February 9, 2026 UPDATE

A roundup of local and international news.

Newsroom, 09.02.2026, 20:05

Economy. The Romanian Government is set to adopt this week a third package of fiscal-budgetary measures, and then take responsibility for it before Parliament. It contains two major projects – the administration reform and the first economic recovery measures. The government intends to adopt simultaneously, in the first session, both bills, which are closely linked to each other because the implementation of one will bring the money needed for the second, and the impact of these laws will also be included in the calculations for this year’s state budget. The reform of local and central public administration aims at a 10% reduction in personnel expenses, without affecting basic salaries, and increasing the efficiency and quality of public services. The economic recovery project aims to stimulate investments, being designed on two essential components – one fiscal and another containing support schemes for companies. Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan announced that discussions on this year’s budget will be finalised, so that it can be sent to Parliament around February 20. Bringing the budget deficit down to 6.2%, investments of 7% of GDP, completion of National Recovery and Resilience projects by September, and an inflation target of 4% at the end of the year are the main goals of the 2026 budget.

Romania-UK. During her visit to London on Monday and Tuesday, Romanian Foreign Minister Oana Ţoiu met with the Minister for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs Yvette Cooper. The discussions highlighted the excellent level of bilateral dialogue, based on dynamic political, economic, sectoral and security relations, as well as a solid Strategic Partnership. The most recent milestones of the bilateral relationship were discussed, such as the visit of the President of Romania, Nicuşor Dan, to London in December 2025, which included a private audience with His Majesty King Charles III, as well as the holding, in October 2025, in Bucharest, of the first Romanian-British Strategic Dialogue since the signing of the renewed Joint Declaration on the Strategic Partnership between Romania and the United Kingdom. The two ministers reconfirmed their shared vision of peace and security, as well as their firm commitment to Euro-Atlantic security, materialized also through the participation of the United Kingdom, within NATO, in missions carried out on Romanian territory. At the same time, the interest was expressed to continue capitalizing on the remarkable contribution to the strengthening of the bilateral relationship of the over 1.3 million Romanian citizens living in the United Kingdom.

Exercise. The largest multinational exercise in Europe is under way at the Cincu training ground in Braşov county until Friday, with the participation of the United States field artillery. Troops from Romania, Poland and France are also taking part. The exercise aims to test NATO regional plans. The Dynamic Front 26 multinational exercise is carried out simultaneously in several allied states and is considered a major test of how NATO forces can act in a coordinated manner on the eastern flank, in a complex security scenario characterised by the need for a rapid and integrated response. Romanian and Polish HIMARS launchers, as well as self-propelled howitzers deployed in Romania within the multinational battle group are participating in the exercise.

Tennis. Belarus’s Arina Sabalenka retains her top position in the world ranking of professional tennis players (WTA), published on Monday. She has over three thousand points ahead of the second placed ranked, Iga Swiatek of Poland, with Kazakhstan’s  Elena Rybakina in third place. Sorana Cirstea became the best Romanian player after winning the Transylvania Open Trophy in Cluj, climbing six positions, to world no. 31. Jaqueline Cristian dropped only one place and is in 36^th place, while Gabriela Ruse retains her 72^nd ranking. British player of Romanian origin Emma Raducanu, who was a finalist in Cluj, climbed five positions and is now 25^th in the world. Cirstea is also the best-ranked Romanian tennis player in the doubles ranking, in the 55^th place, one place higher than last week. Ruse returned to the top 100 in the doubles ranking, after climbing 16 places.