COVID-19 – Romania reports
\nover 107,000 confirmed Covid-19 cases since the start of the pandemic in late
\nFebruary. 471 patients are in intensive care, out of nearly 6,900 hospitalized
\nacross the country. So far the death toll stands at 4,285. Meanwhile, 2 days
\nafter the start of a new school year, several schools in the country went into
\nthe so-called red scenario, with all classes held online, after teaching staff
\ntested positive for Covid-19. In Romania the green scenario involves in-person
\nclasses, and the yellow scenario is a blend of online and face-to-face
\nteaching. In other news, the Health Ministry announced purchasing double the
\namount of flu vaccines compared to last year. Three million vaccine doses will
\nbe given for free, especially to people over 65, to chronic patients,
\nparticularly those with respiratory and heart conditions, to institutionalized
\nchildren and elderly, to healthcare personnel and pregnant women.<\/p>\n
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\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
REPORT – The report of the
\nBudget and Finance Committees of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate
\nregarding the budget adjustment law has been approved. The report will next be
\nsubmitted to debate and vote in Parliament. Acting on the proposal of the
\nSocial-Democrats, who are currently holding majority in Parliament, MPs in the
\nCommittee repealed the article providing for a 14% increase in the pension
\npoint, which means the law on the public pension system still stands. The
\nlatter stipulates at 40% increase of pensions starting this autumn. MPs also
\nvoted for an increase in the base salaries of teaching staff starting this
\nyear. <\/p>\n
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\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
ELECTION – President Klaus Iohannis on
\nWednesday called on Romanians living in the Diaspora to register for postal
\nvoting for the legislative election, saying there are no guarantees polling
\nstations would be opened in all countries. Also on Wednesday, the President
\nratified a law allowing Romanians abroad to vote for the legislation election
\nof December over the course of two days. The vote can be extended until
\nmidnight on the second day, but only for those voters inside the polls.
\nRomania’s Foreign Minister has also recommended to all Romanians residing abroad
\nto opt for postal voting, the safest and simplest way allowing them to exercise
\ntheir constitutional right to vote in the delicate context generated by the
\nCOVID-19 pandemic. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
TALKS – Foreign Minister
\nBogdan Aurescu on Wednesday had talks with his counterpart from Cyprus, Nikos Christodoulides. The two
\nofficials appreciated the level of bilateral relations, expressing an interest
\nto boost political and diplomatic dialogue as well as sectorial cooperation.
\nMinister Bogdan Aurescu underlined the importance of the Romanian community in
\nCyprus, which represents a bridge between the two countries, hailing
\ncooperation at the level of the Diaspora, including a Memorandum of
\nUnderstanding signed in 2018 in this field, which is yielding real benefits. <\/p>\n
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\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
FLIGHTS – The Foreign Ministry in
\nBucharest announced that commercial flights to and from Poland will resume
\nstarting Wednesday. The measure adopted by Warsaw authorities will be in place
\nuntil September 29, as Poland is taking new measures regarding incoming and
\noutgoing flights in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Ministry also
\nstates that people traveling to Poland from another EU Member States, as well
\nas from Norway, the Swiss Confederation, the Republic of Iceland and the
\nPrincipality of Lichtenstein are still permitted entry to this state without
\nbeing subject to other restrictions or special measures such as compulsory
\nquarantine or self-isolation. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
STATE OF THE
\nUNION – European Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen on Wednesday
\ndelivered her first state of the union address before the European Parliament
\nin Brussels. The coronavirus pandemic and the uncertainty it brings is not
\nover, and the people of Europe are still suffering. It is a period of profound
\nanxiety for millions, von der Leyen pointed out. The European official
\nexpressed her gratitude towards doctors and nurses and every other worker in
\nthe front line, who are taking risks so others won’t. Ursula von der Leyen
\nannounced the Union will create its own biomedical agency for advanced research
\nand development, dubbed BARDA. Leyen
\nsaid she would call a global health summit, due to take place next year in
\nItaly. President von der Leyen went on to say that the Green Deal will be the
\nengine of the EU’s economic recovery, in addition to digitization. The European
\nofficial said the Single Market is key to economic recovery, aiming to replace
\ncoal with hydrogen, thus helping achieve a climate-neutral economy. Ursula von
\nder Leyen also announced the European Commission is proposing to increase the
\n2030 target for emission reduction to at least 55%.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
TENNIS – Romanian tennis
\nplayer Simona Halep, world no. 2, on Wednesday got through to the round of 16
\nat the WTA tournament in Rome, where she is seeded first. Simona defeated
\nJasmine Paolini of Italy (99 WTA) 6-3, 6-4. Also in the women’s singles, Irina
\nBegu (77 WTA) will play Johanna Konta (13 WTA) of Great Britain on Thursday. In
\nthe women’s doubles, Romanian Raluca Olaru and Anna-Lena Friedsam of Germany
\nqualified to the quarterfinals after defeating Miyu Kato of Japan and Sabrina
\nSantamari of the Untied States, 6-4, 6-3. Also in the doubles, Simona Halep and
\nMonica Niculescu will play Shuko Aoyama and Ena Shibahara of Japan in the round
\nof 16. Totaling some \u20ac1.7 million dollars, the tournament in Rome is a Premier
\n5 competition and is unfolding with the full observance of pandemic-prevention
\nmeasures. <\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
(Translated by AM Popescu & V. Palcu)<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A roundup of domestic and international news<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":113,"featured_media":75903,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[29402,35374,35741,29384,35740,35742,35307,35743],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-104582","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-newsflash","tag-budget-adjustment","tag-covid-19","tag-flights-to-poland","tag-postal-voting","tag-romania-cyprus-bilateral-relations","tag-state-of-the-union-address","tag-ursula-von-der-leyen","tag-wta-tournament-in-rome"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n