June 1, 2021 UPDATE

Click here for a roundup of domestic and international news

Newsroom, 01.06.2021, 19:29

NATO The head of the Romanian diplomacy
Bogdan Aurescu on Tuesday attended the online special meeting of the foreign
ministers in the NATO member countries. High on the meeting’s agenda were
preparations for the upcoming NATO summit on June 14th. Minister Aurescu
referred to the NATO 2030 reflection process and the decision on a new
strategic concept that might be taken at the upcoming summit, adding that these
processes would offer the Alliance the strategic vision it needs for an
increased role as a political-military alliance. The Romanian official has
underlined the need for boosting the political dimension of the alliance and
its consolidation from a military viewpoint. He pleaded for strengthening
NATO’s deterrence and defence posture, pointing out to the need for an increased
NATO presence in the Black Sea area, the Eastern flank and for stepped up
support for its partners. In another development the Romanian Defence Minister
Nicolae Ciuca on Tuesday attended the online meeting of his NATO counterparts
coordinated from the NATO headquarters in Brussels by the alliance’s Secretary
General Jens Stoltenberg. The meeting’s agenda focused on the coordinated of
NATO 2030 process with emphasis on deterrence, defence, resilience, innovation
for NATO partners.

TENNIS
Romanian-German pair Horia Tecau/Kevin Krawietzon Tuesday qualified for the
second round of the men’s doubles contest of the Roland Garros tournament after
a victory against Ariel Behar of Uruguay and Gonzalo Escobar of Ecuador. In the
singles contest, Romanian Ana Bogdan has qualified for the third round after
the world’s number two player Naomi Osaka withdrew from the competition. The
other Romanians in the competition are Mihaela Buzarnescu who will be up
against Serena Williams on Wednesday and Sorana Cirstea who will be playing
Italian Martina Trevisan. Injuries have prevented the world’s number three
tennis player Simona Halep, who reaped the trophy in 2018, to participate in
this year’s edition of the famous French tournament.

COVID-19 The number of COVID-19 infections remains
very low in Romania with an infection rate below one per thousand in all its
counties. 241 new cases were reported on Tuesday out of 28 thousand tests
conducted. The vaccination rollout is carried on in Romania with a new stage
due to begin on Wednesday targeting children with ages between 12 and 15 after
the European Medicines Agency has authorized the vaccine for this age bracket.
Since the vaccine rollout kicked off in late December, more than 3 million
Romanians have been fully vaccinated.

MEASURES New relaxation measures against
the background of a contained Covid-19 pandemic came into effect in Romania on
June 1st. Private parties can be attended by a limited number of
individuals and fans are allowed to attend indoor sporting events. Clubs and
discos have opened as well as indoor swimming pools and playgrounds. The number
of people attending these events is limited but could be higher if all are
vaccinated. Outdoor cultural events can be attended by 1000 people at the most.
All these events are allowed if the infection rate in their area stays under
three per thousand. Indoor mask mandates have been lifted for those vaccinated
in offices with five workers at the most.

DAY Theatre performances, concerts,
creative workshops and guided tours were staged on the International Children’s
Day Romania celebrates on June 1st. Several public institutions in Bucharest hosted
a series of events for the little ones. At the Cotroceni Palace in Bucharest, Romanian
president Klaus Iohannis inaugurated an exhibition entitled ‘Fantastic
Childhood’, created by several artists around the country to celebrate the
purity and sincerity of childhood and art. Children were able to visit the palace,
the halls where Parliament stages its sessions, the presidential office, the
press room and the hall of fame. Theatre performances, concerts and various work
shops were also being staged for the children of asylum seekers in Romania,
most of them coming from countries like Afghanistan, Somalia, Syria and Iraq.

EPPO The EU Public Prosecutor’s Office EPPO
headed by Laura Codruta Kovesi the former chief of Romania’s Anticorruption
Directorate, started its activity on Tuesday. The new body is to deal with community
fund frauds and recover money from fraudsters. EPPO prosecutors are expected to
investigate roughly three thousand files a year. According to estimates by the
European Chief Prosecutor, corruption, embezzlement and various types of fraud
are causing annual losses to the EU budget of 500 million euros. The new
European institution has an annual budget of 45 million euros. Five EU members
aren’t participating in the EPPO.

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