June 4, 2022

A roundup of local and international news.

Newsroom, 04.06.2022, 14:00

APPOINTMENT — US President Joe Biden has nominated Kathleen Ann Kavalec for the vacant position of US Ambassador to Romania. This is the first time the US government has nominated a woman as Bucharest’s ambassador. Kavalec is a career diplomat at the US Department of State and is currently responsible for the OSCE mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina. She was previously Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary for the European and Asian Affairs Department in Washington State and prior to that she was the director of the Russian Business Office and the deputy director of the UNESCO Commission in Paris. She previously worked at the US Embassy in Bucharest. She has also served twice as Cultural officer at the US Embassy in Japan, a Political Advisor at the US Embassy in Kyiv and a Political Attaché at the US Embassy in Moscow.

CATHOLIC PENTECOST – Catholic believers will attend, in large number, the Pentecost pilgrimage held today in Sumuleu Ciuc, central Romania, which is seen as the largest of its kind in Central and Eastern Europe. It is for the first time in two years that the pilgrimage unfolds without any Covid-related restrictions in place. Authorities estimate that several hundred thousand people will attend mass in Sumuleu Ciuc, to pray to Virgin Mary. This became a pilgrimage site in 1567, when Hungarian king John Sigismund wanted to convert Roman Catholics in Ciuc, Gheorgheni and Casin to Protestantism. People believe that only the prayers to the statue of Virgin Mary, located in a church nearby, helped them preserve their faith. On June 1st, 2019, Pope Francis visited St. Mary’s Sanctuary in Sumuleu Ciuc.

TOURISM — Tourism on the Romanian Black Se coast has recovered after the difficult years of pandemic. In the first four months of the year, the number of bookings increased by one third as compared to the same period of 2021. Meanwhile, preparations for the summer season are in full swing. Some 90% of the accommodation units on the Black Sea coast will be open for the mini-holiday occasioned by the Pentecost, on June 10-13. Six beaches in Romania have received the Blue Flag tag this year — one in Mamaia, one in Olimp, two in Navodari and two in Eforie. The Blue Flag is an international recognition of infrastructure and water quality.

HACKERS – An international law enforcement operation involving 11 countries has resulted in the takedown of one of the fastest-spreading mobile malware to date, known as FluBot, Europol announced in a release. This Android malware has been spreading aggressively through SMS, stealing passwords, online banking details and other sensitive information from infected smartphones across the world. First spotted in December 2020, FluBot has gained traction in 2021 and compromised a huge number of devices worldwide. The malware was installed via text messages which asked Android users to click a link and install an application. Once installed, the malicious application, which actually was FluBot, would ask for accessibility permissions. The hackers would then use this access to steal banking app credentials or cryptocurrency account details and disable built-in security mechanisms. This FluBot infrastructure is now under the control of law enforcement, putting a stop to the destructive spiral, the release also says.

DRILL – Romanian soldiers and allies from five European countries and the United States are participating in a multinational exercise at the NATO Smârdan Centre in eastern Romania. Both ground and air combat equipment is used. The exercise, which has been taking place since May 24, is attended by over 1,000 Romanian soldiers along with comrades-in-arms from France, Belgium, Bulgaria, Italy, Portugal and the United States. The training aims to increase interoperability through computer-assisted command exercises, field troop training and tactical training with real combat ammunition. Through such training events, the Command of the Southeast Multinational Brigade is being trained to be able to command forces deployed in the NATO Southeast region, in order to ensure the contribution of this structure to the collective defence of the Alliance, the Romanian Defence Ministry says. (EE)