August 26, 2020

A roundup of domestic and internaltional news

Newsroom, 26.08.2020, 13:55

DECISION – Bucharest authorities today might decide on the possible
re-opening of theatres, cinemas and restaurants, during a meeting of the
National Committee for Emergency Situations. Prime Minister Ludovic Orban on
Tuesday said keeping these venues closed in areas where the virus is spreading
rapidly is still a possibility. Attending today’s meeting are also
representatives of the hospitality sector in Romania. The Government will also
discuss health safety measures linked to the election campaign.

COVID-19
IN ROMANIA – 1.256 new infections with SARS CoV-2
were reported in the last 24 hours in Romania, taking the total number of infections
to some 81.600, the Group for Strategic Communication has informed. Over 3.400
people have died to the virus so far, while the number of patients in intensive
care stands at 500. According to the latest report of the National Center for
Surveillance and Control of Communicable Diseases, the number of infections
dropped slightly over August 17-23 compared to previous weeks, but remains high
compared to the March-June period.

ELECTION – The Bucharest Election Bureau has validated 18 candidacies for the
position of Mayor General in the upcoming local election of September 27.
According to the Bureau, 22 lists of candidates were submitted by political
parties or alliances, as well as independent candidacies, for the General
Council and the six district councils in the capital city. The order of
appearance on the voting ballots will be drawn on Friday, when the official
campaign is also due to kick off. The campaign will end on September 26 at 7
AM, 24 hours before the voting process is set to start. Originally slated for
June, the election was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

DEFENSE
– Romania’s Defense Minister Nicolae Ciuca on
Wednesday had a bilateral meeting with his German counterpart, Annegret
Kramp-Karrenbauer, on the sidelines of the EU Defense Ministers meeting, held
in Berlin. Talks focused on the development of defense cooperation with NATO,
the EU and the UN. Minister Ciuca expressed Romania’s readiness to support the
German presidency of the EU Council and highlighted the importance of
consolidating cooperation between NATO and the European Union. The two
officials also tackled a series of elements on NATO’s defense and deterrence
capabilities, as well as the security context in the Eastern Mediterranean and
in the Black Sea. The two ministers also agreed on intensifying bilateral
cooperation in the field of defense. The agenda of the meeting in Berlin
includes debates on the EU’s operational commitments, developing cooperation
with partners, the Strategic Compass – the EU’s upcoming instrument in the
field of security and defense, and debates on the concept of European Defense
and Security Culture post-COVID.

BACCALAUREATE – The autumn session
of the Romanian Baccalaureate exam continues today with the test in the
optional subject. On Thursday, graduates representing national minorities will
take their mother tongue test. Scheduled for next week is the validation of
linguistic and digital skills. Initial results will be made public on September
2. On the same day, candidates are free to file for re-examination. The final
results will be listed on September 5. Over 42.700 students are sitting the
autumn session of the Baccalaureate, accounting for nearly 60% of the total
number of graduates this year.

FOOTBALL – Romanian champions CFR Cluj is today playing Dinamo Zagreb of
Croatia in the one-leg second preliminary round of Champions League. In the
first round, CFR defeated FC Floriana of Malta 2-nil away from home. Tomorrow,
in the first preliminary round, FC Botosani will take on FC Ordabasy of
Kazakhstan away from home, FCSB will play FC Shirak of Armenia at home.
Finally, CS Universitatea Craiova will play FC Locomotive Tbilisi of Georgia.

TENNIS – The Romanian-Dutch pair Horia Tecau and Jean-Julien Royer is
toadying taking on Steve Johnson and Austin Krajicek of the United States in
the doubles quarterfinals at the ATP tournament in Cincinnati, hosted by New
York and totaling some $4.2 million in prize money. On Monday Tecau and Rojer
ousted Raven Klaasen of South Africa and Oliver Marach of Austria, 6-3, 6-4.
Their upcoming opponents, Johnson and Krajicek, knocked out second-seeds Lukasz
Kubot of Poland and Marcelo Melo of Brazil, 6-3, 7-6.

(Translated by V. Palcu)