October 22, 2025
A roundup of domestic and world news
Newsroom, 22.10.2025, 11:55
Elections – The ruling coalition parties PSD – PNL – USR – UDMR have decided that the elections for the Bucharest’s General City Hall will take place on December 7. The position of mayor of the capital remained vacant after the election of Nicuşor Dan as president of Romania. The parties in the coalition decided that each one will have its own candidate in this competition and agreed that future candidates would not attack each other. On December 7, the election for the designation of a new president of the Buzău County Council (southeast) will also take place. We remind you that, according to the law, mayors and heads of county councils are elected in a single round.
Drone – Residents of the northern Tulcea County, on the Romanian border with Ukraine, received a new RO-ALERT message last night due to a Russian drone attack on the Ukrainian port infrastructure on the Danube. The surveillance systems of the Romanian Defense Ministry detected, in advance, a group of air targets moving towards the Chilia arm and the Danube Delta area and, according to procedures, two F-16 aircraft took off to investigate the situation. At the same time, two German Eurofighter Typhoon fighters carried out reinforced air policing missions. According to the spokesperson for the Defense Ministry, approximately 10 explosions were reported on the Ukrainian shore, in the area of the Ismail and Chilia localities, but no intrusion of unmanned aerial vehicles into the Romanian airspace was detected.
Chişinău – The new Parliament of the Republic of Moldova, resulting after the September 28 election, is meeting today in its inaugural session. The country’s president, Maia Sandu, members of the Constitutional Court, the Central Electoral Commission, as well as representatives of the diplomatic corps accredited to Chişinău are also participating. Following the legislative elections, six parties entered Parliament. It is dominated by the pro-European Action and Solidarity Party, followed by the Patriotic Bloc and the Alternative Bloc, both pro-Russian. Our Party, of a controversial politician and businessman with ties to Moscow, and the Democracy at Home Party, which was allegedly supported in the electoral campaign by persons declared undesirable on the territory of the Republic of Moldova, also entered Parliament. After the election of the president and vice-presidents of Parliament and the establishment of the parliamentary factions, they will be invited by the Moldovan President to consultations for the designation of the candidate for the position of Prime Minister.
EU rules – Romania, alongside the other EU member states, has three years to transpose new road safety rules into national law and an additional year to prepare for enforcement. The European Parliament approved that the driving license be valid for 15 years, only 5 years for bus and truck drivers and that there should be a probationary period of at least two years for new drivers. Romania has the highest number of people killed in car accidents in the EU, while Sweden has the highest road safety. The European Parliament also decided that a future digital driving license, accessible on a mobile phone, will gradually replace the physical one throughout the Union.
Visit – The Romanian Economy Minister, Radu Miruţă, is on an official visit to South Korea to identify cooperation opportunities in the field of the defense industry, with focus on investments by South Korean companies in the production of military equipment and technological development projects in partnership with Romania. According to a press release from the relevant ministry, Radu Miruţă had talks with the South Korean Defense Minister, Ahn Gyu-back, with the director of the South Korean military procurement agency, Jong Gun Seok, and participated in a roundtable with the NATO Deputy Secretary General, Radmila Şekerinska. The discussions focused on ways to expand cooperation in the defense industry, including local production in Romania, through partnerships with South Korean companies. The conditions under which South Korean companies can participate in the European Union program – SAFE, created to support member states to make rapid and significant investments in the defense industry and technology, were also discussed. (LS)
