28 February, 2020

Some of the main stories in Romania today.

Newsroom, 28.02.2020, 13:55

Government. The ruling National
Liberal Party has today established the list of ministers in the cabinet led by
prime minister designate Florin Citu and the programme of the future cabinet.
The MP Ovidiu Heius is proposed to take over the finance ministry formerly
occupied by Citu. The latter’s nomination by president Klaus Iohannis came
after the Constitutional Court ruled as unconstitutional the designation of the
caretaker prime minister and leader of the National Liberal Party Ludovic
Orban. Orban’s government was dismissed in a no-confidence motion at the
beginning of the month.

Coronavirus Romania. The first and for the time being
only person in Romania infected with the coronavirus, a young man, is doing
well and will stay hospitalised at the Institute of Infectious Diseases in
Bucharest during his illness, the manager of the institute, Adrian Streinu
Cercel has said. The interim health minister Victor Costache has told a TV
station that the young man has developed a mild form of laryngitis and is
undergoing treatment. The minister also said that around 85% of the persons
infected with the virus develop mild or moderate forms. According to a
statement from the government’s Group for Strategic Communication, 182 persons
are in quarantine at the moment and 8,231 are monitored at home. The statement also reads that two Romanian
citizens infected with coronavirus on the Diamond Princess cruise vessel
quarantined in the Japanese port of Yokohama and who are now in hospital in
Japan are in good condition. In another move, the government in Bucharest says
it will begin an awareness and information campaign about ways to prevent the
spread of the new coronavirus in Romania. The campaign will be held in
partnership with the Red Cross via traditional and online media.

Coronavirus world. The coronavirus
is spreading in Europe. The first cases have been reported in The Netherlands
and Northern Ireland, all in persons who have returned from Italy, the country
most affected in Europe, while new cases have been reported in France and
Germany. All public schools were closed in Japan and Saudi Arabia banned
foreign pilgrims from travel to Mecca. South Korea and Iran also cause concern.
The virus has contaminated over 80,000 people and caused of death of almost
3,000 around the world, mostly in China. More than 50 countries are affected.
The spokesman of the International Monetary Fund Gerry Rice says the rapid
spread of the outbreak will have a negative effect on world economic growth,
and the Fund will most likely revise its forecast down. The American investment
bank Goldman Sachs has warned that a severe pandemic could throw the United
States into recession. Shares have seen new plunges, facing the most difficult
week since the financial crisis of 2008. Dow Jones saw the biggest loss in
history. The main European stock markets, Paris, London, Frankfurt, Madrid and
Amsterdam, closed sharply lower last night.

NATO. NATO ambassadors meet today to
discuss the situation in Syria at Turkey’s request, on the basis of Article 4
of the Alliance Treaty, NATO secretary general Jens Stoltenberg has announced.
The meeting comes as at least 33 Turkish soldiers were killed in the Syrian
province of Idlib, in the north-west, in bombings attributed by Ankara to
Damascus. Under Article 4 of the Treaty, any allied state can request talks if
it feels that its territorial integrity, political independence and security
are at threat. On Thursday evening, Jens Stoltenberg spoke by phone to the
Turkish foreign minister Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu and condemned the continued indiscriminate air strikes
by the Syrian regime and its backer Russia in Idlib province, and
called for the easing of the tension.

Football. The Romanian football champion CFR Cluj on Thursday
night drew nil-all against the Spanish side FC Seville, in the decisive leg of
the Europa League last 32 and were eliminated without defeat. In the first leg,
CFR drew 1-all at home last week, with the Spanish side advancing to the next
stage thanks to an away goal. A goal scored by CFR in the 87th
minute was disallowed by VAR due to handball. CFR finished second in their
group, with 12 out of 18 possible points, the group also including the Italian
side Lazio Rome, the Scottish side Glasgow Rangers and the French side Rennes. (CM)