January 4, 2022 UPDATE

A roundup of domestic and international news

România Internațional, 04.01.2022, 19:53

Covid-19Ro. Nearly 4,000 new cases of COVID-19 were reported in Romania on Tuesday, double than the day before. Also, 52 related deaths were reported, of which 5 from the previous reporting period. COVID-19 Patient Assessment Centers and the preparation of hospitals to provide medical services for both patients infected with the new virus and those with other pathologies were the main topics addressed on Tuesday in video conferences with hospital managers and representatives of the public health sector, convened by the Minister of Health, Alexandru Rafila. He stressed the importance of outpatient assessment centers where patients infected with the new coronavirus will be investigated and treated so that hospital overcrowding does not occur in this fifth wave of the pandemic. As for vaccination, less than 7.9 million Romanians have been fully immunized, which means just over 40% of the eligible population. About two million of have also got the booster.

Electricity. The Romanian Prime Minister, Nicolae Ciuca, had a working meeting on Tuesday with members of his Cabinet and with representatives of Transelectrica, Transgaz and Romgaz, to analyze preparations for the winter season, from the perspective of energy sector developments. According to the press office of the Government of Bucharest, the analysis shows that the supply of electricity is ensured both for the essential services and for the domestic consumers and other categories of consumers. Regarding the gas supply, the quantities necessary for a normal operation are also covered.

NATO. NATO foreign ministers will meet via video conference on Friday to discuss the situation in Ukraine and security in Europe, the North Atlantic Alliance announced on Tuesday. This meeting was convened before the first Russia-NATO Council in the last two and a half years, which will take place on January 12. The West accuses Moscow of preparing an aggression against Ukraine, taking into account the tens of thousands of soldiers and significant amounts of military material and equipment deployed on Russias border with Ukraine. Russia has expressed its intention to discuss with NATO its European security initiatives, which include calls for the withdrawal of US nuclear weapons from Europe and the abandonment of the deployment of conventional NATO military forces near the borders of the Russian Federation.

EC. The European Commission on Tuesday adopted a proposal for a new macro-financial assistance program of up to 150 million euros for the Republic of Moldova (ex-Soviet, mostly Romanian-speaking). According to an EC statement, about 30,000,000 euros are grants and the rest are medium-term loans, on favorable financing terms. The money will be provided at the request of Chisinau and will be used for economic recovery. The aid will help the Republic of Moldova to cover some of its external financing needs in the next two years and will help reduce the states fiscal vulnerabilities. The Commissions proposal must be adopted by the European Parliament and the Council of the Member States before it can enter into force.

Holocaust. “I strongly condemn the attitude and insulting statements of some political leaders who considered it appropriate to describe the Holocaust genocide as a minor issue,” said the Israeli Ambassador to Bucharest David Saranga, referring to statements by representatives of the Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR) regarding the study of the Holocaust. On Monday, AUR issued a press release stating that systematic actions are carried out to undermine the quality of education in Romania by raising to the rank of subjects what it called “minor topics or which may be the subject of simple lessons”, giving as an example the Holocaust. The Elie Wiesel National Institute for the Study of the Holocaust in Romania also condemned the negationist manifestations of AUR, the fourth force in the Bucharest legislature. The institute has stated that denying the Holocaust only perpetuates anti-Semitic hatred and is a form of also denying democracy. AUR, which is described by most analysts as extremist, is known for its aggressive promotion of the anti-vaccine trend and for its sovereignist stance in relation to the European institutions.

Tourism. Romanian tourists spent 45 million euros on New Years Eve traveling to foreign destinations and 30 million euros for domestic ones – according to data published by the National Association of Travel Agencies. For Romania, the average stay was 2-3 nights mostly in mountain resorts and rural guesthouses. Abroad, the favorite destinations were Egypt, Dubai, Zanzibar, the Dominican Republic, the Maldives, Sri Lanka, Kenya and Latin America. About 10,000 Romanians went on city breaks in Europe, in Athens, Paris, Prague, Rome or Barcelona.

Tennis. On Tuesday, the Romanian tennis player Sorana Cirstea qualified for the round of 16 of the Melbourne Summer Set 2 tournament, with 240 thousand US dollars in prize money. She easily defeated the Russian Varvara Graceva, 6-0, 6-0. Also on Tuesday, in the first round at Melbourne Summer Set 1, the Romanian Jaqueline Cristian was eliminated by the Estonian Kaia Kanepi. The Romanian pair Simona Halep / Gabriela Ruse was also defeated by Bernarda Pera (USA) / Katerina Siniakova (Czech Republic), 6-2, 7-6 (2), in the first round of the Melbourne Summer Set 2 doubles event. In the singles, Ruse, already qualified, will play in the round of 16 with Halep, former world leader, if she manages to defeat the Australian Destanee Aiava. These competitions are held in the run up to the Australian Open, also in Melbourne, the first Grand Slam of the year, scheduled for January 17-30. (MI)