June 11, 2025 UPDATE
A roundup of local and international news.
Newsroom, 11.06.2025, 20:00
ATTACK – Two Romanian citizens were injured in the armed attack that took place on Tuesday in the Austrian city of Graz, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has announced, saying that the Romanian Embassy in Vienna is ready to provide consular assistance. Ten people were killed and 11 were injured by a 21-year-old former high school student who committed suicide. He left a farewell letter for his parents, but did not explain why he committed the attack, which is the bloodiest of its kind in the history of Austria. The government in Vienna has declared three days of national mourning in memory of the victims.
LAW – The Chamber of Deputies in Bucharest has adopted, as a decision-making body, the law punishing the initiation or support of fascist, legionary, racist or xenophobic organizations, with up to 10 years in prison. Also, those who make such materials available to the public risk between 1 and 5 years in prison and the prohibition of certain rights. Promoting the cult of persons guilty of genocide or denying the Holocaust will also be punished with up to 3 years in prison. The document was supported by PSD, PNL, USR and UDMR, while representatives of AUR, SOS Romania and the Young People’s Party consider that this restricts freedom of expression and reinstates censorship.
SUMMIT– Romanian President Nicușor Dan on Wednesday, in Odessa, at the Ukraine-Southeastern Europe Summit, called for firmness in denouncing Russia’s actions, which uses “strategies to delay and sabotage the peace process”. The head of state said that “the only language Russia understands is force” and that demands to conclude a peace agreement are unreasonable. He also stressed that European countries must remain united “in defending international law, respect for human life, dignity, freedom and democracy”, values that the Ukrainian people defend every day. History has shown us that when aggressors are not stopped in time, the cost of peace becomes unbearable, said, in turn, the President of the Republic of Moldova, Maia Sandu, in Odessa. She stressed that, if Ukraine loses the war, the Russian Federation will not stop in the Republic of Moldova. The two heads of state, together with their counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky, also participated in a trilateral meeting Romania – Moldova – Ukraine, during which the most important interconnection projects, especially of the energy infrastructure, the EU accession process and cooperation in ensuring security, were discussed. The meeting in Odessa was attended by 11 heads of state, governments or leaders of parliaments from Romania, Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova, Serbia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Slovenia, Albania, Bulgaria, Croatia and Greece.
ECONOMY – The pro-Western parties in Bucharest – PSD, PNL, USR and UDMR – continued, on Wednesday, discussions regarding the package of fiscal-budgetary measures. The technical teams of the four parties sought the best solutions to reduce the budget deficit. The discussions focused on reducing state spending and combating waste, merging some institutions, rescheduling certain investments for 2026 and, in the last stage, possible tax increases. Among other things, the VAT increase, progressive taxation, the imposition of a solidarity tax and higher excise taxes on tobacco and alcohol were analyzed. PSD supports the continuation of investments and does not agree with the adoption of measures that may lead to recession or affect Romanians with low incomes. USR does not consider the progressive tax acceptable and believes that, in order not to increase VAT, it is necessary to restructure unproductive state-owned companies. After the economic and financial measures are agreed, negotiations for the future government formula will begin.
PNRR – Romania received, on Tuesday, approximately 1.3 billion Euros from the European Commission, for the targets and milestones in the payment request no. 3 of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR). Bucharest has not made all the reforms it committed to, so part of the money from this tranche has been blocked until November, to remedy the problems. On the other hand, the Romanian government is considering amending the PNRR, in order to recover the losses. The Ministry of Investments and European Projects technically coordinates the implementation of the PNRR at the national level.
DEPORTATIONS – The United States of America has not notified the Romanian side of its intentions to relocate some Romanian citizens from the American territory to other institutions, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Bucharest said on Wednesday. Previously, the Romanian Embassy in the US announced that 47 Romanian citizens whose deportation formalities have been finalized are in custody in the immigration and customs control centers (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement) and that their transportation to the Guantanamo naval base is not being considered. Romania cooperates closely with all American agencies to ensure border security and migration control in the United States. In a statement sent to Agerpres, the embassy specifies that as a rule, Romanian citizens identified with illegal status on American territory are returned to Romania based on established procedures in the line of Romanian-American cooperation.
NADIA COMANECI – 2026 will be the Year of Nadia Comăneci, according to a draft law adopted by the Chamber of Deputies in Bucharest. The document was supported by all parliamentary groups, which emphasized that highlighting the performances achieved by Romanian athletes in national and international competitions will contribute to promoting Romania’s image in the world. On July 18, 2026, it will be 50 years since Nadia Comaneci entered the history of world sports with a perfect routine, being rewarded with a perfect 10 at the Summer Olympics in Montreal. She was the first athlete to receive a 10 in an Olympic gymnastics competition. (EE)
