March 3, 2025
A roundup of local and international news.
Newsroom, 03.03.2025, 13:55
Ukraine. Romania’s interim president Ilie Bolojan says the security guarantees Europe is to offer Ukraine will in fact benefit the entire eastern flank, from the Baltic Sea to the Black Sea, and that they cannot be ensured without the support of the United States. He said on Sunday at the end of an informal summit hosted in London that the meeting was aimed at achieving coordination in the run-up to the European Council on 6th March and a meeting the next day with leaders of non-EU countries wishing to look for a solution to the war in Ukraine that will ensure lasting peace. According to the Romanian head of state, the leaders gathered in London agreed to maintain financial and military support for Ukraine.
Moldova. During a trip to the Republic of Moldova on Saturday, interim president Ilie Bolojan gave assurances that Romania would call on Europe to provide more financial support, expertise and projects for Moldova. Moreover, the Romanian government will continue to cap the prices of part of the electricity it sells to Moldova. Moldovan president Maia Sandu said Romania is her country’s best friend and most important partner, reliable in any circumstances. With respect to the war on their borders, both Romania and Moldova support Ukraine in its efforts to achieve lasting and fair peace.
Elections. Voting stations abroad need an estimated 3,600,000 ballots for the upcoming presidential elections in May, for each of the voting rounds, the foreign ministry told the Central Electoral Bureau. The first round of the presidential elections is due on 4th May, and the second on the 18th of May.
Cuts. The Romanian government this week plans to issue a decision to cut the number of under-secretaries, government sources have said. The ruling coalition, made up of the Social Democratic Party, the National Liberal Party and the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania, have held talks on this subject and the cabinet led by the Social Democrat Marcel Ciolacu is to adopt a regulation providing for a maximum number of 54 under-secretaries. The same sources said that ministries that now have 6 or 7 posts of under-secretaries will remain with 4 at the most, and each will be validated by the coalition. Also, under-secretaries who are part of management boards of state companies will have to choose between the two positions. The latter is a request from the European Commission, which said that management boards of state companies should include professionals, not politicians. Also this week, prime minister Ciolacu will hold talks with his ministers on the fulfilment of the milestones laid down in the National Recovery and Resilience Plan. The absorption of European funds is a particularly challenging aspect, and the prime minister wants to stay abreast with the stages of ongoing projects.
Romania-Pakistan. The Romanian embassy in Pakistan opened an honorary consulate in Peshawar to serve this country’s north-western part. This significant stage marks a new chapter in the consolidation of diplomatic, economic and cultural ties between the two countries, the Romanian diplomatic representation in Islamabad said in a Facebook post. Pakistan is one of the countries providing a constant flow of workers to Romania.
Romania-Poland. Romania and Poland are faced with contemporary threats resulting largely from beyond the eastern borders, where Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine undermines the rules-based order and the fundamental principles laid down in the UN Charter and international law, said the Romanian foreign ministry on Romanian-Polish Solidarity Day on 3rd March. Established jointly by the two states in 2023, this day is both a symbol of the lasting links between the Romanian and Polish nations, and a significant indicator of the constant interest and the wish of the two countries to consolidate and develop their solid and comprehensive Strategic Partnership, the Romanian foreign ministry said. (CM)
