The headlines: <\/p>\n
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The number of coronavirus infections in Romania has
\nexceeded 18.400. Meanwhile Interior Minister Marcel Vela is facing a motion
\nvote in the Senate today. Bogdan Aurescu met his Hungarian counterpart in
\nBucharest today. And the General Affairs Council is today convening in a
\nvideoconference – representing Romania is State Secretary with the Foreign
\nMinistry, Iulia Matei. <\/p>\n
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COVID-19 IN ROMANIA – Today marks three
\nmonths since the first COVID-19 case was confirmed in Romania. Earlier the
\nGroup for Strategic Communication announced the death toll has risen to 1,210.
\nOver 18.400 cases have been confirmed across the country. 11.800 people have
\nrecovered. 90.7% of victims were suffering from at least one other medical
\ncondition, the National Institute for Public Health reports. Last week the
\nlargest numbers of infections were reported in Bucharest and in Suceava, Neamt,
\nBotosani and Arad counties. One in six people infected with coronavirus is a
\nmedical professional. Broken down in terms of age, nearly 77% of victims are 60
\nand above. Over half are men. Meanwhile 3.067 Romanians living abroad have
\ntested positive for SARS CoV-2, mostly in Italy, Spain, Germany, Great Britain
\nand France, of whom 106 have died. <\/p>\n
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COVID-19 WORLDWIDE – The total number of
\nCOVID-19 infections is close to 5.6 million globally, with some 350.000 victims
\nreported so far. Brazil is now the second-most affected country in the world,
\nwith over 374.000 infections, after the United States, where over 1.6 million
\npeople have been infected with the virus. On the other hand, many countries
\ncontinue to ease lockdown restrictions. Beaches have reopened in Spain and the
\nUnited States, so have night clubs in Iceland. Japan has lifted the state of
\nemergency. Mosques in Iran are open as of yesterday. Also yesterday people in
\nGreece can now eat in taverns and restaurants. Many voices fear these measures
\ncould generate a second wave of the epidemic, and Italy has actually
\nreintroduced certain restrictions. <\/p>\n
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MOTION – The Senate is today
\ndebating and voting a simple motion the Social-Democrat opposition has filed
\nagainst Liberal Interior Minister Marcel Vela. The Social-Democrats criticize
\nVela for the military decrees issued under the state of emergency, claiming
\nthey generated a series of restrictions that were subsequently cancelled. Each
\narticle to have been repealed is official proof of the incompetence and lack of
\ncoherence in managing the coronavirus pandemic, the document also reads.
\nMinister Vela says the motion will present him with an opportunity to recap his
\nachievements during the six months in office. Parliament has recently voted two
\nmotions, against Finance Minister Florin Citu and against Agriculture Minister
\nAdrian Oros. Another motion targeting Education Minister Monica Anisie was
\ndebated yesterday, with the vote scheduled for Wednesday in the Chamber of
\nDeputies. The Minister is criticized for her subpar management during the
\nhealth crisis. <\/p>\n
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DEFENSE – The country’s Supreme Defense Council will convene in a
\nvideoconference presided by President Klaus Iohannis on Wednesday. High on the
\nagenda is the National Defense Strategy for 2020-2024, available army forces
\nthat can be posted for external missions and operations in 2021 as well as the
\nmodernization program for the Romanian army by 2026 and beyond. The Council
\nwill also look into hot topics in the field of national security, the
\nPresidency reports. <\/p>\n
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VIDEOCONFERENCE
\n– State Secretary for European Affairs with the Romanian Foreign Ministry,
\nIulia Matei, is today taking part in the informal meeting of the EU General
\nAffairs Council, held as a videoconference. According to the Foreign Ministry,
\nthe top point on today’s meeting is the EU response to the COVID-19 pandemic,
\nwhich is a coordinated approach to eliminating restrictions and re-launching
\nthe economy. Also today the European Commission will notify Member States
\nregarding ongoing progress in drafting the annual report on the rule of law
\nacross the Union. <\/p>\n
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MEETING – Romania wants a positive relation with Hungary and a
\nreturn to a real strategic partnership with this country, Foreign Minister
\nBogdan Aurescu said after meeting his Hungarian counterpart, Peter Szijjarto.
\nAurescu says the diplomatic relation needs to restore trust and mutual respect,
\ncalling for restraint and a judicious approach to bilateral relations, which
\nhave been marked by the negative effects of the coronavirus crisis. Romania
\nwants to consolidate bilateral relations, identify projects of mutual gain,
\nconsolidate sectorial cooperation in the fields of infrastructure and energy
\nand continue dialogue over the rights of national minorities in the two
\ncountries, the Romanian Minister went on to say.<\/p>\n
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FLIGHTS -
\nThe national passenger airliner TAROM is today resuming its flights operated to
\nItaly, with return trips to Rome and Milan. The flights will be operated under
\nspecial circumstances, observing regulations under the state of alert.
\nAccording to TAROM, Italian citizens, seasonal workers and people working in
\nthe field of transport will be able to travel to Italy. Returning to Romania
\nwill be only Romanian nationals willing to come home. <\/p>\n
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<\/p>\n
(Translated by V.
\nPalcu)<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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