October 11, 2023 UPDATE
A roundup of domestic and international news
Newsroom, 11.10.2023, 20:00
Visit. The President of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, stated on Wednesday, in Budapest, that, in the discussions with his Hungarian counterpart, Katalin Novak, he had expressed the full readiness of the Romanian authorities to boost bilateral dialogue and cooperation. The Romanian President stated that Bucharest aimed for the dialogue to have a positive dynamic, in the interest of all citizens of the two countries, regardless of their ethnic origin. In this context, the head of the Romanian state pointed out that people who belong to national minorities contribute to the building and consolidation of bridges between the state of citizenship and the related state. In turn, Hungarian President Katalin Novák signaled Hungarys intention to buy more gas from Romania, in order to reduce dependence on Russia. She also argued that exploitation projects such as Neptun Deep in the Romanian area of the Black Sea should be financially supported by the EU.
Solidarity. The President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, the head of the Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and the President of the European Council, Charles Michel, spoke, on Wednesday, before the legislature in Brussels expressing their solidarity with Israel and condemning the Hamas terrorist attack. A minute of silence was observed in memory of the victims. To show his solidarity with the Israeli people, the British Foreign Minister, James Cleverly, went to Israel. Also, Pope Francis has stated that Israel has the right and duty to respond to Hamas’ attacks. US President Joe Biden has said that the US stands up for Israel and will provide any assistance it needs. The Kremlin has announced that Russia is open to playing a role in resolving the conflict between Israel and the Islamist group Hamas. King Abdullah of Jordan believes that there will be no peace in the Middle East without the implementation of the two-state solution and has stressed that the occupied Palestinian territories are the scene of a serious escalation of acts of violence and aggression. The creation of two states – Israel and Palestine – is one of the proposals formulated by the Arab League countries as a peace solution. In turn, Egypt has announced that is working on providing humanitarian aid to Gaza Strip
Support. The Romanian state-owned airline TAROM has announced that, starting Thursday, it will temporarily suspend its regular flight to and from Tel Aviv, but will continue to operate special flights, at the request of the crisis cell set up by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In a statement released on Wednesday, the company states that it remains in close contact with the state authorities in managing the current situation. TAROM is one of the few companies that did not cancel its flights to Tel Aviv during this period, marked by the terrorist attacks of the Islamist organization Hamas against Israel. In addition, it decided to double the flights between Tel Aviv and Bucharest between October 7 and 10, bringing back more than 1700 Romanians, according to PM Marcel Ciolacu. Also on Wednesday, the two chambers of the Romanian Parliament, gathered in a joint session, adopted a Declaration stating their full solidarity with Israel and firmly condemning the attacks of the terrorist organization Hamas.
Drones. The Russian drones that fell last month on the territory of the Danube Delta were hit by the Ukrainian anti-aircraft defense and did not target the territory of Romania, said the Romanian Minister of Defense, Angel Tîlvăr. He was called to give explanations on this topic in Parliament, at “Government Hour”, by the group of USR senators (in opposition). The “Government Hour” debate is a procedure that is part of the parliamentary control mechanism exercised by the Legislature on the Government. Minister Angel Tîlvăr stated that the drones did not contain active combat elements, i.e. explosives, and assured that Romania, as a NATO member country, it is protected, and its citizens are not in danger.
Spain. Spain is a strategic and reliable partner of Romania, Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu said on Wednesday, at the reception organized on the occasion of the National Day of the Kingdom of Spain. According to him, the bilateral economic exchanges between the two states exceeded, last year, 6 billion euros, and this growth trend has been maintained in 2023. Also, the head of the Romanian Executive thanked the Spanish authorities for the constant and firm support to Romania in its efforts to join the Schengen Area.
Pilgrimage. Since Sunday, more than 72,000 people have already passed by the canopy in the courtyard of the Metropolitan Cathedral in Iași, where the reliquary with the relics of Saint Pious Parascheva, considered the protector of the eastern region of Romania and of the needy, was taken out for worship . The Romanian Orthodox Church celebrates Saint Parascheva on October 14, which is why, every year, around this day, Iasi becomes the largest pilgrimage center in the country, but also in Central and Eastern Europe. Many believers from the country and abroad come to worship the relics of Saint Pious Parascheva, but also the other relics specially brought on pilgrimage on this occasion. This year, it was decided to bring the relics of Saint Andrew the Cretan. (MI)
