December 7, 2023 UPDATE

A roundup of local and international news.

Newsroom, 07.12.2023, 19:54

GDP — Romania is one of the EU countries with the highest growth rates of the Gross Domestic Product in the third quarter of the year, as compared with the same period of 2022, according to data made public by the European Statistics Office. Romania ranks third in the EU in this respect, with a growth rate of 2.9%, right after Malta and Croatia. In the EU and the eurozone the GDP rate has remained stable, while in the US it went up by 3% year-on-year.

CULTURE – Timisoara, the European Capital of Culture was a success that exceeded everyones expectations, Mayor Dominic Fritz said on Thursday, during a conference that marked the end of the program. Over 2,000 cultural events took place during this year’s edition, attended by hundreds of thousands of artists and visitors, and five new cultural spaces were opened in cinemas, art galleries and multi-purpose halls. Almost 900 organizations and over 3,000 volunteers were involved, and Timişoara enjoyed visibility both at home and abroad, including at diplomatic level.

GAZA – Another 30 Romanian citizens have been evacuated from the Gaza Strip and brought back home on board a military plane, the Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has announced. 4 citizens from the neighboring Republic of Moldova were also brought to Romania. Until now, 279 people with Romanian citizenship and members of their families with another citizenship have been evacuated from Gaza. Romanian diplomacy continues the dialogue with the Israeli and Egyptian authorities for the evacuation of Romanian citizens who wish to do so, depending on the developments on the ground and the agreement of the parties involved.

VISIT – On the last of the four days of his visit to the United States, Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu had meetings, on Wednesday, with the president of the World Jewish Congress, Ronald Lauder, and with representatives of the American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee. On this occasion, the Romanian Prime Minister stated that preventing and combating anti-Semitism was among the priorities of the Romanian Government. Also on Wednesday, Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu had meetings with Antonio Guterres, the UN Secretary General and with Dennis Frances, the president of the UN General Assembly. The need to strengthen the international order based on norms, with the United Nations in a central role, the consequences of Russias military aggression in Ukraine, global food security and the conflict in the Gaza Strip were the main topics of the discussions.

INVESTIGATION – The former Romanian Prime Minister Florin Cîţu (PNL) is being investigated by the National Anticorruption Directorate for complicity in a case of abuse of office concerning the purchase of vaccines during the COVID-19 pandemic. The prosecutors claim that far too many doses were ordered, the damage caused to the Romanian state being estimated at over 1 billion euros. Currently a senator, whose parliamentary immunity has been lifted, Cîţu claims that he fulfilled his duties in compliance with the legislation in force. The vaccine case also concerns the former Save Romania Union Ministers of Health, Vlad Voiculescu and Oana Mihăilă.

EUROBAROMETER – About 70% of Romanians believe that the country has benefited from the fact that it is a member of the European Union, and 60% believe that their lives are directly influenced by the actions of the EU institutions. This is the result of the latest Eurobarometer conducted at the request of the European Parliament. The study also shows that Romanians are better informed than other Europeans when it comes to the date of the European Parliament elections. (EE)