June 23, 2023 UPDATE

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Newsroom, 23.06.2023, 20:00

SECURITY We are under an obligation to provide
security to the Republic of Moldova, because Romanians also live there, PM Marcel Ciolacu said on Friday.
The previous day the Romanian Foreign Ministry firmly condemned the statements
made by the Russian-installed
governor in occupied Kherson, Vladimir Saldo. The Romanian diplomacy says in a
Twitter post that such statements addressed to the Republic of Moldova, but
which also refer to a part of the territory of Romania, a member of NATO, are
unacceptable and that targeting civilian infrastructure is a war crime. The
reaction comes after Saldo threatened that the Russian army could attack a
bridge over Prut River, in response to an alleged Ukrainian attack on one of
the bridges connecting Kherson to the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea annexed by
Moscow 9 years ago. Chisinau has summoned the Russian ambassador to the
Republic of Moldova, Oleg Vasnetsov, for explanations. Created on some of
the eastern Romanian territories annexed by Stalin’s Soviet Union in 1940, the
Republic of Moldova proclaimed its independence from Moscow in 1991.

STOCK MARKET In Romania, the Association of Fund Administrators
welcomed the historic decision to list Hidroelectrica, through the sale of the
stake held by Proprietatea Fund. The Association chief, Horia Gustă, says the
listing is a huge development opportunity for the Bucharest Stock Exchange, which
thus consolidates its entry in the big league of European financial markets. Moreover,
the company’s presence will attract significant sums of money and major
international investment funds into Romania. In turn, Hidroelectrica’s CEO
Bogdan Badea says he expects nearly EUR 10 bln in capitalisation.
Hidroelectrica is the country’s largest electricity producer and it recently
became one of the most important energy suppliers for households.

IMMIGRANTS 43 foreign citizens were caught, Friday morning, trying
to cross Romania’s western border illegally. They were hidden in a truck driven
by a Romanian national, which was carrying parcels on the Romania-Hungary
route. The authorities found that the people hidden among the goods are from
Bangladesh, Pakistan, India and Sri Lanka. The foreigners are being
investigated for attempted fraudulent crossing of the state border, and the truck
driver for migrant trafficking.

FOOD The large chain stores in Romania have agreed, in the framework
of the dialogue started with the Government, that they could voluntarily reduce
the shelf prices of 10 basic food categories. The announcement was made by
Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu, but talks will continue. In order for the
reduction to be implemented, either a voluntary agreement of the sellers or an
emergency ordinance is being considered, but in both cases, the prime minister promised
that the government does not want to put pressure on Romanian producers.

THEATRE The Sibiu International Theatre Festival began on Friday in
central Romania. The event, which has a 30-year long tradition, brings to
Romania 5,000 artists from 75 countries, in hundreds of events to be held until
2 July.

FOOTBALL On Saturday in Bucharest Romania takes on Ukraine,
in Group B of the European Under-21 Football Championship, which it hosts
together with Georgia. In the same group, Spain will play against Croatia. In
the debut matches, the Under-21 national team was beaten 3-0 by Spain, while
Ukraine defeated Croatia 2-0. The final tournament takes place between 21 June and
8 July, and it brings together 16 teams, divided into four groups. Two are
hosted by Romania, in Bucharest and Cluj-Napoca (north-west), and two by
Georgia. Two quarter-finals and a semi-final will also take place in Romania.
The top three finishers qualify for next year’s Olympic Games in Paris. Romania
is at its 3rd consecutive participation in the competition, with a total
of 4 final tournament presences, starting with 1998, when it hosted the final
tournament for the first time. The country’s best performance was in 2019, when
it reached the semi-finals, which secured the national team’s qualification in
the Tokyo Olympics. (AMP)