December 3, 2021
A roundup of domestic and international news
România Internațional, 03.12.2021, 13:50
Covid-19RO. Some 1700 new cases of coronavirus infection have been reported in Romania today. 200 related deaths have also been reported. In Bucharest, the incidence rate has dropped to 1.58 cases per one thousand inhabitants. As regards vaccination, a little over 7.4 million people have been fully vaccinated in Romania. In another development, two of the three Romanians repatriated from South Africa who tested positive for Covid-19 have most likely been infected with the Omicron variant, according to the first lab tests. The three are vaccinated and asymptomatic.
NRRP. Romania has received the first pre-financing instalment of 1.8 billion euros under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan, money that will be used to start the agreed investments and reforms. As the plan is put into practice, Romania will receive a total of 29.2 billion euros, of which 14.2 billion euros are non-reimbursable. The remaining 14.9 billion will come in the form of low-interest loans guaranteed by the European Commission. This is money that must be really invested by 2026, the amounts being released as Romania concretely reaches the milestones that it has set in the plan.
Government. The Romanian government has approved the granting of emergency aid to the families of the people who died in the explosion occurred at the Babeni plant in Vâlcea County (south). Four people died and three were wounded by the explosion. Also, two people had a traumatic shock. The executive in Bucharest has also discussed draft budget for next year, which should be approved by December 24.
OSCE. The 28th session of the Ministerial Council of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) continues today in Stockholm. Romania is represented by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bogdan Aurescu. In a speech at the meeting, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov reiterated Russia’s accusations of an alleged offensive role of the NATO anti-missile shield, located in Deveselu, in southern Romania. Bogdan Aurescu again contradicted Moscow’s position and explained that the shield, including the NATO anti-missile system of which it is a part, is purely defensive and all the elements are used only for self-defense. The Romanian official also said that they are not directed against the Russian Federation, but at targets outside the Euro-Atlantic area. The meeting comes amid tense situations caused by the migrant crisis at the Belarusian borders with Poland, Lithuania and Latvia, and the conflicts in eastern Ukraine and Nagorno-Karabakh. In Stockholm, Bogdan Aurescu has participated in the event dedicated to the activation of the Moscow Mechanism on Alleged Human Rights Violations in Belarus, organized by Denmark, Germany and the United Kingdom, and co-sponsored by Romania. The Romanian official has voiced concern over the deteriorating human rights situation, condemned the use of migrants as tools and called for the release of political prisoners.
Miners’ raid. The Romanian Court of Cassation and Justice has admitted the reopening of the criminal investigation against former left-wing president Ion Iliescu, in connection with the death of four people during the so called miners’ raid of June 13-15, 1990. This is just part of the case in which Ion Iliescu was indicted for murder in the first degree along with the former Interior Minister Mihai Chitac. In 1990, the miners from the Jiu Valley (center-west) stormed the capital Bucharest and attacked those who were protesting against those who took over power after the1989 anti-Communist Revolution.
Handball. Romania’s national squad plays tonight its first match at the 2021 World Women’s Handball Championship in Spain, against the team of Iran. Romania will also play against Kazakhstan on December 5, and Norway on December 7. The top three teams will qualify for the next round of the final tournament. The Romanian team, trained by Adrian Vasile, does not include the star Cristina Neagu, declared four times the best handball player in the world. She has decided to take a break from the national team this year. Romania, which has not missed any world final tournament, won the title in 1962, the silver medals in 1973 and 2005 and the bronze in 2015. Romania ranked 12th at the previous edition of the World Championship, held in 2019, in Japan.
