October 23, 2023 UPDATE

A roundup of local and international news.

România Internațional, 23.10.2023, 19:06

FOODSTUFFS.
The cap on mark-ups for basic foodstuffs will be extended by another 90 days,
under a draft emergency order posted on the website of the Agriculture and
Rural Development Ministry. Nine other products will be added to the list,
including tomato juice, margarine, yeast and sour cream. On August 1 a
government order took effect, under which prices for 14 basic foodstuffs were
capped, following discussions with processors, distributors and retailers. Prime
minister Marcel Ciolacu said the cap on basic foodstuffs contributed to bringing
the inflation rate below 9% last month.

NATO. Romania will continue to contribute to improving
regional and Euro-Atlantic security, including, among others, as a stability
pillar at the Black Sea, president Klaus Iohannis said on Monday at the opening
ceremony of the fully operational NATO Multinational Corps South-East command
centre in Sibiu, central Romania. The president mentioned that in 2018, at the
NATO Summit in Brussels, he communicated Romania’s intention to add a land
corps to the Allied command and control structure in Romania, in order to
strengthen the planning and operation of NATO’s forces and structures in
Romania – the NATO Force Integration Unit, the Multinational Division
South-East Command and the Multinational Brigade South-East. Iohannis also said
that strengthening NATO’s deterrence and defence posture at the Black Sea
remains a top long-term objective. The Multinational Corps South-East in Sibiu
is part of the NATO force structure and ensures the command and control of
Allied land operations in any situation, including crises and war, to bolster
the NATO deterrence and defence posture in Romania and Bulgaria.

EU. EU foreign
ministers are closely coordinating to find solutions for the release of all
hostages held by the Hamas terrorist organisation, said the Romanian foreign
minister Luminiţa Odobescu on Monday, having attended the EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting held in Luxembourg. She emphasised that information
is extremely sensitive and must be handled with maximum care because human
lives are at stake. That is why we are very cautious, including with respect
to public information, but we are in contact with all the authorities of the
states in the region and beyond, Odobescu said.
She recalled that Romania firmly condemned the atrocious attack on Israel and
emphasised Israel’s legitimate right to defend itself. Together with my
counterparts, I firmly called for the immediate release of all hostages,
including one Israeli citizen who also has Romanian citizenship, the Romanian
foreign minister also said. All foreign ministers voiced deep concern for the
humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip, which affects innocent people, which
is why it is important to continue to provide humanitarian aid for civilians,
the Romanian official went on to say. The Romanian government has already
decided to send humanitarian aid to the region. Around 260 people with Romanian
citizenship and their family members have requested to be evacuated from the
Gaza Strip to date. In another development, the authorities in Tel Aviv said
another person with dual Israeli-Romanian citizenship has died in the context
of the security situation in the area.

THEATRE.
Bucharest is hosting the National Theatre Festival until October 30th. The
plays chosen for the festival were selected out of over 150 performances that
premiered in the 2022-2023 season in state and independent theatres in Romania. (CM)