February 7, 2026 UPDATE

A roundup of local and international news.

Newsroom, 07.02.2026, 20:00

GAS – Romania has 10% more natural gas stored than the EU average, according to the latest data published by the European platform. Romania has 47% full storage, much more than countries such as Croatia, France or Germany. According to specialists, the existing reserves should be sufficient until the weather warms up. In the meantime, the government in Bucharest led by Ilie Bolojan has decided that the price of natural gas for the population and for centralized thermal power plants will no longer increase from April 1, as expected. The measure to postpone the liberalization of the price of natural gas, which does not also apply to economic agents, will be valid until March 31, 2027.

ECONOMY – The draft laws included in the third government package of fiscal measures were discussed, on Friday, in Bucharest, by representatives of the government with unions and employers’ associations. The proposals made by the social partners will be considered when finalizing these projects aimed at administrative reform and economic recovery. The recovery measures, supporting strategic sectors, but also encouraging exports were appreciated by the representatives of the employers’ associations who insisted, during the discussions at the government offices, on reducing public spending, reducing red tape, and on the development of SMEs and projects in the energy and digital infrastructure area. In addition to the economic recovery plan, administrative reform was also discussed. In this respect, union representatives criticized the measures to reduce personnel costs, saying that the public administration system is currently undersized and the average age of employees is high. The package of laws is to be adopted by the government next week, after taking responsibility for it in Parliament.

DEFENSE – Romania has signed the acquisition contract for Mistral missiles from France through the European SAFE program, announced the Minister of Defense, Radu Miruţă. He specified that the acquisition was made jointly with several countries, so that the price would be advantageous and the delivery time, shorter. The price is approximately 625 million euros, without VAT. The acquisition is carried out within the framework of the “European Joint Acquisition of Mistral System” initiative, coordinated by France, in which Romania is a party, along with other European states such as Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia and Hungary. With 16.68 billion euros, Romania is the second largest beneficiary of the SAFE acquisition program at the European Union level. 75% of these funds will be used for the acquisition of military equipment, public order and civil defense. The 25% difference represents funds allocated to the dual infrastructure, more precisely the two ends of the highway – Pașcani-Siret and Pașcani-Ungheni (both in the northeast).

PLATFORMS – The European Commission has announced the result of an investigation into TikTok’s activity and one conclusion would be that the way it designs online interaction creates addiction. The Commission says it supports its accusations with scientific evidence, which demonstrates that the way the platform is designed creates addiction, and the users’ brains enter a compulsive state of autopilot. These are functions such as endless scrolling, automatic video playback, frequent notifications and the highly personalized algorithm. The Commission also says that TikTok has taken ineffective measures in terms of protection, such as managing screen time or parental controls. Minors are the most vulnerable, but the risks are also for adults. TikTok now risks a fine of 6% of its annual turnover for not taking the measures requested by Brussels. The Commission had specifically called for the introduction of parental controls as TikTok reaches 170 million users in the EU, most of them children between 13 and 18 years old. At this point, TikTok may have another round of negotiations with the Commission to defend itself. The Chinese giant announced that it will take all necessary measures to challenge these conclusions.

MAGISTRATES – Romanian Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan writes in a notification sent to the Constitutional Court (CCR) that postponing the decision on magistrates’ pensions could lead to the loss of 230 million euros from the NRRP funds. He says that the milestone assumed by this program is considered unfulfilled by the European Commission, which will not send an official letter of information on the results of the evaluation before February 11. On that date, CCR is expected to debate, after several postponements, the notification of the High Court of Cassation and Justice regarding the draft law. In a public reaction, the High Court president, Lia Savonea, sees the Prime Minister’s notification as an interference incompatible with the principle of separation of powers within the state and the warning regarding the conditioning of European funds on the reform of magistrates’ pensions as inaccurate. In response, the Government spokeswoman, Ioana Dogioiu, says that the Prime Minister’s action is not an interference in the act of justice, as it was intended exclusively to inform the CCR on a factual situation, without requesting a specific verdict.

OLYMPICS – Italian President Sergio Mattarella declared the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics open on Friday evening during a ceremony at the San Siro Stadium. Romania is represented by 29 athletes in nine disciplines at the 14th edition, which runs until February 22 in northern Italy. The President of the Romanian Olympic and Sports Committee (COSR), Mihai Covaliu, believes that only the men’s bobsleigh team could claim a medal, given that Romania is not traditionally a force in winter sports. On the eve of the opening of the Games, among the sports personalities designated to carry the Olympic torch on the last part of the route was also the coach of the Internazionale Milano football team, the current leader of the Italian championship, the Romanian Cristian Chivu.

TENNIS – Romanian Sorana Cîrstea (35 years old, 36 WTA) defeated, on Saturday, in two sets, 6-0, 6-2, the British player with Romanian origins, Emma Răducanu (23 years old, 30 WTA), in the final of the Transylvania Open (WTA 250), held on the BTarena in Cluj-Napoca (northwest). Sorana thus won her 4th trophy, after victories in Tashkent, Istanbul and Cleveland, the final in Cluj being the ninth in her career and the first played in Romania. At present, she is the highest ranked player in Romania, in the last season of her career. Transylvania Open is seen as the most important women’s tennis tournament in Romania. The event brings together top players from around the world. (EE)