July 27, 2020 UPDATE

Lockdown not necessary in southern Romania, authorities decide

Newsroom, 27.07.2020, 20:00

CORONAVIRUS Romanian authorities announced on Monday that local lockdown is not
necessary in any of the 12 localities in Arges County, in the south, where the
number of COVID-19 cases has risen substantially as of late.The number of new coronavirus
infections in this county has exceeded 100 for the 5th consecutive day. The
town of Faget and three nearby villages in Timis county, in the western part of
Romania, are in lockdown for 14 days beginning on Sunday evening. Faget, where
47 cases were confirmed, is the third locality in Romania to go into lockdown
after Cartojani in Giurgiu county and Gornet in Prahova county, in the south.
The number of coronavirus cases in Romania gets close to 46,000, with more than
1,000 new cases reported on Monday, for the 6th day in a row. More than 25,800
people have recovered and over 6,900 are in hospital, including 353 in
intensive care. 19 new deaths were reported on Monday, taking the death toll to
2,206. A growing number of countries are introducing restrictions for Romanian
citizens. Cyprus, Finland and Lithuania have closed their borders to Romanian tourists.
Travelers arriving in Greece from Romania by plane are now required to produce
a negative Covid-19 test as well. The test must have been conducted no more
than 72 hours prior. The measure is in place until August 4. Other countries,
including Italy, the UK, Ireland, Norway, Estonia and Latvia have introduced 14-day
isolation requirements for travelers from Romania, the Netherlands recommends
isolation, while Hungary,m Belgium and France recommend testing. New entry
conditions are also in place for travelers arriving in Austria from Romania. A
negative Covid-19 test must now be produced that was conducted 72 hours prior
instead of 4 days prior, and the isolation period has been reduced from 14 to
10 days. These measures will remain in place at least until the end of September.

WORKERS The Romanian foreign ministry announced on Monday that 150 Romanian nationals working on a farm in Dingolfing-Landau in south-eastern Germany have tested positive for COVID-19. The farm, which has been placed under lockdown by local authorities, employs nearly 480 people, most of them Romanian citizens. So far Romanias consular office in Munich has not received any requests for consular assistance from the employees of the farm in question, but it stays in contact with local authorities and with the employer, and is ready to provide assistance if necessary.

UPDATE An updated list of countries of high epidemiological risk is available as of Monday. People coming from these countries to Romania must quarantine for 14 days. The list includes 44 countries and regions considered to be in the yellow area, and is available on the website of the National Public Health Institute. The quarantine location can be at home or at another location chosen by the individuals in question, or at a location decided by the authorities. The list was last updated on July 7.

PARLIAMENT The Parliament of Romania continues its special session this week. The agenda of the Senate includes a citizen initiative under which convicted criminals are no longer allowed to hold public office. Debates on this topic were postponed twice last week, due to the lack of quorum. The bill has already been endorsed by the Chamber of Deputies. Also discussed in the Senates expert committees will be the issue of the Romanian seasonal works who left for Germany from the International Airport of Cluj Napoca, in spite of the fact that a military order was in place. On Monday the Chamber of Deputies passed a bill under which the date of parliamentary elections must be set by law at least 60 day prior to ballot date. Previously, it was the Government that set the date of parliamentary elections. The bill was also passed by the Senate on the same day.

UKRAINE A ceasefire backed by Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelenskiy came into force in Ukraine on Monday. This is the most recent reconciliation attempt in a series of failed peace efforts between government forces and the pro-Russian rebels. Putin expressed concerns over a recent bill in the Ukrainian parliament paving the way for regional elections in 20220, saying it runs counter to the Minsk agreements and puts settlement prospects in jeopardy. Kiev plans to hold regional elections in October all over the country except for the separatist regions of Donetsk and Lugansk. Around 13 thousand people have been killed in the conflict, according to UN estimates. Russia has repeatedly denied accusations of direct involvement in the conflict. (Translated by Elena Enache, Ana-Maria Popescu)