May 29, 2021 UPDATE

A roundup of domestic and international news

Newsroom, 29.05.2021, 20:00

COVID-19 IN ROMANIA – New vaccination marathons are being held this weekend in
Romania. In Bucharest, the marathon addresses people who took the first
anti-COVID shot three weeks ago as well as people who want to take the first
shot. A vaccination caravan will travel to markets and crowded areas in Brasov.
In Petrosani, people can get vaccinated in drive-through centers. Nearly 70,000
people got vaccinated in Romania in the last 24 hours. Since the start of the
pandemic, over 4.2 million people got vaccinated, of whom 3.5 with both shots
of the vaccine. The number of COVID-19 infections continues to drop in Romania.
265 new infections were reported on Saturday, in addition to 73 related
fatalities. 452 people are in intensive care.

PFIZER – Children aged 12-15 can get the anti-COVID vaccine
developed by Pfizer / BioNTech. The European Medicines Agency on Friday
authorized the vaccine as safe for use by children in this age bracket. Romania
is expected to make the first appointments starting next week, the president of
the national commission for coordinating the vaccination campaign, Dr. Valeriu
Gheorghiţă. This is the first vaccine greenlit for immunizing teenagers
in the 27 EU member states. Tests carried out at EU level show that the vaccine
has 100% efficiency for young people. The European Medicines Agency has
recommended each member state should decide when and how to administer the
vaccine.

NATO -
NATO Deputy Secretary General, Mircea Geoană, on Monday is paying a visit to
Romania, accompanied by the president of the NATO Military Commission, General
Stuart Peach. Mircea Geoană’s agenda is very busy, including a visit to the
NATO Multinational Division Southeast, which is taking part in the NATO
Steadfast Defender 21 multinational exercise. Mircea Geoană will meet with
Romania’s Defense Minister, Nicolae Ciucă and with Chief of General Staff, Daniel
Petrescu. The NATO official will also attend the Black Sea Atlantic Security
Council, hosted by Aspen Institute – Romania. During his visit Mircea Geoană
will open the Euro-Atlantic Resilience Center, alongside Romania’s president,
Klaus Iohannis, Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu, and EU Commissioner for
Inter-institutional relations and forecast, Maros Sefcovic, the vice-president
of the European Commission.

DONATION -
Romania has donated 40 tons of humanitarian aid to the city of Cernăuţi
(Ukraine), with a total worth of €1.2 million, designed to help combat the
COVID-19 pandemic. The donation includes protection equipment for health
workers: masks, gowns, head protection gear and disinfectants. Secretary of
State with the Romanian Foreign Ministry, Dan Neculăescu, attended the donation
ceremony, pointed out that the coronavirus pandemic is a common global
challenge that has no geographic barriers. In turn, Ukraine’s deputy Foreign Minister,
Vasil Bodnar, said that the humanitarian aid for Ukraine is a strong signal of
solidarity from a country that is not just our neighbor, but an important
member of the European Union and NATO.

ROMANIANS
– The Romanian Patriarchate on Saturday conveyed a message of unity to all
Romanians in the Diaspora, ahead of the Day of Romanians Worldwide, to be
marked on Sunday. We urge all Romanians living outside Romania to keep in touch
with their loved ones back home, to keep the family and Romanian community
united, Romanian Orthodox Church Patriarch Daniel has said. Under a 2015 piece
of legislation, the Day of Romanians Worldwide is celebrated on the last Sunday
of May. In the last decade, the Romanian Patriarchate has founded numerous
parishes for Romanian Orthodox Christians living in the Republic of Moldova,
Northern Bukovina, Serbia, Bulgaria and Hungary. Churches have also been opened
in Western Europe, America, Australia, New Zealand, the Holy Land, Cyprus,
Turkey, South Africa and Japan.

IMF -
The IMF estimates an economic growth for Romania of 7% this year, 3% over the
initial estimate. The budget deficit forecast has also dropped to 6.8% compared
to the initial estimate of 7.2%. The IMF confirms Romania has the largest
economic growth in the EU, Prime Minister Florin Cîţu writes on his Facebook
page. According to the Prime Minister, the effects of implemented reforms are
starting to show, and the best period for Romanians is yet to come.

TENNIS – Tennis player
Sorana Cîrstea (61 WTA) on Saturday lost to Barbora Krejcikova of the
Czech Republic (38 WTA) in the final of the WTA tournament in Strasbourg, 6-3,
6-3. Cîrstea played Krejcikova twice before, the Romanian winning in 2020 in
Dubai and losing in 2017 in Nurnberg. This is Cîrstea’s sixth final, after the titles
won in 2008 in Tashkent and last month in Istanbul, and the finals played in Budapest
in 2007, Toronto in 2013 and Tashkent in 2019. (VP)