JUNE 28, 2021 UPDATE

Click here for a roundup of domestic and international news

Newsroom, 28.06.2021, 20:10

COVID-19 Romania announced only 37 new COVID infections on Monday after
over 10,700 tests had been carried out. Only one person died and 86 patients
are being treated in intensive care. No new cases have been reported in the
past 24 hours in 17 out of Romania’s 41 counties. Authorities say this positive
development became possible due to the stepped out vaccine rollout, which is
the only solution to overcoming the crisis. Only 17 thousand people have been
vaccinated in the past 24 hours and since the rollout kicked off in late
December 4.7 million Romanians have been vaccinated, which accounts for roughly
25 % of the eligible population. Others have got immunity after having suffered
from the disease. Seven hospitals in Romania are to receive robots donated by
the European Commission used in the disinfection of hospital wards. These
machines use ultraviolet light and can disinfect over 18 wards on a single
charge. The government in Bucharest has approved new relaxation measures, due
to come into effect on July 1st. The EU Digital COVID Certificate is to become
available online on the same date.

DRILL Over 300 servicemen of the Romanian Navy
are participating until July 10th in the multinational drill ‘Sea
Breeze 21’. The drill has been staged jointly by the US Navy and Ukraine in the
international Black Sea waters and in the ground training facilities near Odessa.
Romanian corvette, ‘Rear Admiral Horia Macelariu’ is already in the port of
Odessa together with other foreign war vessels. Romania’s frigate Queen Marie,
which has a Navy Puma helicopter on board is also to join the exercise. Two
cadets of the Admiral Ion Murgescu Navy School will be on board of a US
destroyer during the exercise to undergo training under the guidance of the US
sailors.

ELECTION Local
by-elections took place on Sunday in six cities and 30 villages around Romania,
where the voter turnout was over 50%. Some of the mayor seats remained vacant
after the winners of last September’s elections passed away, gave up their
mayor seats to stand for Parliament or had problems with the law. The Social
Democratic Party in opposition won the largest number of mayor seats, namely
18, another 14 went to the ruling coalition formed by the National Liberal
Party, the Save Romania Union-PLUS Alliance and the Democratic Union of Ethnic
Hungarians in Romania, 3 went to independent candidates and one to the People’s
Movement Party. The interior ministry said 10 persons are currently investigated
for possible criminal acts, including voter corruption, electoral fraud, voter
suppression and breach of voting secrecy.

VOTE The two-chamber
Parliament in Bucharest will vote on Tuesday on the first no-confidence motion
filed by the Social Democratic opposition against the coalition government. The
initiators of the motion accuse the government led by Liberal Florin Cîţu of
inefficiency, of taking the country into the wrong direction, and of pushing
the country’s economy to the brink of disaster and blame it for the drop in
living standards. The failure of the vaccination campaign and of the National
Recovery and Resilience Plan are also on the list of complaints. The prime
minister described the accusations as unfounded, while the leader of the
National Liberal Party Ludovic Orban said the coalition decided that its MPs
would attend the debates but would not vote on the motion.

(bill)