November 30, 2019 UPDATE

A roundup of domestic and international news

Newsroom, 30.11.2019, 19:06

NATIONAL DAY – Alba Iulia on Saturday hosted a series of
ceremonies marking the National Day of Romania and the Great Union. Military
events, floral tributes, concerts and film screenings were held on this
occasion. On Sunday, December 1, some 4,000 military and specialists with the
Defense and Interior Ministries, the Romanian Intelligence Service and the
National Penitentiary Administration, in addition to 200 pieces of military
technology, will take part in the national military parade held in Bucharest on
December 1. According to the Defense Ministry, some 500 military from Romania’s
21 allied or partner countries will be taking part as well. Depending on the
weather, over 50 aircraft will be participating in the parade. The public will
also be able to visit an open-air exhibition. Various events will be held in
other cities in Romania. The national flag will be displayed on all military
buildings while all maritime and river ships will be dressed up overall.
Romanian military in theatres of operations in Afghanistan, the Western
Balkans, Mali, Iraq and Poland are also organizing military ceremonies and
specific activities on this occasion. December 1 became Romania’s National Day
after the December 1989 anti-Communist revolution and it marks the completion,
at the end of WWI, in 1918, of the process of creating the Romanian unitary
nation state, when all the provinces included in the neighboring multinational
empires, with a majority Romanian-speaking population, came under the authority
of Bucharest.

PUBLIC ORDER – Over 27,000 employees of the
Interior Ministry will be working to ensure public order and intervene in case
of emergency on December 1, the National Day of Romania. According to a press
release issued by the Interior Ministry, some 660 events will be held to mark
this day at national level. To ensure public order, law enforcement officers,
gendarmes, firefighters and paramedics have been mobilized. The measures are
meant to prevent and combat anti-social behaviors, ease road traffic,
especially in areas where restrictions are in place, as well as to provide
emergency medical care, where needed.

SAINT ANDREW – Christians on Saturday celebrated
St. Andrew the Apostle’s Feast Day. Saint Andrew is the patron saint of
Romania, after he preached the word of Jesus Christ in present-day Dobrogea, in
southeastern Romania. Saint Andrew died in Patras, Greece, crucified on an
X-shaped cross. President Klaus Iohannis conveyed a message to all Romanians at
home and abroad, to celebrate the spiritual identity of the Romanian people on
this special day, and use the celebration to strengthen the Romanian people in
unity and cohesion. Some 700,000 Romanians celebrated their name day.

NATO – London on Tuesday and
Wednesday is hosting the NATO summit, celebrating 70 years of NATO existence.
High on the agenda are the fight against terrorism, arms control and relations
with Russia and China. Representing Romania will be president Klaus Iohannis.
According to the presidency, Klaus Iohannis will highlight Romania’s contribution
as a NATO member and the need to continue determent and security efforts on the
eastern flank and in the Black Sea region.

EUROPEAN COMMISSION
– The new European Commission led by Ursula von der Leyen will start its
activity on December 1. Member States have decided the new Commission will have
only 27 commissioners, after Great Britain refused to make a nomination.
Romanian Adina Valean from the European People’s Party has been appointed
Transport Commissioner. The College of Commissioners will convene on December 4
to make several administrative decisions.

HANDBALL – The
Romanian women’s team lost 31-16 to Spain in the first Group C fixture at the
World Cup held in Japan. Romania was drawn in Group C alongside Senegal,
Kazakhstan, Montenegro and Hungary. The top three teams will advance to the
next phase. From 1957 to 2017, Romania has never missed a World Cup. Our
country won silver in 2005 in Russia and bronze in 2015 in Denmark.

EURO 2020 -
One million tickets will be made available over December 4-18 to the fans of
the 20 teams qualified to the European Football Championship 2020, the Romanian
Football Federation reports. The general public will be able to purchase part
of the tickets. Fans will be able to purchase tickets over December 4-8. The
fans of the four teams that will qualify after the playoffs, including Romania,
if our team eventually qualifies, will be able to buy tickets once matches are
concluded at the end of March, 2020. Over half of these tickets will be in the
lowest-price category, which is 30 Euros for Baku, Bucharest and Budapest and
50 Euros for the other host cities. The 2020 edition of the UEFA European
Championship is the biggest ever held, with over 3 million tickets, 82% of
which being available to the fans.

(Translated by V. Palcu)