April 29, 2021 UPDATE
A roundup of domestic and international news
Newsroom, 29.04.2021, 20:07
COVID-19RO. 1.850 new cases of
COVID-19 infection were reported on Thursday in Romania after some 35,000 tests
were run across the country, the Strategic Communication Group announced.
Another 138 related fatalities and 1,295 people in intensive care were also
reported. Over 1,050,000 people have tested positive for COVID-19 since the
start of the pandemic and 27,971 people have died to the virus. The infection
rate continues to exceed 3 per one thousand inhabitants in the capital city
Bucharest and in Ilfov and Cluj counties, although the numbers are dropping
steadily. On the other hand, the Government’s special committee in charge of
developing relaxation measures starting June 1 convened again to highlight the
need for adapting measures to the specificity of each field of activity.
Representatives of line associations made clear proposals for the organization
of cultural events with the observance of safety regulations. The committee
also discussed the gradual reopening of hotels and restaurants as more and more
people get vaccinated. All proposals will be analyzed by working groups that
will address each specific field. Meanwhile, the authorities are accelerating
the vaccination campaign.
HOLIDAY. Before the May 1st
mini-holiday, which this year coincides with the Orthodox Easter holiday, Prime
Minister Florin Cîţu calls on the population to keep observing anti-coronavirus
sanitary rules, even if Romania is now on a descending slope of the third wave
of the pandemic. He has urged the prefects and the police to take all measures
to ensure compliance with the health rules in place. In the Romanian resorts on
the Black Sea, over 30 thousand tourists are expected during the mini-holiday
of May 1 and Easter. About 100 hotels will be opened, many of them already
occupied at 70% capacity, the maximum allowed by the authorities. Tourists are
not allowed to party on the beach, and wearing a mask is mandatory.
PANDEMIC. The international
community is rallying to support India, a week after that country was hit hard
by the COVID-19 pandemic, with daily record-high numbers of infections and
fatalities and a health system under pressure. The biggest concern is the
so-called Indian strain of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, which spreads rapidly and
could be even more contagious and vaccine and treatment resistant than other
strains, the WHO has warned. With a population of nearly 1.4 billion people,
India has reported 200 thousand deaths and over 18 million infections since the
start of the outbreak. Some experts believe numbers could be even higher. Great
Britain has sent oxygen concentrators and other medical equipment, while the
United States will be shipping 60 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine.
Romania has joined this international effort and delivered 200 oxygen
concentrators via a Romanian Air Force Spartan aircraft.
SURVEY. Romanians fear the
economic crisis or corruption more than the COVID-19 pandemic or the outbreak
of an armed conflict. It’s one of the findings of the Security Survey published
by the Romanian Academy’s Center for Sociological Research. According to the
survey, 43% of the respondents believe Romania has been a safe country after
its NATO accession, while 37% said they felt safe during the communist period.
As regards public confidence in state institutions, 72% of Romanians put their
trust in the Army, followed by the Church with a 57% share and the Foreign
Ministry with 50%.
NATO. Romania will
withdraw its forces from Afghanistan in coordination with other NATO members,
starting Saturday, May 1. All 615 soldiers and over 80 tons of materials and
logistics elements will be extracted with national and coalition military
aircraft – the Presidential Administration in Bucharest has announced. The
withdrawal will be carried out in stages and will take place over the next few
months. In the anti-terrorist mission in Afghanistan, inaugurated shortly after
the attacks of September 11, 2001 in the United States, when Bucharest was not
yet a NATO member, 27 Romanian soldiers fell on duty.
RECOVERY PLAN. The leaders of the
center-right ruling coalition in Bucharest have adopted the National Recovery
and Resilience Plan worth 29 billion Euro. The plan will be presented in
Brussels starting May 10, when the final negotiations with European Commission
representatives are due to take place. Prime Minister Florin Cîţu said none of
the proposed projects will be discarded. In turn, Minister for Investment and
European Projects, Cristian Ghinea, said funding for certain investment has
been reduced, while budget appropriations have been readjusted to reflect the
Commission’s recommendations.
UNEMPLOYMENT. The unemployment rate
stood at 5.5% in March, down by 0.2% compared to February, according to a National
Statistics Institute report. The number of unemployed aged 15-74 stood at 464
thousand in March, compared to 478 thousand the previous month. Broken down in
terms of gender, unemployed men account for 5.7%, compared to 5.2% for women.
The number of unemployed aged 24-74 account for 75.1% of the estimated number
of unemployed in March.
US. The United States’
return to the international stage, the response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the
economic recovery plan, as well as firm warnings against Russia and China, were
some of the highlights of US president Joe Biden’s first address to the joint
session of Congress. Now, after just 100 days, I can report to the
nation: America is on the move again. Turning peril into possibility. Crisis
into opportunity. Setback into strength, the White House leader said.
According to Radio Romania’s correspondent in Washington, Joe Biden also
addressed a message to Russian president Vladimir Putin, insisting that
Russia’s actions will have consequences.
