December 23, 2025
A roundup of domestic and international news
Newsroom, 23.12.2025, 13:55
Resignation. Romanian Minister of Education and Research Daniel David announced on Monday evening that he had resigned from the position he had held for exactly one year. He said that the reason for his resignation was simple and that there was no need to construct hidden scenarios around it. “I never aimed for a political career, but I temporarily accepted the public office of minister to help the country and our education and research system in the crisis situations they were going through. Now, major reforms in education are being implemented and there are no longer any risks related to salaries and scholarships in education.” It is only fair that the budget for 2026 should be drawn up by the minister who will administer it, David added. According to the local press, he had become one of the most unpopular members of the current four-party cabinet, which is pro-European. The start of the school year in Romania was marked by protests from teachers dissatisfied with the changes contained in the package of measures to reduce the budget deficit, for which the government assumed responsibility in Parliament. On September 8, some schools in the country did not hold classes, and teachers refused to participate in celebrations, dissatisfied with the fact that they have more hours to teach, there are more students in classes, while they receive less money. The teachers were joined by students. They disagree with the austerity measures adopted this year, which have led to a reduction in scholarship funds and the elimination of certain discounts on local and rail transport.
Justice. A working group created specifically by the Bucharest government to amend the Justice Laws is gathering today to analyze the problems in the system and identify legislative ways to correct them. Subsequently, the proposals could be promoted and adopted by the executive, but only if they have the support of the governing coalition, explained Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan. The meeting at the government takes place after President Nicuşor Dan held extensive consultations on Monday with some of the magistrates who reported problems in the justice system.
Drones. During the night, new drone attacks were carried out by Russian invasion forces on Ukrainian port infrastructure near the border with Romania, but no unauthorized incursions into national airspace were reported, the Ministry of National Defense in Bucharest said this morning. At 1:10 a.m., Romanian radar systems detected two aerial targets in the Ukrainian airspace, moving in the direction of Reni – Chilia. Fifteen minutes later, residents in the north of Tulcea County and the south-east of Galaţi County were warned via RO-Alert. The radars then detected another group of drones moving towards the port of Reni, and shortly afterwards explosions were reported on Ukrainian territory. The state of alert ended at 2:15 a.m.
Investigation. DIICOT (The Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism) has opened a criminal case to investigate the cyberattack on the National Administration of Romanian Waters. On Sunday, the National Cyber Security Directorate was notified of an attack on several workstations and servers and 10 of the 11 water basin administrations in the country. Unknown perpetrators accessed the institution’s systems, resulting in the encryption of data on the attacked devices and servers. The hackers sent a ransom note, demanding to be contacted within seven days. Approximately 1,000 systems were compromised, but operational technologies were not affected, so Romanian Waters is currently operating normally, and all hydrotechnical constructions are safe.
Mini-holidays. Approximately 23,000 employees of the Romanian Ministry of Internal Affairs (MAI) – police officers, gendarmes, firefighters, SMURD rescuers, and border police – will be on duty every day during the Christmas mini-holiday, MAI spokesperson Monica Dajbog has stated today. Every day, an average of 2,000 traffic police officers will monitor roads that are usually congested during such periods in order to ease traffic flow and provide support to drivers. They will use approximately 400 radar devices to detect drivers who pose a danger to other road users. Dajbog mentioned that the police will continue their efforts to prevent and combat illegal trade in dangerous pyrotechnic articles during this period. At the approximately 10,000 public events organized during this period, which could be attended by nearly one million people, police and gendarmes will be mobilized to prevent acts that could affect the safety of citizens. To support citizens spending their mini-vacation in the mountains, approximately 170 mountain gendarmes will be on standby to intervene on a daily basis. Also during the Christmas mini-holiday, approximately 3,300 border police officers will be mobilized to protect the borders, prevent cross-border crime, and ensure smooth control at the external border. (MI)
