August 15, 2014 UPDATE
A roundup of domestic and international news
România Internațional, 15.08.2014, 12:23
The Romanian President, Traian Basescu, has said that Romania is in technical recession after two consecutive quarters of economic downturn. He blames the recession on the supplementary taxes introduced, on the reduction of investments and the low rate of European funds absorption. He has also warned of Romania risking to go into economic recession once again, just like in 2010. The PM Victor Ponta has rejected the president’s statements regarding the country’s economy. In his opinion, statistical data only show a slowing down of the rate of economic growth, adding that in order to maintain the growth pace Romania should turn to the Asian and African markets, given the problems facing the euro zone. The statistical data made public on Thursday show that Romania’s GDP in the 2nd quarter of 2014 was 1% smaller than in the previous quarter, but as compared to the 2nd quarter of 2013, the economy reported a 1.4% growth. Analysts say the figures published by the national statistics institute should be correlated with those reported by other European states, considering that Romania is not running the risk of getting into recession.
Christians in Romania on Friday celebrated the Assumption of the Virgin Mary. Hundreds of thousands of believers went to pilgrimage places such as the Nicula, Rohia and Hodoş-Bodrog monasteries and the Cacica Catholic church. Also today Romanians mark the Navy Day, as the Virgin Mary is considered the protector of seamen. Events devoted to the Navy Day were held in the Black Sea ports. The Navy day was first marked 112 years ago.
Ukraine confirmed Friday that a column of Russian armed vehicles entered its territory through a rebel-held border checkpoint in the Donetsk region in the east. The Ukrainian army attacked and partially destroyed the military convoy made up of armored vehicles, logistic vehicles and fuel tankers. NATO urged Moscow to immediately withdraw its troops and military vehicles stationed near the Ukrainian border. The cities of Donetsk and Lugansk, bastions of the pro-Russian insurgents, are surrounded by the Ukrainian government troops. Massive bombing that made victims among the civilians was reported Thursday in both cities. On the other hand, the Ukrainian border guards started to inspect, on Russian territory, the convoy of Russian humanitarian aid bound for the war-torn eastern part of Ukraine. The trucks will then be taken to a camp to be unloaded and the aid will be handed over to the Red Cross officials.
Convening in an emergency meeting in Brussels, the EU foreign ministers on Friday reached a common stand on delivering weapons to the Kurdish fighters in Iraq, France Press reports. The Czech Republic announced it could start delivering weaponry and ammunition to the Iraqi Kurds battling the Islamic State’s fighters, in the north of Iraq, as of the end of August. An agreement on providing weapons to the Kurdish fighters represents the EU’s wish to strike a balance of forces in Iraq, in the context in which the US does not want to get involved in ground fighting against the jihadists, commentators say. Tens of thousands of Yazidis, the largely Iraqi ethno-religious minority fleeing the forces of the Islamic State, have taken refuge in the mountains near the town of Sinjar. At temperatures exceeding 50 degrees C, they are struggling to survive the jihadists’ attacks without water, food and shelter. To help them the US and Great Britain have dropped food and water supplies.
The Anonimul International Independent Film Festival continues in Bucharest until Sunday. This year’s edition is held in Bucharest and not in the village of Sfantu Gheorge, in the Danube Delta, due to refurbishment works at the traditional festival site. The structure of the festival has been maintained this year as well, including an international section with films that won prizes at other festivals in 2014, retrospectives and remembering- the- artist screenings, a Romanian film section as well as a competition section including feature films, fiction and animation shorts. A total of 60 films from 23 countries will be screened during the festival. The Anonimul Trophy as well as the other prizes will be granted based on the audience’s vote.
