June 1, 2026 UPDATE
A roundup of local and international news.
Newsroom, 01.06.2026, 20:00
SURVEY – More than half of the Romanians who participated in a survey believe that appointing an independent prime minister to lead a government made up of the former governing coalition parties PSD – PNL – USR – UDMR would be a bad solution, while almost 57% support holding early parliamentary elections, according to an opinion poll conducted between May 22 and 31 by the Avangarde Group for Socio Behavioral Studies. 53% of respondents say that the idea of nominating an independent person as prime minister is a bad one, while 36.5% consider it good. According to the poll, 52.7% believe the government should be made up of party members, while 37.5% support exclusively independents. The survey also shows a clear preference for strengthening Romania’s relations with influential EU member states. Two thirds believe Romania should move closer to countries such as Germany and France. Regarding relations with the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump, 42.8% of respondents support closer ties with Washington, while 45.6% are opposed. The poll was conducted by phone on a sample of 900 adults, nationally representative, with an error margin of ±3.4%.
CHILDREN – In Bucharest, the Presidential Administration and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs marked June 1st by inviting Romanian children from all corners of the world to send a few words in Romanian to other children in the diaspora, as well as to those in Romania, words that mean everything to them. “On Children’s Day, the Romanian language brings us closer. Wherever you are, record similar clips on your phone, children or adults, and share with everyone: which words in your mother tongue make you think of Romania?” the Foreign Ministry wrote on its Facebook page on Monday. Romanian children from Greece, Italy, Belgium, Spain, Armenia, France, Norway, Portugal, the United Kingdom, as well as from South Korea, Mexico, and Morocco sent messages in Romanian.
SALARY – Consultations on the draft of the new salary law, which will directly affect more than one million public sector employees, resume this week at the Ministry of Labor. Last week’s discussions revealed hundreds of issues and grievances from the unions. “It is an almost impossible mission to carry out, under the current budgetary conditions, a salary reform that is fair for everyone,” said the interim Minister of Labor, Dragoș Pîslaru, in an interview with the public TV station TVR. Minister Pîslaru has been tasked with negotiating in Brussels the freezing or staggering of salary increases for dignitaries until 2031. If the law is not adopted by August 31, Romania will lose nearly 800 million euros from the PNRR.
TENNIS – Romanian tennis player Sorana Cîrstea (world No. 18) will face Russian player Mirra Andreeva, world No. 8, on Tuesday in the quarterfinals of the French Open, the second Grand Slam tournament of the year. It will be a clash of generations, between Cîrstea, age 36, and Andreeva, age 19, France Presse notes. The Romanian, who is in her final season on the professional circuit, previously reached the quarterfinals of the French Open in 2009. Andreeva defeated Cîrstea in their only WTA Tour meeting, in April, on the clay of the WTA 500 tournament in Linz (Austria), which she went on to win a few days later.
NADIA – Nadia Comăneci was celebrated on Sunday in Onești (east), her hometown, marking 50 years since the Montreal Olympics, where she earned the first perfect 10 in the history of world gymnastics. Nadia met with local residents, reunited with her former teammates, and in the evening, at the stadium, she was the main figure of the Champions’ Gala. The legendary athlete used the opportunity to signal the lack of sports infrastructure and physical education in schools, urging parents to guide their children toward practicing sports. On Saturday, the former gymnast received from the Presidency the National Order “Star of Romania” in the rank of Grand Cross, the highest distinction granted by the Romanian state to athletes.
THEATRE – British director Sir Gregory Doran received the International Shakespeare Award at the Shakespeare International Theatre Festival in Craiova (south west), an event that officially concluded on Sunday after ten days in which it transformed the city into a big stage. The distinction celebrates his remarkable contribution to promoting and reinterpreting Shakespeare’s work. Also on Sunday, two photo album books dedicated to the festival and to the history of Craiova’s theatre were launched. (EE)
