MEETING – The Executive
\nCommittee of the Social-Democratic Party met on Sunday in Bucharest. The top
\nissues on the agenda were the 2019 budget bill and preparations for the
\nEuropean Parliament elections due in May. Social-Democrat leader Liviu Dragnea
\nsaid he called on the Prime Minister and Finance Minister to analyse the
\npossibility to reduce the budget earmarked to the secret services, which he
\nargues could be relocated to healthcare, for instance a program to grant
\nVitamin D free of charge to children. Bucharest District 3 Mayor Robert Negoita
\nasked for additional funds to local administrations, as they are expected to
\ncover some of the social spending so far provided in the budget of central
\nauthorities. Additional funds will go to healthcare, transport and education
\nwhile the ministries of the business sector, communications and energy will
\nreceive fewer funds. The bill is based on a 5.5% economic growth rate, a 2.8% inflation
\nrate and a 2.5% deficit of the GDP.<\/p>\n
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ELECTION – The Save
\nRomania Union in opposition and the Liberty, Unity and Solidarity Party (PLUS)
\ndecided to form an election alliance ahead of the European Parliament elections
\ndue in May. The decision was taken on Saturday by the two parties’ executive
\ncommittees. PLUS leader Dacian Ciolos, a former European Commission for
\nAgriculture and Prime Minister of Romania, is top of the joint list for the
\nballot in May. The final list will be announced over the coming period, Save
\nRomania Union Dan Barna said. The Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians has
\nalso designated its candidates for the European Parliament elections, and will
\ndecide on the final order in March. <\/p>\n
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FLU EPIDEMIC – The death
\ntoll of the flu epidemic in Romania has reached 69. The latest victim is a
\n41-year-old woman infected with the type-A flu virus. She also had a history of
\npre-existing medical conditions and hadn’t taken the flu vaccine. Health
\nMinister Sorina Pintea said the flu is extending nationwide and expects the
\nvirus to be widely circulated in February as well. Some of the measures to
\ncounter the epidemic are harsher hospital access restrictions, antiviral
\nmedicine restocking, prophylactic treatment of people who come in contact with
\nthe sick and the vaccination of all unvaccinated medical staff. <\/p>\n
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UKRAINE – The Foreign
\nMinistry hails the celebration of 10 years since the International Court of
\nJustice issued a ruling in the Maritime Delimitation in the Black Sea
\n(Romania vs. Ukraine). According to a release issued by the Ministry, ICJ set
\nthe line of delimitation between the continental plateau and the economic areas
\nof the two states, giving Romania 9,7000 skm of the 12,200 under dispute. The
\nresolution of the ICJ was beneficial to both states, favouring the approach of
\na bilateral agenda constructively, also contributing to regional stability.
\nAccording to the Ministry, the decision, which put an end to a 42-year-old
\ndispute, became a reference point for subsequent maritime delimitations, being
\nquoted extensively in the jurisprudence of the ICJ and other international
\ncourts of law, as well in the doctrine of international law in this matter. <\/p>\n
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AWARDS – The winners of
\nthe 2019 BBC Audio Drama Awards are announced on Sunday as part of a ceremony
\nvenued at the BBC Broadcasting House Radio Theatre in London. The production of
\nthe Romanian Radio Broadcasting Corporation’s Radio Drama Department The
\nConfession, Doina Papp’s adaption of Dostoevski’s The Demons, directed by
\nIlinca Stihi, is one of the three finalists selected for the Best European
\nDrama section. The BBC Audio Drama awards celebrates the originality and
\nqualify of on air and online radio drama shows as well as the actors, writers,
\nproducers and sound engineers’ creativity. <\/p>\n
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POPE FRANCIS – Pope
\nFrancis on Sunday left for the United Arab Emirates, as part of the first visit
\na Roman Catholic Pope pays to the Arab Peninsula. During his two-day visit,
\nPope Francis will meet with Government officials and Muslim clerics. The Pope
\nwill also celebrate mass on a stadium in Abu Dhabi. Over a million Catholics
\nawait the Pope’s visit, despite criticism for the timing of the visit,
\ncoinciding with the Emirates’ implication in the war in Yemen, as members of
\nthe coalition led by Saudi Arabia. Unlike other Arab countries, in the United
\nArab Emirates Christians are free to practice their religion, provided they do
\nso in private and avoid propaganda. <\/p>\n
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TENNIS – The Romanian pair
\nmade up of Irina Begu and Monica Niculescu on Sunday won the doubles
\ncompetition at the WTA tournament in Hua Hin, Thailand, totalling 250 thousand
\ndollars in prize money. In the final the two defeated Ana Blinkova of Russia
\nand Yafan Wang of China, 2-6, 6-1, 12-10. This is the second trophy for Begu
\nand Niculescu, after the title won in Hobart. The two players also played the
\nWuhan and Moscow finals in 2015 and the one in Luxemburg in 2012.<\/p>\n
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HANDBALL – Romanian
\nchampions CSM Bucharest on Saturday defeated 32-26 Krim Mercator Ljubljana of
\nSlovenia in Group 2 of Champions League. CSM is now third-placed with 8 points,
\nafter Hungary’s Gyor with 12 and Vipers Kristiansand of Norway with 8 points. <\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
(Translated by V. Palcu)<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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