August 15, 2015
For a roundup of domestic and international events, click here.
Newsroom, 15.08.2015, 12:00
FEAST DAY – Orthodox, Greek-Catholic and Roman-Catholic Christians in Romania are today celebrating the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, one of the biggest celebrations in the Christian calendar marking the taking of the Virgin Mary into heaven. Hundreds of thousand of Christians are on pilgrimage to monasteries in the country having Virgin Mary as their patron saint. Also today, 2.2 million Romanians named Maria, Marian or other derivatives are celebrating their name day.
NAVY DAY – The Virgin Mary is also seen as the protector of sailors, which is why Romanians today also celebrate Navy Day. This year Navy Day coincides with 155 years since the foundation of the Romanian Modern Navy. All ports in the country play host to military and religious festivities, demonstrative exercises, contests and military technique exhibitions. Some 2,000 navymen, military and civilians, over 35 ships and 9 aircraft are taking part in the event.
AGRICULTURE – The Romanian Government will compensate farmers whose crops have been seriously affected by the drought, the Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta said on Friday during a televised show. Ponta said he had a talk on this issue with the Agriculture Minister, adding that corn and wheat crops have been affected the most. The Prime Minister believes the effects of the drought will become transparent towards the end of the year, and that additional measures must be taken in other fields so as to uphold the growing trend of the Romanian economy.
TENNIS – Romanian tennis player WTA 3rd-ranked Simona Halep is today playing Sara Errani of Italy in the semi-finals of the Toronto tournament, totalling 2.4 million dollars in prize money. On Friday, in the quarterfinals, Halep eased past Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland, ranked 14th in WTA standings, which marked the 300th win of her career. Seeded 15th in the competition, Errani qualified after defeating Lesia Turenko of Ukraine. Qualifying to the semi-finals has earned Halep 350 WTA points and a 112 thousand dollar check.
BOXING – Romanian boxer Lucian Bute, a former world champion, will return to the boxing ring on Sunday morning, after a break of 1 year and 7 months. Bute will play Andrea Di Luisa of Italy in Montreal. If he wins, Bute will next have a chance of fighting for the world title. The Romanian lost the IBF super middleweight belt to Carl Froch of England in May 2012. Aged 35, Lucian Bute has so far won 35 matches, of which 24 by KO, and 2 losses. Di Luisa, aged 33, has 17 wins, 13 by KO, and 2 losses.
GREECE – Eurozone Finance Ministers on Friday adopted the bailout package for Greece, agreed earlier this week by Greece and its international lenders. This country will over the course of the next three years receive three loans worth 86 billion euros. This is the third bailout programme for Greece in the last five years. On Friday, the Greek Parliament voted, after more than 24 hours of talks, the document, which provides for budget adjustments and reforms Greece must implement in exchange for the package. IMF Director Christine Lagarde hailed the agreement, although she warned the Greeces debt is ‘unsustainable, calling for a significant relaxation of its value.
POLLUTION – Chinese authorities on Saturday started evacuating the inhabitants close to the port of Tianjin, where several days ago a chemical storehouse exploded. According to he BBC, the measure was taken after the local police confirmed the highly toxic chemical sodium cyanide was found near the site. The explosion killed 85 people and wounded another 700. The inhabitants of Tianjin and the family of the victims have accused the authorities for trying to keep the scope of the catastrophe under wraps.
