COVID-19
\nBucharest extended the COVID-19 related state of alert in the country for
\nanother 30 days, beginning on Monday, February 7. Face covering remains compulsory
\nboth indoors and outdoors. In places with infection rates below 3 per
\nthousand, cinema and theatre
\nhalls as well as restaurants may operate at 50% of their capacity, with the
\nceiling going down to 30% in places with infection rates above this level. An
\nemergency order also extends the deadline for filling in the digital forms for
\nentering the country, from 24 to 72 hours. Nearly 17,000 new
\nCovid cases were reported in Romania on Monday, along with 81 related
\nfatalities. In the capital Bucharest the incidence rate continues to rise,
\nreaching 32.75 per thousand on Monday. The vaccination rate is close to 42% in
\nurban communities and around 30% in the countryside. Only 8 million adults are
\nfully vaccinated so far. <\/p>\n
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RESIGNATION The president of USR party in opposition, Dacian Ciolo\u015f, Monday
\nannounced his resignation. The decision came after the party’s National Bureau
\nconvened on Monday rejected Ciolo\u015f’s plans to change the structure and
\noperation of the party, with 14 votes against and 11 in favour. Dacian Ciolo\u015f, who
\nhad been elected to office in October, when the right-of-centre USR and PLUS
\nparties had merged, warned his colleagues that he would step down unless his
\nrestructuring plan was implemented. USR vice-president C\u0103t\u0103lin Drul\u0103 will take
\nover as interim party president.<\/p>\n
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DIPLOMACY The Romanian foreign minister Bogdan Aurescu said there was no danger of
\nRomania being drawn into a military conflict with the Russian Federation.
\nRomanian citizens need not worry that we will be dragged into a war close to
\nour country, he said in an interview on a private television channel. There
\nis at the moment a very powerful security umbrella, which provides all possible
\nguarantees for the security and stability of Romania and its citizens, and this
\numbrella is the NATO membership, adding to which is the very strong strategic
\npartnership with the US, minister Aurescu mentioned. If Russia attacks
\nUkraine, he added, responses will come both from NATO, which will consolidate
\nits eastern flank, and from the EU, which will introduce a substantial set of
\neconomic and individual sanctions targeting the political decision-makers in
\nRussia. In turn, the head of the Information and Public Relations Directorate
\nwith the Defence Ministry, brigadier general Constantin Sp\u00eenu, said that the crisis in Ukraine is not a security
\nsituation that directly concerns Romania or any other NATO member state. Romanians and all other nations in the Euro-Atlantic
\nspace should not feel directly threatened, gen. Sp\u00eenu said.<\/p>\n
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AGRICULTURE Romania’s agriculture minister Adrian Chesnoiu rules out a
\npossible food crisis in Romania and a food rationing scenario. He says the
\nauthorities are looking for solutions to support both citizens and farmers.
\nChesnoiu also says that authorities are considering the options of introducing
\nceilings on food prices or of stabilising and balancing prices.<\/p>\n
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WASTE
\nThe number of border checkpoints where waste can be brought to Romania for
\nrecycling will be reduced to 15, and all shipments will have to be entered in
\nan electronic register as soon as possible, the environment minister T\u00e1nczos
\nBarna announced on Monday. The authorities want to make sure that waste is not
\nmisplaced or discarded in unauthorised places. Last year alone, more than 500
\noffences related to waste imports were identified, and over 15,000 tonnes of
\nmixed waste were prevented from entering the country, the interior minister Lucian
\nBode said in his turn.<\/p>\n
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OLYMPICS Natalia Ushkina, Romania’s representative in
\nthe biathlon contest has ended the competition on the 57th place in the
\nindividual 15 km race at the winter Olympics in Beijing. In
\nthe giant slalom event, Maria Ioana Constantin also from Romania, has come out
\n45th, while another Romanian, Raluca
\nStr\u0103m\u0103turaru, is ranking 30th after the first 2 legs of the luge event. At the current
\nedition of the winter Olympic Games, Romania is being represented by 21
\nathletes. (A.M.P., D.B.)<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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