May 30, 2022 UPDATE

A roundup of local and international news.

Newsroom, 30.05.2022, 19:53

Summit.
President Klaus Iohannis is attending a two-day summit of EU leaders in
Brussels focusing on the security situation and the consequences of the Russian
aggression against Ukraine. Gaps have appeared in supply chains and one of the
most serious is caused by the fact that Ukraine, whose Black Sea ports are
blocked, can no longer export cereals, which gives rise to a domino effect
whose effects can be felt all the way to Africa, South America and Asia, said
the Romanian president ahead of the summit. He said Romania can provide
significant support, with some Ukrainian wheat exports already being conducted
via Romania. The EU leaders will be discussing ways to further provide
political, economic and financial support to Ukraine, including the EU’s
involvement in post-war reconstruction efforts. The need to help Moldova
consolidate its resilience, ways to ensure continuous food exports from Ukraine in
order to maintain food safety at global level are also on the agenda of talks,
alongside the diversification of energy sources and routes and the security of
energy supply.

Oil ban. The EU failed to reach an agreement on Sunday
regarding a ban on Russian oil, but talks will continue. The ban would form
part of a sixth package of sanctions against Russia, which also includes eliminating
Russia’s biggest bank Sberbank from the SWIFT international payment system, a
ban on Russian TV stations across the EU and adding new names on the list of
Russian figures whose assets have been frozen or who are barred from entering
the EU. Hungary has opposed the package, saying a Russian oil ban would deal a
heavy blow to its economy, with the Czech Republic and Slovakia also voicing concerns.

IMF. A
delegation of the International Monetary Fund led by the head of mission for
Romania Jan Kees Martijn is travelling to Romania to conduct the IMF’s annual
assessment of the Romanian economy, the IMF representative for Central and
Eastern Europe Nadeem Ilahi has said. IMF officials will discuss with Romanian
authorities economic policies and developments, and are expected to meet with
representatives of the Finance Ministry, the National Bank, other governments
agencies as well as the private sector and NGOs. At present, Romania has no
ongoing financial agreement with the IMF, although the Fund assesses the performance
of Romanian economy every year.

Reforestation.
Prince Charles, the heir to the British throne, described Romania’s response in
the context of the war in Ukraine as remarkable. He said that at a time when we
are witnessing so much death, destruction and suffering, people should work
together to fight climate change and the biodiversity crisis, which are
compounded by the economic impact of the war in Ukraine. Prince Charles was in
the central Romanian city of Sibiu on Monday to attend the launch of Europe’s
biggest cross-border reforestation project. in
collaboration with The Circular Bioeconomy Alliance established by the Prince
of Wales.

Tennis. World no. 63 Irina Begu of Romania lost to 11th seed
Jessica Pegula of the US in the quarterfinals of the French Open. Begu won the
first set 6-4, but lost the next two, 2-6, 3-6. She was the only Romanian
player still in competition at Roland Garros, with six other Romanian players
eliminated in the early rounds, including former world no. one and French Open
winner Simona Halep. (CM)