June 30, 2022 UPDATE

Click here for a roundup of domestic and international news

Newsroom, 30.06.2022, 20:21

NATO At the NATO summit, which ended in Madrid on Thursday, US
president Joe Biden said the US would establish a permanent headquarters for
the US 5th Army Corps in Poland add a rotational brigade of 3,000
troops and 2,000 other personnel to be headquartered in Romania. Biden has also
pledged to enhance rotational deployments in the Baltic region, deploy two
squadrons of F-35 aircraft to the UK, station additional air defence in Germany
and Italy and seek to increase the number of destroyers stationed in Spain. At the NATO summit in Madrid, Romanian
president Klaus Iohannis on Thursday reiterated Romania’s support for the
Alliance’s cooperation with the European Union. He also pledged Bucharest’s
active support for the consolidation and deep cooperation with the partners in
the eastern and southern neighborhoods. Iohannis has underlined that the Black
Sea region has been a platform for the projection of Russia’s power to the
Middle East, North Africa and the region of Sahel. President Iohannis has also
said that Romania supports the adoption as soon as possible of a joint NATO-EU
statement for the common approach and handling of the Ukrainian crisis. Finland
and Sweden are to sign the NATO accession protocol on Tuesday, the alliance’s
Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has announced, according to Reuters. The
protocol must be ratified by the parliaments of all 30 NATO members. On
Wednesday, NATO endorsed a new strategic concept, which defines Russia as the
most significant and direct threat to the allies’ security and stability.

UKRAINE The Russian army on Thursday announced its withdrawal from the Snake
Island, a strategic point in the Black Sea, Moscow conquered as early as the
onset of its invasion in Ukraine. The Russian Defence Ministry has announced
the move is a gesture of goodwill to facilitate Ukraine’s cereal exports. Kyiv
had earlier announced the Russian troops were forced to pull out following a
successful operation mounted by the Ukrainian forces. According to Ukraine’s
Interior Minister Vadim Denisenko, Russia was trying to turn the island into some
sort of aircraft-carrier fitted with defence systems, which could enable it to
control this part of the Black Sea. According to British Prime Minister Boris
Johnson, Russia’s withdrawal from the Snake Island proves that in the end it
will prove impossible for Putin to hold down a country that will not accept his
rule.

HEAT WAVE
The National Meteorology Agency issued a code-red alert for extreme heat for
Thursday and Friday in 6 counties in the west and north-west of the country.
According to weather experts, highs of 38-39 degrees Celsius will be reported
in these counties, an absolute record for this time of the year. The rest of
the country is mostly under orange-code alerts, for temperatures of up to 36-38
degrees Celsius, and code-yellow alerts, for highs of 33 to 36 degrees Celsius.
On the other hand, 18 counties in the east and centre of the country are today
under a code-yellow alert for atmospheric instability.

EXAMS After the appeals stage, the share of 8th-graders
who passed the national evaluation this year is 82.4%, the Education Minister Sorin
Cîmpeanu
announced. The number of children who got straight As has also increased to 237. Minister Cîmpeanu said last week
that the number of pass grades among students sitting the national evaluation
exam reached an absolute record this year compared to the last 10 years,
namely 82.3%, which means 122,166 children had passed the exam prior to appeals.
Last year the figure was 5.5% smaller. The grades obtained in the national
evaluation are the main criterion for high school admission.

FESTIVAL The Sibiu International Theatre Festival continues in
central Romania until the 3rd July. This year’s motto is
Beauty. This 29th edition of the festival brings together artists
from around the world in theatre, dance, cinema, musical, opera and circus
performances. Concerts, book shows and exhibitions are also organized as part
of the festival. Some of the performances taking place in cultural or
unconventional venues can be watched on the Festival’s official website,
digital streaming platform www.scena-digitala.ro, and on the event’s official
Facebook page and YouTube channel.

(bill)