November 9, 2023
A roundup of local and international news.
Newsroom, 09.11.2023, 13:55
EU – “A major objective of Hungarys EU presidency in the second half of 2024 will be to move ahead Romanias integration with the communitys borderless Schengen zone, unless progress is made on the matter before, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said Wednesday. According to a press release issued by the Hungarian Foreign Ministry, he emphasized that the Budapest government attaches strategic importance to the cooperation between the two countries. The most important base and resource of this strategic cooperation is the Hungarian community that live in Romania, said Szijjarto. He added that Romania becoming a member of the Schengen area is a clear national interest of Hungary. Romania, he said, “is Hungarys second-largest export market and its Schengen membership will obviously make our economic and trade relations much stronger. Hungary will take over the rotating presidency of the Council of the EU in the second half of 2024.
PENSIONS – The Bucharest government intends to pass, in today’s meeting, the new pension law, which provides for a 13.8% increase in pensions starting January 1st next year. The document also provides for the recalculation of all pensions on new criteria, so that inequities in the system are eliminated. The executive wants the pension law to be adopted by Parliament until November 20. Nicolae Ciuca, the president of the National Liberal Party, a member of the ruling coalition, claims that the draft pension law should not be adopted until the financial sources to support the increase are found. He said that the budgetary impact, of 55.6 billion lei (about 11 billion euros), is huge and covers around 3% of GDP.
REPATRIATION – As many as 93 Romanian citizens and their families, evacuated from the Gaza Strip, were flown to Bucharest from Cairo on Wednesday evening on board an aircraft of the national air company TAROM. Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu and the Foreign Affairs Minister Luminiţa Odobescu were also on board the plane. Another 51 Romanian citizens and family members remained in Gaza, after the check point in Rafah, on the border with Egypt, was closed, only to be opened later. Minister Odobescu, said that the security situation is extremely difficult and complex, which requires the constant updating of evacuation plans.
NATO – Germany will deploy four Eurofighter jets to Romania to support, as of end-November, NATO’s air policing mission. The decision comes a few weeks after Russian attacks on Ukrainian ports on the Danube. The attacks, carried out close to the Romanian border, as well as fragments of drones found in Romania, have increased the security risks for the military alliance whose members have a mutual defense commitment. In September, NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg described Russian strikes near the border as destabilizing, even though there was no indication that Russia intended to strike a NATO member state. The first of up to 80 German soldiers will leave for Romania today.
TOURISM – The autumn edition of the Romanian Tourism Fair, the most important such event in the country, kicks off today in Bucharest. In addition to discounts for early booking, some agencies also promote Black Friday discounts. People interested can find offers for holidays both in the country and abroad, including in new or exotic destinations. Two new destinations are available to tourists, such as Gran Canaria, in the Spanish Archipelago, and Faro, in Portugal. The Romanian Tourism Fair is open until November 12. (EE)
