July 3, 2017
President Iohannis attends Three Seas Initiative Summit; Heat wave eases in Romania
Ştefan Stoica, 03.07.2017, 14:05
SUMMIT — Romanian President Klaus Iohannis attends the Three Seas Summit in Warsaw, bringing together countries around the Baltic Sea, Adriatic Sea, and the Black Sea. According to the presidency, the meeting is attended by representatives from Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Hungary. Attending the summit will also be US President Donald Trump. The initiative is aimed at providing political support for cooperation between the economies of countries around the three seas in areas such as energy, transportation, telecommunication and environmental protection.
PROTEST — Hundreds of people took to the streets in protest on Sunday in Bucharest and Sibiu, angered by decisions made by the ruling coalition governments. The protest was sparked by a general mistrust of the political class in general, and in particular by mistrust at promises made by the new Social Democratic government led by Mihai Tudose relating to state salaries. Organizers of the protests are also angry at the slow pace of the fight against corruption. Five months ago, hundreds of thousands of Romanians took to the streets in the country and abroad to protest the executive order of the former government to reduce the effects of criminal legislation, which was seen as exonerating officials in cases of corruption.
WEATHER — The weather in Romania has cooled considerably. Skies are overcast over most of the country. Maximum temperatures are between 18 and 28 degrees Celsius. A code orange alert has been issued for extreme instability and rains, valid for 19 counties in the south, center, southeast and southwest, valid until Tuesday morning. These conditions come after a heat wave hit Romania late last week, with temperatures up to 44 degrees Celsius. The noon reading in Bucharest was 19 degrees.
TENNIS — Romanian tennis star Simona Halep, ranking second in the world, plays today in the opening of the Wimbledon tournament, facing off against Marina Erakovic of New Zealand, ranked 129th. Last year, in the first grass court tournament, Halep played in the quarter finals, and in 2014 she played in the semifinals. Other games played in the first round are Monica Niculescu (51 WTA) against Magdalena Rybarikova (Slovacia), 85th. Sorana Cîrstea (62 WTA) takes on Kiki Bertens (24 WTA), while Irina Begu (69 WTA) plays against Naomi Broady (108 WTA). Ana Bogdan (114 WTA), in her first Grand Slam game, faces off against Chinese player Ying-Ying Duan (64 WTA). In the mens competition, Marius Copil, 85 ATP, playes against German Peter Gojowczyk, 140 ATP.
THEATER — The ninth edition of the International Street Theater Festival B-Fit in the Street started in Romania on Saturday. Hundreds of artists from France, Italy, Germany, Austria, Spain, Colombia, and Romania have scheduled over 40 street shows for the month of July. Events are held over weekends. Radio Romania Culture, Radio Romania International and Bucharest FM are media partners to the festival.
MOLDOVA — Romanian Euro MP Sorin Moisa has announced he would introduce a proposal in the European Parliament to grant the Republic of Moldova one hundred million Euro. He said the money is meant to aid with serious economic problems, and to counterbalance a Russian embargo. In exchange, Moldovan authorities are expected to improve the banking sector, better manage the budget, run energy reforms, and create better conditions in terms of social protection and the investment environment.
