October 19, 2021

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Newsroom, 19.10.2021, 13:55

COVID-19 Romanian authorities announced on Monday over 10,000 new SARS-CoV-2 infections and 261 COVID-related deaths in 24 hours. More than 1,700 patients are
currently in intensive care. As regards vaccination, in Romania, the number of
people that went through a full vaccination plan stands at roughly 5.7 million.
The Romanian interim Interior Minister, Lucian Bode, has announced that 26
patients infected with SARS-CoV-2 have been transferred to Hungary and that the
situation these days is rather critical. Meanwhile, 32 medical staff from the
neighbouring Republic of Moldova came to Romania on Monday and will treat
COVID-19 patients for 12 days, in a mobile hospital in the village of Leţcani,
Iaşi County. Romania now has new vaccination targets, after missing the
previous ones because of citizens’ reluctance to the jab.

AID Poland and Slovenia announced they are ready to help
Romania fight the on-going healthcare crisis. The offers came after president
Klaus Iohannis presented the situation in a videoconference ahead of a European
Council meeting due in Brussels on Thursday and Friday. Attending the
conference were the prime ministers of the 2 countries, who voiced their
willingness to help Romania, as well as the president of the European Council,
Charles Michel, ho undertook to facilitate EU-level aid. Hit hard by the 4th
wave of the pandemic, Romania has already received medical equipment from Poland,
Italy and Denmark.

GOVERNMENT The relevant parliamentary committees are interviewing
today the proposed members of PM designate Dacian Cioloş’s cabinet. Deputies
and Senators will discuss with both former ministers in the coalition
government comprising the National Liberal Party, Save Romania Union and the
Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians, headed by the Liberal Florin Cîţu.
Stelian Ion is once again nominated for justice minister, Ioana Mihăilă for
health minister and Cătălin Drulă for transport minister, while former deputy
PM Dan Barna is the proposed foreign minister. New names in the cabinet include
environment activist Mihai Goţiu for environment minister, the former prefect
of Bucharest Alin Stoica for interior minister and former fighter pilot Nicu
Fălcoi for defence minister. The decision of Save Romania Union (USR) to
present Parliament with a proposed one-party government was made after
negotiations with the former partners failed to lead to the restoration of the
right-wing coalition. The Liberals and
ethnic Hungarian party would not resume cooperation with USR, because the
latter backed a motion of no-confidence against the Cîţu government. The Social
Democrats in opposition are also against a government headed by Cioloş, whom
they accuse of irresponsibly protracting this political crisis. The Social
Democrats and the nationalist party AUR demand early elections. Cioloş’s team
needs 234 votes in Parliament, and USR only has 80 MPs. The vote on the
proposed government is scheduled for Wednesday.

AUTOMOTIVE The Ford production unit in Craiova (south-western Romania) is
temporarily downsizing operations because of a semiconductor shortage. Until
Thursday the plant will operate in one shift instead of three, both in the
vehicle and the engine production divisions. The vehicles for which sale
contracts have already been signed will be a priority, the management announced.
Employees will be paid idle time up to 78% of their base salaries. In turn, the
Dacia plant in Mioveni, Argeș County, controlled by the French group Renault, suspended
its operations for lack of electronic components on October 8, sending home
around 90% of its 14,000 employees at the time.

OPINION POLL The Army and the Church rank first in terms of public
confidence in Romania, according to an opinion poll conducted by the Information
Warfare analysis and Strategic Communication Laboratory. Specifically, some 87%
of the Romanians say they trust the Army, 70% the Church, 67% – the Romanian Intelligence
Service and the Romanian Academy. Confidence is politicians is low, at some 20%,
with the President, Parliament and Government on the top 3 positions. The main
threats against Romania, according to over 40% of the respondents, are the
politicians’ corruption and incompetence. The main threats facing the EU are an
economic crisis, the COVID-19 pandemic and disagreements between some member
states. the poll was conducted by telephone between October 1 and 10, with a de
+/- 3.1% margin of error.

MOLDOVA The leader of the Socialists Party in the neighbouring Republic of
Moldova, the pro-Russian ex-president Igor Dodon, announced he stepped down as
a Parliament member and party president. He said he will continue to work as
part of the Moldovan-Russian Entrepreneur Union, to strengthen economic
relations with Russia. Dodon explains his role as an opposition leader will be
better served from outside Parliament. One year ago he lost the presidential
election to pro-European Maia Sandu, whose party, Action and Solidarity, defeated
the Socialists and their allies, the Communists, in July’s early parliamentary
election. (tr. A.M. Popescu)