May 24, 2015 UPDATE

A roundup of local and international news

Newsroom, 24.05.2015, 12:15

Romania’s
foreign minister Bogdan Aurescu is attending the EU-Gulf Cooperation Council
ministerial meeting in Doha, Qatar. Chaired jointly by the EU High
Representative for Foreign Policy Federica Mogherini and Qatar’s foreign
minister Khalid bin Mohammed Al-Attiyah,
the meeting aims to strengthen ties between the European Union and the Gulf Cooperation Council. Talks focus on the
latest developments in the wider Middle East region and the fight against
terrorism, including ways to counteract the Islamic State organisation.
Minister Aurescu emphasised the
need to continue international efforts to combat extremism and terrorism and
presented Romania’s proposal to create an International Court to combat
terrorism. On the sidelines of the
meeting, he also had talks with counterparts from the Gulf region, reiterating
Bucharest’s wish to intensify bilateral relations. The Gulf Cooperation Council
brings together Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain
and Oman. Romania’s prime minister Victor Ponta travelled to the first four of
these countries early this month as part of a tour of the region to discuss
economic aspects.

12 Romanian vessels, an American
warship and a Bulgarian minesweeper, as well as 1,500 military will be taking
part in an exercise called Trident Poseidon 2015 that gets under way on Monday.
Held over four days in Romania’s territorial waters and the Black Sea
international waters, the exercise aims at improving the interoperability
between the NATO forces and interagency cooperation in Romania. One of the
activities forming part of this exercise is the evacuation of civilians in the
event of a conflict, an activity which will be carried out on the 27th
of May in Constanta’s military port.

The United
States has expressed concern over a new Russian law allowing the authorities to
declare foreign non-governmental organisations undesirable. We are concerned this new power will further restrict the
work of civil society in Russia, said State
Department spokesperson Marie Harf. The human rights organisation Amnesty
International also described the law as part of an ongoing draconian
crackdown which is squeezing the life out of civil society in Russia. The
legislation allows the government to ban foreign NGOs, block their bank
accounts and prosecute their employees, who may face up to six years in prison.

The
Islamic State group is responsible for the killing of at least 400 people,
mostly women and children, in the Syrian city of Palmyra, according to the
Syrian state television. The jihadists this week seized control of the city, an
important strategic site in the middle of the dessert but home to thousand-year
old vestiges protected by UNESCO. The group controls a growing number of
territories in Syria and Iraq, including the border area between the two
countries. In Iraq, the Islamic State won a strategic victory in Ramadi, the
capital of the Anbar province, following weeks of heavy clashes. Tens of
thousands of residents fled the city. The Iraqi army launched a counter-offensive
to regain control of the city, which is located close to the capital Baghdad.

Corneliu Porumboiu’s The
Treasure has won the Un Certain Talent prize at the Cannes International Film
Festival as part of the Un Certain Regard category. The film is about two men
and their adventures as they try to find a buried treasure. The top prize in
this category was awarded to the Icelandic production Rams, by Grimur
Hakonarson. The Romanian short film Ramona, by Andrei Cretulescu, was awarded
the Canal + prize in the Semaine de la Critique category.

Romania’s no. 1 tennis
player Simona Halep defeated the Russian player Evgeniya Rodina in two sets in
the first round at Roland Garros, the second Grand Slam tournament of the year.
In the second round, she will face Mirjana Lucic-Baroni of Croatia. Last year,
Simona Halep reached the final in Paris, but lost to Maria Sharapova of Russia
in three sets. Four other Romanian players are in the singles main draw: Irina
Begu, Alexandra Dulgheru, Monica Niculescu and Andreea Mitu. Romania has no
player in the men’s singles. In the doubles, Horia Tecau pairs up with the
Dutch player Jean Julien Rojer, while Florin Mergea forms a pair with the
Indian player Rohan Bopanna.