AIR DEFENCE Germany and 14 other NATO member states, Romania
\nincluded, Thursday agreed on a common initiative regarding the acquisition of
\nair and missile defence systems, after the war in Ukraine exposed weaknesses in
\nthis respect. The initiative, spearheaded by Germany, is called European Sky
\nShield, and the 15 NATO signatories intend to procure, in a first stage, medium-range
\ndefence systems such as the US-manufactured Patriot, already used by several
\nNATO countries, including Romania. In a subsequent stage, they may purchase the
\nIsraeli-American Arrow 3 system, able to intercept and destroy longer-range
\nthreats. The initiative comes as the war in Ukraine shows that NATO states
\nthemselves need more equipment to secure their air space. Apart from Germany
\nand Romania, the countries that signed the initiative are Belgium, Bulgaria,
\nCzechia, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway,
\nSlovakia, Slovenia, and the United Kingdom.<\/p>\n
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\n
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ELECTRICITY The Republic of Moldova will be able to import 100 MW of
\nelectricity from Romania as of Friday, the Romanian energy minister Virgil
\nPopescu announced. The president of Moldova, Maia Sandu, thanked Romania, after
\nUkraine was forced to suspend electricity deliveries following Russia’s strikes
\non its energy infrastructure earlier this week. In related news, Romania will
\ntransfer over EUR 25 mln for Moldova to start implementing projects in
\nstrategic sectors like education and public utilities. The funds are part of a
\nEUR 100 mln non-reimbursable aid package stipulated in a bilateral technical
\nand financial assistance agreement.<\/p>\n
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\n
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REFUGEES The
\nnumber of Ukrainian refugees coming to Romania from Western Europe is on the
\nrise, the International Organization for Migration reports. Lower living costs
\nand proximity to Ukraine are some of the reasons, the report also states.
\nAccording to the Romanian Border Police, some 70,000 people entered Romania on
\nWednesday, of whom 9,000 were Ukrainian nationals, accounting for a 15%
\nincrease compared to the previous day. Over 2.5 million Ukrainians have entered
\nRomania since February 10.<\/p>\n
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\n
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SCHENGEN In principle, the Netherlands does not oppose Romania’s
\nSchengen accession, the Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said on Wednesday
\nduring a visit to Bra\u0219ov, central Romania. The Dutch official pointed out,
\nhowever, that any discussion on this matter will factor in Romania’s fulfilment
\nof all accession criteria. President Klaus Iohannis expressed confidence Romania
\nwill join the travel-free area, whereas Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuc\u0103 in turn
\nsaid that Schengen accession will spell numerous benefits for Romania’s
\neconomy.<\/p>\n
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\n
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UKRAINE Romania’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, Bogdan Aurescu,
\nhailed the UN General Assembly resolution condemning Russia’s illegal
\nannexation of Ukrainian territories. 143 UN members voted in favour, including
\nRomania. Meanwhile, Russia launched new attacks on Ukraine on Thursday. Drone
\nstrikes targeted critical infrastructure in Kyiv, while the city of Mykolaiv
\nwas hit by shelling, authorities say. In recent weeks Ukraine has been the
\ntarget of air strikes carried out by Iranian-made Shahed-136 drones. Tehran
\ndenies having delivered such drones to Russia, while Moscow refused to comment.
\nThe Kremlin has also intensified its attacks on civilian targets in response to
\nthe Crimea bridge attack, which Moscow claims is the work of Ukrainian
\nintelligence. Described as war crimes by a number of Western countries, the
\nshelling continues despite significant losses sustained by the Russian army.
\nBombing focused particularly on residential areas and civilian infrastructure,
\ndamaging 30% of the country’s energy infrastructure. In Brussels, over 50
\ncountries promised to provide military assistance to Ukraine, including air defence
\nsystems. (V.P, A.M.P.)<\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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