November 10, 2023 UPDATE

A roundup of local and international news.

Newsroom, 10.11.2023, 19:46

Evacuation. 41
Romanian citizens and their family members left the Gaza Strip on Thursday
through the Rafa Border Crossing, following efforts by the inter-institutional
crisis unit through the Romanian embassy in Cairo and Romania’s Representation
Office in Ramallah, the Foreign Ministry has announced. The Foreign Ministry
recalls that a group of 93 Romanian citizens and their families arrived in
Romania on Wednesday and the Romanian diplomatic service is continuing the
dialogue with the Israeli and Egyptian authorities with the view to facilitating
the evacuation of the other Romanian citizens in Gaza according to the
developments on the ground and the agreement of the parties involved. A third
consular mobile team from the foreign ministry’s cell crisis rapid reaction
unit travelled to Cairo on Friday to support efforts on the ground.

Middle East. The UN Palestinian refugees agency (UNRWA) said more than 100 UN employees
were killed in Gaza since the start of the war between Israel and the Islamist
movement Hamas. The head of the agency, Philippe Lazzarini, called for an
immediate ceasefire for humanitarian purposes. Following the unprecedented
attack on Israel by Hamas on 7th October, in which over 1,400 people were
killed, Israel declared war on Hamas. According to the health ministry in Gaza,
Israeli air strikes killed more than 11,000 Palestinians, mainly civilians. In
Paris, French president Emmanuel Macron said vulnerable countries in the Middle
East must benefit from international financial assistance so as not to be drawn
into the conflict between Israel and Hamas. The International Monetary Fund on
Friday announced an agreement worth 1.2 billion dollars for Jordan, a country
neighbouring Israel. Devoid of natural resources and dependent on international
aid, Jordan is already hosting hundreds of thousands of Palestinians and fears
a massive exodus to its territory. The IMF’s director Kristalina Georgieva also
spoke of the need to grant more help to Egypt, which is also affected by the
conflict.

Court.
Romania’s former foreign minister Bogdan Aurescu is one of the judges elected
by UN vote to the International Court of Justice in The Hague. It is for the
first time that a Romanian national holds this position and for the first time that
no Russian candidate was elected. The achievement reflects Romania’s firm
commitment to the international rules-based order, said Romanian president
Klaus Iohannis. According to the Foreign Ministry in Bucharest, Aurescu’s new
position is an achievement for the Romanian diplomatic service as well as the
recognition of his professionalism and expertise.

Tanks. The defence ministry in Bucharest welcomes the US Congress’ approval of the sale to Romania of the latest version of 54 Abrams main battle tanks,
ammunition and training simulators. The contract is estimated at 1.07 billion
dollars. Defence minister Angel Tîlvăr said the purchase is not only a major
opportunity for the Romanian land forces, who will thus benefit from
latest-generation combat equipment, adjusted to the regional security
environment, but also demonstrates the solidity and excellent level of the
cooperation between Romania and the US, especially in the area of defence.

Inflation. The inflation rate
forecast for the end of the year remains at 7.5%, but the National Bank of
Romania has revised next year’s level upwards, in the wake of an increase in
taxes and duties laid down in a bill for which the government assumed
responsibility in Parliament. Moreover, 2024 is an election year, but later,
the inflation rate will go down again to reach the level targeted by the
National Bank at the end of 2025, said the bank’s governor Mugur Isarescu as he
presented the quarterly report on inflation on Friday. Consumer prices are
expected to go up again at the beginning of next year, mainly driven by the tax
hikes. Governor Isarescu also presented the risks to the Central Bank’s
forecast. He said the authorities must be very careful to the inflation driven
by an increase in salary costs in the coming period. According to the new
estimate, the inflation rate is expected to reach the levels targeted by the
National Bank of Romania, namely 1.5-3.5%, in the third quarter of 2025.

Tennis. Romania leads Serbia 2-nil in the Billie Jean
King Cup play-offs as Jaqueline Cristian a defeated Aleksandra Krunic 7-5,
6-4, on Friday evening in Kraljevo (Serbia). Earlier, Gabriela Ruse defeated
Mia Ristic 7-6, 6-3. Sâmbătă, in the first singles match, Jaqueline Cristian will
face Mia Ristic, while Gabriela Ruse will later play Aleksandra Krunic. In the
doubles, Katarina Kozarov and Natalija Stevanovic will be playing against Irina
Bara andMonica Niculescu. (CM)