COMMEMORATION – A day of mourning was on Saturday observed in Timi\u0219oara, western Romania, in memory
\nof the victims of the 1989 anti-communist revolution in Romania. Official
\nceremonies were held on this occasion, commemorating the first clashes between
\nsecurity forces of Nicolae Ceau\u0219escu’s
\ndictatorship and people who took to the streets calling for freedom. The event
\nwas also marked by means of exhibitions, film screenings, debates, concerts and
\na special march. The anti-communist revolution in Romania broke out in Timi\u0219oara on December 16, 1989, and
\nexpanded to Bucharest and other cities on December 21. Over 1,000 people were
\nkilled and another 3,000 wounded in violent clashes. Romania was the only
\ncountry in Eastern Europe where the transition from communism resulted in
\nbloodshed. <\/p>\n
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PARTNERSHIP – The governments of Azerbaijan, Georgia, Hungary and
\nRomania on Saturday signed an agreement on creating a strategic partnership in
\nthe field of green energy. In a special ceremony hosted by Bucharest, the
\ndocument was signed by the president of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, the Prime
\nMinister of Romania, Nicolae Ciuc\u0103, the Prime Minister of Georgia, Irakli
\nGaribashvili, and the Prime Minister of Hungary, Viktor Orb\u00e1n. The agreement
\nstipulates the building of an underwater cable that would transport energy from
\nrenewable sources from Azerbaijan to Romania, via Georgia and the Black Sea,
\nand from there to Hungary and the rest of Europe. The project represents yet
\nanother step whereby Romania consolidates its energy security. On Friday, the
\nnational gas providers of Romania and Azerbaijan, Romgaz and Socar,
\nrespectively, signed a contract that will allow Romania to access additional
\nvolumes of gas, when necessary. Romania is committed to invest in energy
\nproduction and infrastructure, Romania’s Prime Minister, Nicolae Ciuc\u0103 said on Saturday. In turn, the president
\nof Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, pointed out his country would become a major
\nprovider of green electricity for Europe. Attending the signing ceremony were
\nalso Romania’s president, Klaus Iohannis, and the European Commission
\npresident, Ursula von der Leyen. <\/p>\n
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SCHENGEN – The European Commission fully supports Romania’s
\nSchengen accession, the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen,
\nsaid in Bucharest. The EU official said she would work tirelessly to find a
\nsolution shortly, as Romania is fully prepared to enter the visa-free travel
\narea. In turn, president Klaus Iohannis said Romania relies on the Commission’s
\nsupport. We recall that last week, on the sidelines of the Justice and Home
\nAffairs council meeting, Austria opposed the Schengen accession of Romania and
\nBulgaria, invoking arguments that many considered to be false and politicized.
\nThe Netherlands also voted against.<\/p>\n
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BAN – The Republic of Moldova has banned six TV stations that
\nrebroadcast Russian propaganda about Moldova and the war in Ukraine. The
\ncountry needs to be shielded from propaganda and lies, deputy Prime Minister
\nAndrei Sp\u00eenu wrote on his
\nTelegram account. The ban takes effect on Monday and will remain in place
\nduring the state of emergency, declared after Russia invaded Ukraine on
\nFebruary 24. The six TV stations, some broadcasting in Romanian, others in
\nRussian, are closely tied to Ilan Shor, a controversial politician and
\nbusinessman who fled Moldova in 2019 after Maia Sandu was elected president.
\nCurrently in exile in Israel, Shor has supported the anti-government protests
\nin Chi\u0219in\u0103u. <\/p>\n
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WORLD CUP – Croatia is playing Morocco in the bronze final at the
\n2022 World Cup in Qatar. The two teams were both drafted in Group F. Morocco
\nranked 1st and subsequently ousted Spain and Portugal in the round
\nof 16 and quarterfinals, respectively. Croatia ranked 2nd and
\nknocked out Japan and Brazil in the next rounds. In the semis, Morocco lost to
\nFrance, while Croatia lost to Argentina. Croatia ranked 2nd at the
\n2018 World Cup, whereas Morocco is the first African and Arab team to reach a
\nWorld Cup semi-final. On Sunday, in the championship final, the defending
\nchampions France will play Argentina. (VP)<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A roundup of domestic 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":[31344,37256,37257,30037,37258],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-106359","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-newsflash","tag-anti-communist-revolution-of-1989","tag-green-energy-partnership","tag-moldova-bans-tv-stations","tag-schengen-accession","tag-world-cup-in-qatar"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n