April 13, 2025
A roundup of local and international news.
Newsroom, 13.04.2025, 13:55
A roundup of local and international news.
CHRISTIANITY – Orthodox and Catholic Christians are celebrating Palm Sunday today, marking the entry of Jesus Christ into Jerusalem, more than 2,000 years ago. The Gospels say that Christ entered Jerusalem as a humble man, riding a donkey, but was acclaimed by the crowd as a king. The people welcomed Him with palm branches because they had heard of the miracle He had performed not long before: the resurrection of Lazarus. The enthusiasm of the crowd was not shared by the religious leaders. They saw Jesus as a blasphemer and planned to punish Him. Their plan would succeed in a few days, when Jesus would be crucified. Jesus Christ’s entry into the city of Jerusalem opens the Passion Week, the most dramatic days of His life. On Saturday, on the eve of the holiday, Orthodox believers participated in processions organized in several localities across the country, while Catholic Christians will march in procession this afternoon. Those participating in the Mass receive willow branches blessed by priests.
MESSAGE – Romania’s interim president, Ilie Bolojan, sent a “Happy Name Day!” message to those celebrating it on Palm Sunday. In a Facebook post, he says that during Passion Week, which is a time of reflection and preparation for the Resurrection, we are called to be more attentive to the needs of those around us. Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu also conveyed wishes of health and joy to all those celebrating their name day today. In a message also posted on Facebook, he says that the marking by all Christians in Romania, regardless of denomination, of the entry of Jesus Christ into Jerusalem is an opportunity for spiritual communion, reflection and consolidation of values such as faith, freedom, respect for human dignity and tolerance, which define us as a people.
DISEASE – Romanian authorities are taking additional measures to reduce the risk of foot-and-mouth disease. The disease is spreading in Europe, with four outbreaks already confirmed in neighboring Hungary. The head of the control department within the National Sanitary-Veterinary and Food Safety Authority, Florin Căpăţână, explained that the transport of live animals, feed, straw, compost and manure from Hungary to Romania will be prohibited. Imports of meat and meat products and untreated milk from the affected areas will also be blocked, and access control points from Hungary will be monitored by specialized personnel. Florin Căpăţână also warned that all batches of animals susceptible to the disease – sheep, cattle, goats and pigs – originating from intra-community trade will be tested. Romania has one of the 15 laboratories authorized in the European Union to diagnose foot-and-mouth disease at the highest bio-security standards.
IMPORTS – Romania must prepare “safety net” measures to protect industries that may be affected by import tariffs imposed by the United States administration, said Romanian Finance Minister Tanczos Barna. He participated in recent days in Warsaw, Poland, in an informal meeting with counterparts from other European states on the effects of trade tariffs. He said that the new financing package for the Union’s defense industry was also discussed, as well as the financing of acquisitions in the field of endowment of the member states’ armies. The Finance Minister said that both are essential for Romania. “In addition to the endowment obligations, we cannot miss this opportunity for industrial development,” Barna said in an online post.
INVESTMENT – Foreign investments in Romania exceeded one billion euros in the first two months of the year, but decreased by 38% compared to the same period in 2024. According to the National Bank, the current account of the balance of payments, an important indicator in trade, recorded a deficit of 4.8 billion euros in January and February 2025, an increase of almost 85% compared to the same period last year. At the same time, in the first two months of 2025, the country’s total external debt increased by over 3 billion euros, to 208 billion euros.
LAW – The Superior Council of Magistracy (CSM) has received assurances that concerns regarding legislative amendments regarding the retirement of magistrates will be taken into account in the debates in the Parliament in Bucharest. The CSM leadership had discussions with Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu at the end of this week, to whom it presented the dissatisfaction and objections of magistrates regarding the adoption of the Executive’s proposal aimed at gradually increasing the retirement age and changing the method of calculating the service pension. The legislative initiative is in public debate until Tuesday, a deadline by which amendments can also be submitted by parliamentarians. The CSM previously criticized the lack of transparency in the development of the project that the PSD-PNL-UDMR ruling coalition wants to adopt in an emergency procedure in order to unlock the third tranche of financing under the National Recovery and Resilience Program.
WAR – The Ukrainian military said invading Russian forces launched 55 drones into northern, southern and central areas of the country overnight. Kyiv said it had shot down 43 of them, but it was not yet known whether any of those that were not intercepted had caused damage. Ukraine and Russia agreed last month to stop targeting each other’s energy infrastructure, with each side later accusing the other of violating the agreement. Ukraine said Saturday morning that Russian forces had launched dozens of drones in a nighttime attack on it, injuring four people and damaging commercial and residential buildings in Kyiv and elsewhere in the country. Drone debris also destroyed a private home and damaged several commercial buildings, sparking large fires in several areas of the Ukrainian capital. (EE)
