April 13, 2014 UPDATE
A roundup of domestic and international news
România Internațional, 13.04.2014, 19:18
The Romanian foreign minister, Titus Corlăţean, is taking part on Monday in a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg. Topping the agenda of talks will be the situation in Ukraine, in the context of the recent developments in the east of the country. Participants will also assess the response of the EU since the start of the crisis in the Crimean peninsula, annexed by Russia in March.
The EU Sunday urged Russia to respect Ukraine’s territorial integrity, to pull out its troops from the border region and to end any operation aimed to undermine the stability of this country. In a news release, the EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton expressed “grave concerns” with the actions of pro-Russian separatist groups in eastern Ukrainian towns. In turn, the NATO secretary general, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, very concerned with the new escalation of tensions and violence in east Ukraine, warned Russia against any military intervention. Ukraine’s pro-European government Sunday launched a counter-terrorist operation that made victims on both sides, as Kiev announced. The unrest in eastern Ukraine gives rise to concern regarding the country’s territorial integrity, after last month the Crimean peninsula at the Black Sea was annexed by Russia.
Orthodox and Catholic Christians celebrated Palm Sunday, which commemorates Christ’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem, before being crucified. This is the most important moment announcing the Passion Week, during which Christians prepare to celebrate the Resurrection of Christ. This year the Orthodox and Catholics celebrate Easter on the same day, on April the 20th.
Romanian athletes won 5 medals—3 gold and 2 silver—in the finals of the 25th Suzuki Aerobics World Cup in Tokyo. The day before, the Romanian athlete Andreea Aanei Saturday won the bronze medals in the snatch, jerk and total events of the +75 kilo category, at the European Weightlifting Championship in Tel Aviv, Israel. With a total of 249 kilos, Andreea Aanei came out third in the standings, after Tatiana Kashirina and Iulia Konovalova, from Russia.
