August 8, 2023 UPDATE

A roundup of domestic and international news

Newsroom, 08.08.2023, 20:00

Trial. Several gendarmes, including the former leadership of the Romanian Gendarmerie, were sent to court in the “August 10 Case”, 5 years after the violence reported during the diaspora protest of August 10, 2018 in Bucharest. They are accused of abusive behavior or complicity in this crime. The military prosecutors say that the management of the Gendarmerie at that time ordered their subordinates to intervene with force to disperse the protesters. The actions of the defendants led, according to the investigators, not only to restricting the freedom of assembly and the right to physical and mental integrity of the demonstrators, but also to physical suffering or injuries that required medical care. The prosecutors also say that the gendarmes acted not only against the people who demonstrated violently, but also against the peaceful demonstrators who constituted the vast majority of the protesters. More than 300 participants in the protest that brought together thousands of Romanians are demanding moral and material damages in this case. The case will be tried at the Bucharest Military Court. In this context, the Declic Community has called on the court to judge this case urgently, considering that there are only three years until the statute of limitations comes into force, and the culprits could escape punishment. The members of the Declic Community have also announced that they will demonstrate in Bucharest on Thursday, August 10, to demand justice for the victims of the abuses and violence committed by gendarmes in 2018.

Pensions. The Romanian MPs are expected to interrupt their summer holidays and resume activity in order to amend the special pensions bill, after some provisions have been deemed as unconstitutional, the countrys Prime Minister, Marcel Ciolacu, has said. Ciolacu told a private TV channel the requests made by the constitutional judges would be discussed in Brussels between the Romanian authorities and the European Commission representatives. Ciolacu has pledged to fly to Brussels this month to renegotiate several provisions in the countrys National Recovery and Resilience Plan as well as the budget deficit target of 4.4%. The government in Bucharest would like to agree with the EC on a target of 5% of the GDP. The Prime Minister has explained that in the absence of a plan on curbing budget expenses and raising incomes, the budget deficit would exceed 6.2%, which might prompt the EU to cut its funds for Romania.

Pilots. 100 Romanian pilots, who in the past four months defended the NATO air space over Lithuania, have returned home. There were many situations in which Russian Sukhoi warplanes were flying dangerously close to the NATO airspace and the Romanian pilots were sent to intercept those planes. The Romanians worked together with their colleagues from Portugal and NATO is permanently deploying air-force personnel and aircraft to that country as Lithuania doesnt have its own fighter jets. Moreover, the area is notorious for the bold attempts of the Russian pilots to violate the NATO airspace. 16 years ago Romanian pilots were also involved in air policing missions in Lithuania on their upgraded MIG-21 LanceRs.

Support. Romania is ready to offer specialized assistance and support to the National Armed Forces of the Republic of Moldova, an ex-soviet, Romanian-speaking country, Romanias National Defence Minister, Angel Tilvar, said in Chisinau during the talks he held on Monday with his Moldovan counterpart, Anatolie Nosatîi. The Moldovan servicemen have recently received from Romania Kevlar helmets, bullet-proof vests and all-terrain vehicles. The donation is part of Romanias ongoing efforts to support the upgrading and streamlining of the defence structures in the neighboring state. According to a press release by the Defence Ministry in Bucharest, the two officials have also tackled aspects concerning the latest developments in the regional security caused by the aggression war Russia is presently waging on Ukraine, with emphasis on the situations caused by the latest bombing of Ukraines ports on the Danube close to the borders with Romania and the Republic of Moldova.

Investment. In the county of Hunedoara in western Romania, the new owner of the Mintia thermal power plant presented a one billion Euro investment plan. It is the largest investment made in the energy system in Romania. The thermal power plant was sold by the Romanian state to a Jordanian group, and the new power plant will be ready by the end of 2026 and will produce 1,700 megawatts. Over 1,200 people would be employed during the construction period. The Thermal Power Plant in Mintia entered insolvency proceedings in 2019 and was put into conservation in the summer of 2021, due to the lack of necessary investments to be able to comply with the environmental regulations of the European Union. Energy Minister Sebastian Burduja now says it will be the most efficient power plant in Europe, with an efficiency of 64%.

Corruption. The former social-democratic finance minister, Darius Vâlcov, will be extradited to Romania to serve the 6-year prison sentence he was sentenced to in a corruption case. The Romanian Minister of Justice, Alina Gorghiu, announced that, on Tuesday, the Supreme Court of Cassation of Italy rejected the appeal submitted by Vâlcov to the ruling of Court of Appeal in Naples, which had previously ordered the extradition of the politician. Darius Vâlcov fled from Romania to Italy to escape the execution of the sentence he received for influence peddling and money laundering. Italy is the European country where several Romanian citizens have found refuge in an attempt to escape the sentences imposed most of the time in corruption cases.

Festival. The 24th edition of the international festival Enescu and World Music started on Tuesday in the resort of Sinaia, in central Romania. The program includes concerts hosted by the local casino, the city museum, the George Enescu Memorial, the Dimitrie Ghica park and the Catholic church. According to the organizers, this festival is devoted to young performers and orchestras, in particular winners of national and international contests. The event is also devoted to the famous Romanian artists who are involved in the process of training the young generation of musicians, as part of this Romanian project. The festival is due to end on August 31. (MI)