July 26, 2024
A roundup of domestic and international news
Newsroom, 26.07.2024, 13:55
ATTACKS – Upon the request of the Romanian Foreign Minister, Luminița Odobescu, the Romanian Foreign Ministry has summoned the Chargé d’affaires ad interim of the Russian Federation to Bucharest, after debris and fragments of drones used by the Russian army to attack Ukrainian ports were discovered in Tulcea County (southeast). The Foreign Ministry strongly condemned the repeated Russian attacks on Ukrainian civilian infrastructure, recalling that targeting civilian objectives is a war crime. The representative of the Romanian Foreign Ministry also criticized the reckless military strikes close to Romania’s border, saying they endanger national security. Russia’s acts of aggression against Ukraine caused a severe deterioration of the security climate in the Black Sea region, the Romanian Foreign Ministry further noted.
MEETING – Romania hails Hungary’s unequivocal support for our country’s full Schengen accession, Romania’s Prime Minister, Marcel Ciolacu, said on the sidelines of his meeting in Bucharest with his Hungarian counterpart, Viktor Orbán. Talks were held in the context of Hungary holding the rotating presidency of the EU Council. Two-way trade currently stands at 13 bln EUR, although there is a lot of untapped potential, the two officials say. Marcel Ciolacu and Viktor Orbán also agreed to start feasibility studies for a high-speed rail connection linking Budapest to Bucharest, a project of strategic importance with an impact on the entire rail infrastructure of Central Europe. Viktor Orbán is expected to attend the Summer University in Băile Tușnad (center), where he will give a speech on Saturday. 500 events will be held on this occasion in 34 tents, focusing on a wide array of topics, from economy and politics, to culture, gastronomy and sports. A total of 300 organizers are involved in preparing the event.
SEASON – The 2024-2025 Romania-Poland Culture Season will officially open in Poland with the exhibition titled “Nicolae Grigorescu, a painter of Romanian ethos”, hosted by the National Museum in Gdansk over July 27-October 28. Two special representations of Hamlet, a production of the “Marin Sorescu” National Theatre in Craiova, will also be performed on this occasion on the sidelines of the Shakespeare Theatre Festival hosted by Gdansk. The exhibition is organized by the National Art Museum of Romania (MNAR) and includes 44 works from the collection of Nicolae Grigorescu as well as 49 items of folk art from the collections of the “Dimitrie Gusti” Village Museum. Exhibited for the first time in Poland, Nicolae Grigorescu’s works of art facilitate access to an important part of Romania’s cultural history. The opening of the exhibition will be accompanied by an accordion and clarinet concert performed by musicians of the Gdansk Opera. Attending the events will be several officials from Romania and Poland.
CONCERT – The Orchestra and Choir of the Bucharest National Opera on Friday will perform a sacred music concert at the Romanian Embassy in Paris, marking the inauguration of the Romanian House at the Olympic Games. This is the final concert in a tour that also included a concert at the Versailles Palace, and a sacred music concert at the “Saints Michael, Gabriel and Raphael” Orthodox Cathedral in Paris. According to Radio Romania’s Paris correspondent, the extraordinary concert entitled “Éthos Roumain” is a project financed by the Government of Romania, through the Department for Romanians Worldwide, in partnership with the Romanian Cultural Institute in Paris. The event aims to boost the visibility of Romanian culture and its promotion abroad, as well as to strengthen cultural ties between Romania and France.
PARIS OLYMPICS – The Summer Olympics kick off tonight in Paris. For the first time in history, the opening ceremony will be held on the Seine River, crossing the center of the French capital-city over a distance of six kilometers. According to Radio Romania’s Paris correspondent, the river parade will tell the story of a city, a nation, a culture over the course of nearly 3 hours. Some 200 boats and watercraft will carry the 206 delegations comprising 10,500 athletes, in addition to security forces. The show will also comprise music, dance and acrobatics performed by art professionals accompanied by some of the athletes themselves. A number of celebrities are rumored to take part in the event, including Céline Dion and Lady Gaga.
FOOTBALL – On Thursday, Romanian Cup holders Corvinul Hunedoara, currently playing in the second-tier division of the Romanian championship, drew 0-0 at home against Croatia’s vice-champions, HNK Rijeka in the first leg of the second preliminary round of Europa League. Also on Thursday, another two Romanian football clubs played matches in the first leg of the second preliminary round of Conference League. CFR Cluj drew 0-0 against Neman Grodno of Belarus on home turf, while Universitatea Craiova lost 0-2 against NK Maribor of Slovenia away from home. Return leg matches will be played next week. We recall Romania’s football champions, FCSB, on Tuesday drew 1-1 against Maccabi Tel-Aviv of Israel at home in the first leg of the second preliminary round of Champions League. The return leg is scheduled for July 31 in Budapest, Hungary, due to security developments in Israel, preventing home clubs from hosting international matches on home turf. (VP)
