November 14, 2023

A roundup of local and international news.

Newsroom, 14.11.2023, 13:55

Tour. Kenya is one of Romania’s
traditional partners in East Africa, said the Romanian president Klaus Iohannis
after talks with his Kenyan counterpart William Ruto in Nairobi. He said his
trip to Kenya takes places in a very special context, after Romania adopted
its first national strategy for Africa, and forms part of efforts to boost
Romania’s ties with African countries. Romania and Kenya have a long-standing
relationship and which is characterised by mutual respect, Iohannis also said,
adding that Kenya was an example of political stability and democratic
transition in East Africa. The two leaders discussed ways to further develop
cooperation in areas such as environmental protection, fighting climate change,
education, digitalisation and green energy. Kenya was the first stop of the
Romanian president’s tour of four African states, to be followed by Tanzania,
Cape Verde and Senegal.

Pensions. The new pensions bill is
to receive the approval of the Senate’s specialist committees today before
being put to the vote in the Senate. The bill will follow the same procedure in
the Chamber of Deputies as it is being fast-tracked through Parliament. The
Save Romania Union in opposition said the situation is unprecedented and
unacceptable in the case of such an important piece of legislation. The
coalition government formed by the Social Democrats and the Liberals wants
Parliament to pass the new bill by 20th November so that it may come
into force on 1st January 2024. The bill provides for two hikes in
pensions, in January and September. The Social Democrat prime minister Marcel
Ciolacu said the average pension in October was almost 400 euros.

Evacuation. 86 Romanian citizens and
their families who were evacuated from the Gaza Strip arrived today in Romania
on a special flight by the TAROM national airlines, said the foreign ministry.
The group entered Egyptian territory through the Rafah crossing on Saturday and
were then taken over by the Romanian embassy in Egypt. So far, 220 Romanian
nationals and family members have been evacuated from Gaza and efforts are
ongoing to evacuate all the Romanian citizens who have requested to leave Gaza.

Middle East. Israel said it has
proof that the Islamist movement Hamas has military infrastructure under hospitals
in Gaza. The spokesman for the Israel Defence Forces released a video of what
he described was a terrorist tunnel and said objects were found indicating
that Hamas held hostages in a hospital basement. Israeli defence minister Yoav
Gallant said Hamas lost control in Gaza and the trust of the population. In
Washington, president Joe Biden called on Israel to protect the main hospital
in Gaza, Al-Shifa, in the vicinity of which clashes are taking place between
the Israeli army and Hamas combatants. The European Union has also called for
immediate humanitarian pauses in fighting to allow access to essential aid for
the Palestinian population. According to a surgeon from the Doctors without
Borders medical charity organisation, hundreds of people are stranded in the
hospital in inhuman conditions. Israel has been ceaselessly carrying out
strikes against Gaza since the 7th October attack by Hamas and launched
a ground offensive on 27th October. Around 1,200 people were killed on
the Israeli side according to the authorities. In Gaza, more than 11,000 people
have been killed in Israeli strikes since 7th October, including
more than 4,600 children, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.

Training centre. The European F-16
training centre in Romania was inaugurated yesterday in the presence of
diplomats from the United States, Denmark and The Netherlands. In their
addresses, the Romanian defence minister Angel Tîlvăr and the foreign guests
emphasised the centre’s role in the current geopolitical context. The centre will also train military
pilots from Ukraine. (CM)