May 23, 2023 UPDATE
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Newsroom, 23.05.2023, 19:46
Strike – The all-out strike in Romanian pre-university education continues. Tuesday’s discussions between the government representatives and those of the employees did not lead to a concrete result. Union leaders say the governors have promised to present concrete calculations related to wage demands. Previously, the Prime Minister Nicolae Ciucă asked the teachers to return to the classrooms. The representatives of the parents and students associations asked the authorities to come up with solutions that would end the strike in education. They said that if the strike lasted more than a week, the situation would become dangerous for the future of the students, who want the strike to end as soon as possible. In another development, on Monday, the Bucharest Senate, as a decision-making body, adopted the new education laws. The political parties in the government coalition claimed that the measures included in the pre-university and university education law reform the system. On the other hand, the opposition believes that the law will not solve the existing problems.
Protest – Trade unionists in the medical sector, who have announced their support for the all-out strike in the education system since yesterday, have launched their own protest actions. They picketed the headquarters of the Health Ministry on Tuesday. Their claims are related to the application of the provisions of the salary law to all employees, with reference to the categories of personnel who have the lowest incomes, such as nurses or caretakers, the granting of holiday vouchers and the modification of the calculation system for increments, night shifts and food allowance.
Border – A new border crossing point between Romania and the Republic of Moldova was inaugurated on Tuesday. At Leova – Bumbata it will be possible to cross the border, over the Prut River, on a pontoon bridge. For the moment, the border crossing point will be used only for tests, for 10 hours a day, by minibuses and cars, and then it will be available for heavy goods transport. The decision to open this border point, through which the Prut can be crossed, was made after Russia invaded Ukraine, and road freight transport from Ukraine increased considerably through the Republic of Moldova and Romania.
Defense – The Romanian Defense Minister, Angel Tîlvăr, participated on Tuesday in the meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council (CAE) in Brussels in the format of the Defense Ministers from the member states and in the meeting of the Steering Board of the European Defense Agency (EDA). “The discussions were substantial and represented a new opportunity to confirm the support of the European states for Ukraine. I emphasized the importance of consistent EU support for the defense industry in Eastern European states to ensure the strengthening of the European industrial base in an inclusive manner. I reiterated Romanias firm support for Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova, for their European aspirations”, the Romanian official said. He also highlighted the importance of coordinating European actions with NATO, to ensure the coherence of response measures to challenges in common operational fields.
Exhibition – A traveling photo exhibition celebrating the 25th anniversary of the strategic partnership between the United States and Romania was opened on Tuesday in Cluj-Napoca (north-west). The US Ambassador to Bucharest, Kathleen Kavalec, stated that, during this period, Romania made remarkable progress in consolidating democracy, became a pillar of regional peace and security and developed economically for the prosperity of all. Todays Romania is an exemplary NATO ally, the American diplomat emphasized. The exhibition, which explores the diplomatic, security, economic and cultural relations between the two peoples, will be open until June 20. It was also presented in Bucharest and other big cities.
Trilateral – The Romanian Foreign Minister, Bogdan Aurescu, inaugurated, on Tuesday, together with his counterparts Jose Manuel Albares Bueno and Zbigniew Rau, the trilateral format Romania – Spain – Poland, during a meeting in Valencia. Aurescu welcomed Romanias excellent bilateral relations with Spain and Poland and the close cooperation between the three countries at the EU and NATO level. He also addressed the subject of Romanias accession to the Schengen area, the foreign ministers of Spain and Poland reconfirming the active and constant support given in achieving this goal. Moreover, the Spanish foreign minister emphasized that Romanias accession to Schengen would be among the priorities of the Spanish Presidency of the EU Council. It was decided that the meeting, named Valencia Trio, would take place annually, at the ministerial level.(LS)
