January 7, 2016
For a roundup of domestic and international events, click here.
Newsroom, 07.01.2016, 12:00
VISIT — Romania’s Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos is today visiting Berlin, responding to the invitation of German Chancellor Angela Merkel. The two will have a working lunch, followed by a joint press conference. Prime Minister Ciolos will also meet with representatives of the Bundestag Friendship Group and of the Romanian community in Germany. The visit is aimed at strengthening bilateral relations and agreeing on common objectives on the European agenda, including issues pertaining to migration and to EU foreign policy. The Romanian official’s visit will also be a good opportunity to develop economic relations and to finalize a strategy to consolidate contacts between the two countries’ business sectors. Germany is Romania’s largest trade partner, accounting for a fifth of Romania’s exports. In 2014, two-way trade reached an all-time high of 21.3 billion euros. Germany is also one of Romania’s top investors, with some 7 billion euros worth of investment.
WORLD BANK — The World Bank has upgraded its economic growth forecast for Romania, from 3.2 to 3.9% this year, and from 3.5 to 4.1% for 2017. In its latest report on global economic developments issued on Wednesday, the World Bank has also upgraded its forecast on the growth of Romania’s GDP for last year, from 3 to 3.6%. In another development, the National Bank of Romania today decided to maintain its monetary policy interest rate at 1.75% per year.
ST. JOHN — Orthodox and Greek Catholic Christians in Romania are today celebrating St. John’s the Baptist’s feast day. Called by the Church the Forerunner, St. John foretold the coming of the Messiah in the person of Jesus Christ, whom he later baptized in the waters of Jordan. St. John died a martyr, beheaded for having the courage to scold the Jewish King Herod in public for his debauched marriage to his brother’s ex-wife. Nearly 2 million Romanians celebrate their name day today. Also today, Russian, Ukrainian, Armenian and Serbian nationals observing the old Julian calendar celebrate Christmas, 13 days later compared to the modern Gregorian calendar. Hundreds of tourists from Russia, Moldova and Ukraine have chosen to celebrate the Nativity of Christ in Romanian mountain resorts.
CHARLIE HEBDO — One year after the bloody terrorist attacks in Paris on January 7, which killed 17 people, including 12 employees of the French satirical publication Charlie Hebdo, French president Francois Hollande is expected to come up with new proposals to strengthen national security against terrorist threats. Commemorations will culminate in a public event on Sunday in Place de la Republique, where an oak ‘remembrance tree’ will be planted. We recall that on January 11, 2015 some 4 million French people attended a solidarity march against terrorism, joined by 50 world leaders.
TENNIS — The pair made up of Romanian Horia Tecau and Dutch Jean-Julien Rojer has qualified to the doubles semi-finals of the ATP tournament in Doha, totalling 1,2 million dollars. The world’s no. 1 pair in 2015 will next play Philipp Petzschner of Germany and Alexander Peya of Austria. In other news from tennis, Monica Niculescu of Romania and Vania King of the USA have made it to the doubles finals of the Shenzhen tournament in China, offering 500,000 dollars in prize money. In the semi-finals the two had won against Andreea Mitu and Patricia Maria Tig of Romania.
WEATHER IN ROMANIA — Skies are overcast across Romania, with rainfalls in the southeast, snowfalls in the north, northeast and in mountain regions. The highs of the day range between minus 3 and plus 3 degrees Celsius. The National Weather Administration has issued a code yellow alert against strong wind and blizzard for 14 counties in the east, southeast and northeast, in place from Thursday afternoon until Friday morning.
ACADEMIC EXCELLENCE — The winners of the Academic Excellence Abroad Competition are due to be made public today. Over 150 Romanian students enrolled in prestigious university centres in France, Italy, England, Portugal and the United States have signed up for the competition’s seven sections. Having reached its 7th edition, the event is organized by the League of Romanian Students Abroad. Over 800 people, including students and young professionals, academics, public sector officials and representatives of the business and NGO sectors, will attend the event.
RESPONSE — The United States, South Korea and Japan have announced they would stand united after North Korea on Wednesday announced the successful test of a hydrogen bomb. London, Paris, Moscow and even Beijing have condemned the move. The UN Security Council also agreed to impose fresh sanctions on North Korea. The Romanian Foreign Ministry in Bucharest has expressed concern, seeing the announcement as a threat to world peace and security. This is the fourth nuclear test carried out by Pyongyang since 2006. If confirmed, this will be the first hydrogen bomb test.
FORECAST — Several counties in Hungary are under a code orange alert against freezing rain in place until January 7 at midnight, reads a Romanian Foreign Ministry travel report. The Ministry also informs that according to the weather forecast for, heavy snowfalls and strong win are also to be expected in the west, south and southeast of Slovenia. All Romanian citizens travelling abroad are advised to download and consult the ‘Safe Travel’ application, including information, travel recommendations and alerts in case of emergencies.
(Translated by V. Palcu)
