Covid-19 update. <\/strong>The Romanian government has extended
<\/p>\n
Protest. <\/strong>Trade unions in the metallurgical industry today staged a rally
<\/p>\n
B9.<\/strong> We cannot accept the threat of the use of force
<\/p>\n
EU sanctions.<\/strong> The European Union has
<\/p>\n
Winter Olympics.<\/strong> The 24th edition of the
A roundup of local and international news.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":113,"featured_media":105208,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[35386,28918,30557,29310],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-105673","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-newsflash","tag-covid","tag-energy","tag-olympics","tag-russia"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
\nthe state of alert by a further 30 days from 7th February. A number
\nof measures will remain in place, including the mandatory wearing of face masks
\nin all indoor and outdoor areas. The government also adopted the rule according
\nto which the validity of the Covid certificate for entering Romania is nine
\nmonths without the booster shot. Otherwise, a negative Covid test result or
\nproof of recovery from infection are needed. The deadline for filling in the
\ndigital form for entering the country has been extended from 24 to 72 hours.
\nThe pilots of the planes flying to and from Romania and the Romanian citizens
\nliving on the border and working in neighbouring countries no longer have to fill
\nin this form. On Friday, Romania reported almost 32,000 new Covid cases and
\nalmost 100 new fatalities.<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
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\noutside the government building in Bucharest to protest against the fact that
\nbusinesses in this sector do not benefit from a cap on energy prices. The
\ngovernment exempted non-household users who already received state aid from the
\ncap on electricity and natural gas prices. Trade unions are saying the move is
\nunfair and are asking the government to cap electricity and natural gas prices
\nto the level of December 2020 for at least another year. The workers at ALRO
\nSlatina also staged a protest yesterday, their management having cut production
\nand sent 1,500 workers on furlough. <\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
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\nor outdated concepts such as that referring to the sphere of influence, said
\nthe Romanian foreign minister Bogdan Aurescu on Thursday in Bucharest, speaking
\nabout concerns that Russia’s actions are seeking to undermine the European
\nsecurity architecture. Aurescu hosted a round of talks held in hybrid format and
\nattended by the Bucharest Nine foreign ministers of the states on the eastern
\nflank. The talks were also attended by the French foreign minister Jean-Yves Le
\nDrian, who was on a trip to Bucharest, and the Ukrainian foreign minister Dmytro
\nKuleba. Diplomatic actions to defuse the standoff on the Russian-Ukrainian
\nborder have also taken place in other capitals in recent days. <\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
\nprepared a robust and comprehensive package of sanctions against Russia if it
\ncontinues its aggression against Ukraine, the European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen told
\nthe Handeslblatt and Les Echos newspapers, according to Reuters. The sanctions
\ninclude limiting Russia’s access to foreign capital and exports controls,
\nespecially on technical goods, von der Leyen explained. The controversial North
\nStream 2 gas pipeline is also targeted by the package of sanctions, depending
\non Russia’s behavior if it is put into operation, she added. Russia, who
\nannexed the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine in 2014 and supports the separatists
\nin eastern Ukraine, has massed some 100,000 soldiers near the Ukrainian border,
\ndemanding security guarantees from the West, including that Ukraine would not
\nbe accepted into NATO. The Kremlin accused Washington of ignoring its calls for
\neasing the tension as the latter said it would deploy an additional 3,000
\ntroops to Poland and Romania, Reuters also notes.<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
\nWinter Olympic Games got under way in Beijing amid concerns about the Covid
\npandemic and a diplomatic boycott from some western countries. Beijing is the
\nfirst city to have hosted both the Summer Games, back in 2008, and the Winter
\nGames. 22 Romanian athletes are taking part in the competitions, in sledding, bobsled, skeleton, cross country skiing,
\nalpine skiing, ski jumping, biathlon and speed skating. On 17th
\nJanuary, following a rise in Covid infections and the first confirmed case of
\nOmicron in Beijing, the organisers announced tickets would not be sold to the
\ngeneral public and that a limited number of spectators would be admitted based
\non invitations. The US, Britain and other allied states launched a diplomatic
\nboycott of the Games because of China’s human rights situation. Beijing denied,
\nhowever, the accusations of human rights violations. (CM)<\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"