May 26, 2020 UPDATE
A roundup of domestic and international news.
Newsroom, 26.05.2020, 20:00
SENATE – Romania’s Senate passed on Tuesday the simple motion tabled by the opposition Social Democrats against the Liberal interior minister Marcel Vela, with 65 votes in favor, 25 against and 5 abstentions. The Social Democrats criticized the minister for the decisions enforced though the military ordinances issued during the state of emergency, saying that some of the restrictions were subsequently annulled, which proves incompetence and inconsistency in handling the pandemic. In his turn, Minister Vela said the motion tabled against him was an occasion to present, before the Senate, the things he accomplished during his six months in office, things that his predecessors were unable to do. “Decisions had to be taken in seconds, as Romanians’ health depended on them,” Minister Vela said in the Senate. A simple motion does not trigger a minister’s dismissal, irrespective of the number of votes in its favor.
TAROM — The Romanian National Air Company TAROM on Tuesday introduced flights to Rome and Milan and back. Rules imposed by the state of alert are being observed at the airports and on board the planes. Allowed to travel from Romania to Italy are Italian citizens, seasonal workers with a labor contract and employees in the transport sector, while from Italy to Romania can only travel Romanian citizens who want to come to the country. There will be a similar flight on Wednesday from Bucharest to Paris and back.
MEETING – Romania wants a positive approach of its ties with Hungary and a return to a real strategic partnership with this country, Romanian Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu said on Tuesday in Bucharest, after a meeting with his Hungarian counterpart Peter Szijjarto. He also said that trust and mutual respect need to be reintroduced in the Romanian-Hungarian relationship and called for restraint and discernment in the current context marked by the coronavirus pandemic. There have been several tense episodes between the two countries lately. Aurescu pointed out that Romania’s goals are to consolidate bilateral ties, to strengthen cooperation in sectors like infrastructure and energy, and also the protection of national minorities’ rights in the two countries. In his turn, the Hungarian official invited Aurescu to pay an official visit to Budapest, to continue the constructive dialogue initiated in Bucharest. He also said Hungary wants to strengthen bilateral ties. In terms of trade, Szijjarto said Romania is Hungary’s ninth important commercial partner, with the value of trade exceeding 9 billion euros. He pointed out that the issue of historical data was also discussed, which should not influence the relationship between the two countries.
CORONAVIRUS – Tuesday marked three months since the first COVID-19 case was confirmed in Romania. Earlier the Group for Strategic Communication announced the death toll has risen to 1,210. Over 18.400 cases have been confirmed across the country. 11.800 people have recovered. 90.7% of the victims had underlying health conditions, according to the National Institute for Public Health. Last week the largest numbers of infections were reported in Bucharest and in Suceava, Neamt, Botosani and Arad counties. One in six people infected with coronavirus is a medical professional. Broken down in terms of age, nearly 77% of victims are 60 and above. Over half are men. Meanwhile 3.067 Romanians living abroad have tested positive for coronavirus, mostly in Italy, Spain, Germany, Great Britain and France, of whom 106 have died.
DEFENSE – The countrys Supreme Defense Council will convene in a videoconference chaired by President Klaus Iohannis on Wednesday. High on the agenda is the National Defense Strategy for 2020-2024, available army forces that can be posted for external missions and operations in 2021 as well as the modernization program for the Romanian army by 2026 and beyond. The Council will also look into hot topics in the field of national security, the Presidency reports. (Translated by Elena Enache)
