April 12, 2022 UPDATE

A roundup of domestic and international news

Newsroom, 12.04.2022, 20:00

MEASURES – Romania’s Finance Minister,
Adrian Câciu, said that the package of social and economic measures announced
on Monday evening by ruling coalition leaders mainly targets the economy, maintaining
jobs, and supporting vulnerable people. The package is worth €3.5 billion. The
measures include the granting of €50 vouchers every two months for the purchase
of basic foodstuffs for low-income families and €30 vouchers for the more than
150,000 students who receive social scholarships. Vouchers can be used to
purchase food, school supplies and clothing. Other measures include a minimum
gross salary of 3,000 lei in agriculture and the food industry as well as money
for investments.

MEETING – The balanced, long-term
consolidating of NATO’s defense and deterrence posture must be accelerated,
Romania’s president Klaus Iohannis said on Tuesday following his meeting with
the Prime Minister of Belgium, Alexander De Croo. The president argued in favor
of a unitary, coherent and robust defense on the eastern flank in order to
ensure a more efficient deterrence, particularly in the Black Sea. Klaus
Iohannis said a Belgian military unit is currently deployed to Romania as part
of NATO’s Response Force and thanked Prime Minister De Croo for his support.
The Belgian official said Belgium and Romania are close partners in the EU and
NATO, and that Vladimir Putin’s war has strengthened these ties. NATO is here,
it is strong, and it is an organization we can rely on. Your border is our
border, and together we will defend it, Belgium’s Prime Minister also said.

UKRAINE – Ukraine’s Finance Minister, Serhiy
Marchenko, has called on the international community to provide immediate
financial support to allow Ukraine to survive the huge budget deficit generated
by the Russian invasion, Financial Times writes. The Ukrainian official painted
a rather grim picture of Ukrainian economy, estimating total losses sustained
by civilian and military infrastructure at some $270 billion. The coming period
will be crucial for Ukraine, Western officials say, since Russian troops are
resupplying and redeploying. On the other hand, the White House expects even
greater atrocities in Ukraine committed by the Russian troops under the command
of General Aleksandr Dvornikov, recently appointed commander of Russia’s
operations in Ukraine. Known as the Syrian butcher, Dvornikov
commanded the Russian forces involved in the Syrian civil war, when they
brutally bombed numerous civilian targets. The US and the UK are looking into
reports according to which chemical weapons have been used by Russian forces in
attacks on Mariupol, a strategic port city under siege for more than a month.
The Ukrainian Azov Battalion, barricaded in Mariupol, claims that a Russian
drone dropped a ‘toxic substance’ on soldiers and civilians in the area, saying
that several people reported respiratory and neurological problems. Over 10,000
civilians have been killed in Mariupol since the invasion began, Mayor Vadim Boychenko
announced.

REFUGEES – Over 72,000 people, of whom
8,350 Ukrainian citizens entered Romania on Monday, according to the Border
Police. Since the start of the Russian invasion, some 685 thousand Ukrainian
citizens have entered the country. On the other hand, the Romanian Red Cross
has assisted over 250 thousand people from Ukraine with information and
services in order to reconnect with their families. As part of its campaign
Humanity has no borders, the Red Cross has so far raised over €6.7 million.
Humanitarian activities will continue to address both Ukrainian citizens who
have reached Romania, as well as those who remained in Ukraine, the Romanian
Red Cross director, Ioan Silviu Lefter, has said.

CONFERENCE – EU Commissioner for Transport,
Adina Vălean, on Tuesday
attended a videoconference jointly with officials from Romania, the Republic of
Moldova and Ukraine. Transport Minister Sorin Grindeanu pointed out Romania
plays a key role in ensuring the flow of goods to Ukraine and the Republic of
Moldova, and thus is essential for the economy of the two countries. Since the
start of the invasion, Romania’s maritime, rail, road and air infrastructure
has provided vital transport routes for the transit of goods and raw materials,
Sorin Grindeanu argued. The Romanian official said enhancing the operational
capacity of the port of Constanța on
the Romanian Black Sea provides substantial support to the trading of goods to
and from Ukraine via the Republic of Moldova.

LIST – The Environment Ministry will
compile a list of deteriorated natural areas that will be rehabilitated under
the Recovery and Resilience Plan. The list will be elaborated jointly with the
European Commission and a number of NGOs, Minister Tánczos Barna said after
Tuesday’s meeting with EU Commissioner for Environment, Virginijus Sinkevičius,
held in Bucharest. Talks also focused on measures required to stop illegal
logging in natural protected areas. (LS & VP)