55

Covid-19 RO. In Romania, 104
new cases of people infected with SARS-CoV-2 have been reported today, out of some
26,600 tests performed. Authorities have also announced 2 Covid-19 related deaths
and 38 people admitted to intensive care. The number of cases started to
increase on July 12 and, according to the graph in the analysis drawn up by the
National Center for Surveillance and Control of Communicable Diseases, last
week, almost half of the cases were reported in Bucharest, Cluj (center-west),
Iasi (northeast) , Ilfov (southeast) and Constanta (southeast). According to
data from the European Covid-19 Forecast Hub, it is estimated that by the end
of the month, in Romania, up to 200 new cases will be registered per day.
Experts say vaccination is the way out of this pandemic. Regarding
immunization, the authorities announced that almost 16,000 people have been
vaccinated in the last 24 hours. Currently, over 4.7 million Romanians have been
fully vaccinated.

Pandemic. Two hundred
million Europeans have been fully vaccinated against Covid-19, which is more
than half of the adult population, the European Commission announced on
Thursday. The Commission had set the goal of 70% of adults to be vaccinated by
the end of the summer. At a meeting of health ministers and officials in
Athens, the WHO warned that the COVID-19 pandemic would have a long-term
impact on people’s mental health. In another development, following the
increase in the number of infections in Europe, countries are taking additional
measures to prevent the spread of the virus. Greece announced on Thursday that
all unvaccinated workers in the tourism and restaurant sectors would have to
undergo regular coronavirus tests. For its part, Italy has announced that it will
introduce a compulsory health permit as of 6 August for access to enclosed
spaces such as clubs and restaurants. Worldwide, over 193 million people have
been infected with the novel coronavirus so far. According to
worldometers.info, nearly 176 million have recovered and more than 4.1 million
have lost their lives to this disease.

Visit. Not
only that Romania will continue to support the Republic of Moldova, the former
Soviet state with a predominantly Romanian speaking population, but it will accelerate
the provision of support in all fields, the Romanian Foreign Minister Bogdan
Aurescu said at a joint press conference with Maia Sandu. He talked about the
implementation of several long-term projects especially in the fields of energy
and infrastructure. In turn, the Moldovan President Maia Sandu said she
appreciated a lot the Romanian authorities’ availability and support. Bogdan
Aurescu’s visit takes place just days before the first meeting of the new
Parliament and the formation of the new government in Chisinau. He is the first
official from an EU member state to visit Moldova after the parliamentary
elections of July 11th, won by pro-Europeans. Also in Chisinau, Mr.
Aurescu attended the ceremony granting a new humanitarian aid to the Republic
of Moldova, in the form of 100,000 doses of anti-Covid-19 vaccine.

Report. Accessing European funds must be a priority for authorities, in their efforts to support investments and to modernize the economy, the National Bank of Romania recommends in a report on financial stability. The NBR recalls that Romania can access, from the multiannual budget of the Union, funds of over 52 billion euros, to which another 32 billion will be added, after the approval of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan. The report also shows that in order to maintain easy access to and low costs on foreign financial markets, it is necessary for Romania to engage in fiscal reforms that improve the sustainability of public finances and ensure better predictability of the legal framework. The document also shows that the net wealth of the population reached an all-time high after increasing this year by 6% compared to 2019. Real estate assets still have a majority share in the wealth of Romanians, respectively 75%, while financial assets represents approximately 24% of the total, the population being interested in secure instruments, such as cash and deposits, and then investments such as private pensions.

TIFF. The 2021 edition
of the largest film event in Romania, the Transylvania International Film
Festival (TIFF), starts today, to last until August1st. The opening film, the
Spanish comedy Dinner with the neighbors upstairs, will be screened in 20 towns
and cities, with the gala screening to be hosted by Cluj-Napoca (northwest). At
this year’s edition of the festival, more than 170 films will be screened in 10
days. They will be accompanied by concerts, but also by meetings with
representatives of the film industry.

Olympics. The Summer
Olympics, the world’s largest sports competition, kicks off in Tokyo today.
Despite pandemic restrictions, the Japanese authorities organized a special
show at the National Olympic Stadium, a tribute especially to those who during
this period helped humanity overcome the obstacles and difficulties brought by
the new coronavirus. The games will be opened by the Emperor of Japan Naruhito,
but only 950 dignitaries and international officials will attend the ceremony.
The public will not have access to any of the events, as Tokyo is in a state of
emergency. Nearly 2,000 new infections were reported on Thursday, the biggest
figure in six months. Despite the restrictions, the number of cases has also
increased in the Olympic Village by the day. Romania is counting on 101 athletes
at this 32nd edition of the games, who will compete in 17
disciplines. Canoeist Mădălina Bereş and
swimmer Robert Glinţ are the bearers of the national flag. (MI)