November 30, 2016 UPDATE
On December 1st, Romanias National Day will be celebrated across the country and abroad.
Newsroom, 30.11.2016, 18:30
NATIONAL DAY – On December 1st Romania’s National Day will be celebrated across the country and abroad, including in theatres of operation, with parades, religious ceremonies, exhibitions of combat military technology and weapons, and cultural events. The date of 1st of December 1918 remains a symbol for the union of all Romanians. Declared an official holiday after the anti-communist revolution of 1989, 1st of December marks the completion, at the end of World War I, of the creation of the Romanian nation state following the union of all provinces with majority Romanian populations, that had been part of multinational empires. More than 3,000 military and experts from the defence and interior ministries and the Romanian Intelligence Service made the final rehearsals for the National Day parade in Bucharest. The parade route will again pass underneath the Arch of Triumph after being hosted by the Constitution Square for the last two years as the Arch was undergoing restoration works. The Romanian military will be joined by their counterparts from other allied and partner states such as the UK, Italy, Germany, the Republic of Moldova, Poland, Slovakia, Spain and the US. The list of cultural events dedicated to the National Day celebrations include a host of traditional music concerts and performances organised by the Eudoxiu Hurmuzachi Institute for Romanians Abroad and the Romanian Cultural Institute between the 27th of November and 4th of December for the large Romanian communities in Spain and Italy.
ST. ANDREW’S DAY — Orthodox, Greek Catholic and Roman Catholic believers from all over the world, Romania included, celebrated on Tuesday St. Apostle Andrew. He is the first of Jesus Christ apostles who preached Christianity in the south of Romania, in Dobrudgea. He also preached the Gospel in Greece died as a martyr in the Greek town of Patras, being crucified on an X shaped cross. Over 700 thousand Romanians named after St. Andrew celebrated their name day on Tuesday.
MESSAGE — The United States has congratulated Romanians on their National Day. A message posted on the Internet page of the US State Department, signed by the US Secretary of State, John Kerry, says “On behalf of President Obama and the American people, I offer my sincerest congratulations to the people of Romania as you celebrate the 98th anniversary of your nation’s Unification Day on December 1.” The message also says that the US Government places a high value on its strategic partnership with Romania, a trusted NATO Ally and a major contributor to international peace, security, and the rule of law.
ROYAL TRAIN – The royal train started on Wednesday its annual journey dedicated this time to the anniversary of 150 years since Romania’s Royal House was established and to the promulgation of the 1866 Constitution. Accompanying princess Margarita, Custodian of the Romanian Crown, Prince Radu and Princess Maria on this two-day trip will be representatives of the royal families of Belgium and Bulgaria and also students with notable results, professors and personalities of the civil society. On Wednesday the train reached the mountain resort of Sinaia. The journey will be resumed on December 1st, on Romania’s National Day. Its final destination is the city of Sibiu.
SECURITY — The security of the European Union and that of the Western Balkans are inseparable, so solution can only emerge from a close cooperation among the countries in this region and the EU, Romanian Foreign Minister Lazar Comanescu said on Monday in Warsaw, where he attended the Meeting of Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the Visegrad Group and the Western Balkans. The meeting was also attended by the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the Commission Federica Mogherini and by Bulgaria, Croatia, Italy, Romania, and Slovenia. The V4 Ministers reiterated, among other things, their continued interest in and support for the Western Balkan countries on their EU path.
FUNERALS – Thousands of Cubans have lined the streets of Havana to see a caravan carrying the ashes of the former president Fidel Castro, from Havana to the eastern city of Santiago de Cuba, 800-km away. The ashes will retrace the route taken by Fidel Castro from Santiago to the capital after his victory over Cuban dictator Fulgencio Batista, only in reverse. The ashes will be interred Sunday, ending the nine-day mourning period for the man who ruled the country for nearly 50 years. Fidel Castro died on Friday, aged 90. State funerals will be held on Sunday in Santiago.
DEBT — Romania has to pay over 1.26 billion euros in 2017 to the EU and the World Bank of the stand-by loan taken out in 2009, according to the Romanian finance Ministry. Over 1.25 billion euros are to be paid back to the EU and only 9 million euros to the World Bank. This year Romania has paid 113 million euros to the EU and the World Bank, covering interests rate and commissions. Romania has to pay, until 2023, over 4.77 billion euros worth of debt to the two international bodies.
(Translated by Elena Enache)
