December 23, 2025 UPDATE
A roundup of local and world news
Newsroom, 23.12.2025, 20:00
RESIGNATION The Romanian minister of education and research Daniel David announced on Monday evening that he resigned from the position he had held for exactly one year. He said he stepped down for a simple reason, and there was no need to look for ulterior motives to his decision. “I never aimed for a career in politics, but I temporarily accepted the public dignity of minister to help the country and our education-research system in the crisis situations they have gone through. Major reforms in education are implemented now, and there are no more risks related to salaries and grants in education,” he said. It is only fair for the 2026 budget to be made by the minister who will manage it, David added. According to Romanian media, he had become one of the most unpopular members of the current pro-European 4-party Cabinet. The start of the school year in Romania was marked by protests by teachers, unhappy with the changes included in the set of measures aimed to reduce the budget deficit, for which the government took responsibility in Parliament. On September 8, classes were not held in some schools in the country, and teachers refused to participate in opening ceremonies, dissatisfied with the fact that they had more classes to teach, with more students in each class, while they received less money. The teachers’ protests were joined by students, who opposed the austerity measures implemented this year, which led to a cut in the scholarship fund and the scrapping of discounts on local and rail transport.
JUDICIARY The first meeting of the Committee for the review of legislation regulating the judiciary was held at the Government’s head offices in Bucharest on Tuesday. Attending the event, PM Ilie Bolojan stressed the importance of institutional dialogue and cooperation with representatives of the judiciary and civil society. He said the purpose of these meetings was to identify legislative aspects that can be improved, while also pointing out that justice must be regarded as a public service benefitting citizens. According to a news release, the topics addressed at the meeting included the procedures for appointing the heads of courts and prosecutors’ offices, the procedures for delegating and seconding magistrates, ways to change the membership of judge panels, as well as the powers in investigating corruption within the judiciary. The meeting at the Government takes place after on Monday president Nicuşor Dan had extensive consultations with some of the magistrates who reported problems in the judiciary.
GOVERNMENT The two new ministers nominated by Save Romania Union for the defence and economy ministries, Radu Miruţă and Irineu Darău, respectively, were sworn in on Tuesday. Last Friday, the two were validated for these positions by the party’s political committee. Ionuţ Moşteanu previously resigned as defence minister over controversial media reports regarding his education.
DRONES Fresh Russian drone attacks were reported last night on Ukrainian port infrastructure near the Romanian border, but no unauthorised intrusions into national airspace were reported, the defence ministry announced on Tuesday morning. Romanian radar systems detected at 1:10 am 2 moving targets in Ukrainian space, moving in the Reni – Chilia direction. A quarter of an hour later, residents in northern Tulcea County and southeastern Galaţi County were warned via the RO-Alert system. The radars then detected another group of drones moving in the direction of Reni seaport, and explosions were reported on Ukrainian territory shortly after. The alert ended at 2:15 am.
CYBER ATTACK The Directorate Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism Offences has initiated a criminal investigation concerning the cyber-attack targetting Romania’s National Waters Agency. On Sunday the National Cyber Security Directorate was notified of an attack on several workstations and servers and on 10 out of the country’s 11 water basin agencies. Unknown perpetrators accessed the institution’s computer systems and encrypted data on the attacked devices and servers. The hackers sent a ransom note, requesting to be contacted within seven days. Approximately 1,000 systems were compromised, but operational technology was not affected, so the institution’s activity is currently taking place under normal parameters, and the hydrotechnical infrastructure is safe.
AWARD The “Ambassador Mihnea Constantinescu” national award was presented this year to Pat Johnson, a personality with over 30 years of experience in promoting human rights and equal opportunity and in fighting anti-Semitism and discrimination. The announcement was made on Tuesday by the Romanian foreign ministry. The award is granted every year to organisations or personalities that have carried out projects recognised by the scientific community or by relevant national and international organisations, in the fields of education and research, fighting xenophobia, radicalisation and hate speech, the foreign ministry said. (AMP)
