June 18, 2026 UPDATE
A roundup of local and international news.
Newsroom, 18.06.2026, 19:52
Summit. The EU summer summit, which is also attended by Romania’s President Nicusor Dan, got under way in Brussels on Thursday. High on the agenda and of special interest for Romania are the multi-annual budget for the period 2028-2034, strengthening anti-drone defence and the accession talks of Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova. Radio Romania’s correspondent recalls that Romania and 16 other states have obtained a number of gains in terms of securing funding for the cohesion policy and agriculture. Romania and the less developed countries in eastern and southern Europe are now lobbying for the distribution of competitiveness funds, taking into account not only the excellence criterion but also that of equity. Another issue is the European defence and here Romania and its neighbours on the eastern flank want the urgent implementation of measures and equipment to be able to handle drone incidents. Romania is also interested in the EU accession of the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine. The two countries have just opened the first negotiation chapter after a deadlock that lasted two years.
Corruption. The general mayor of Bucharest, Ciprian Ciucu, has been placed under judicial control by prosecutors from the National Anticorruption Directorate in a bribe taking case, according to judicial sources. Ciucu, who is also first deputy-president of the National Liberal Party, was summoned to the National Anticorruption Directorate on Thursday to be informed that he is a suspect. The same sources say that the mayor allegedly received a bribe to issue a permit when he was mayor of Bucharest’s Sector 6. When leaving the hearings, Ciucu said he has nothing to hide and that he is innocent. He also said he intends to carry out his term as mayor.
Government. Sorin Grindeanu, the president of the Social Democratic Party, the biggest party in Romania, says that the Social-Democrats will decide on Sunday whether they are going to join the government proposed by the Liberal Adrian Veştea. The Prime Minister-designate was to submit his ruling programme and the list of his cabinet in Parliament on Thursday, voicing confidence the country would soon have a functional government, capable of ensuring stability, predictability and concrete solutions for citizens. He said he would continue dialogue and negotiations with political parties until the program and the government team are finalised. The National Liberal Party, the Save Romania Union and the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania, currently forming the interim government that was dismissed by a no-confidence motion last month, have already said they are not going to endorse the Veştea cabinet. The ultra-nationalist and populist Alliance for the Union of Romanians said it will not endorse the new cabinet. In order to get invested, the government needs 233 votes.
Congress. Interim Prime Minister and president of the National Liberal Party Ilie Bolojan proposed holding the party’s Extraordinary Congress on June 21, emphasising the need for clarity, clear decision-making and a straightfoward direction. He pointed out that the liberals did not want this congress, but that the situation requires it. On Monday, the party’s National Political Bureau stood against the party’s being in government together with the Social Democrats, against supporting a Government led by Adrian Veştea and in favour of requesting Veştea to resign as Prime Minister-designate.
Ranking. Romania ranks 61st in a ranking of the world’s 70 most competitive economies, according to a report by the Institute for Management and Development in Lausanne, Switzerland. Romania has dropped 12 places in a year and has been overtaken by countries such as Hungary, at no. 51, and Bulgaria, at 56, but is ahead of Mexico, which is 62nd, and Slovakia – 63rd. The report shows that the country needs to streamline public spending to reduce the budget deficit, accelerate investment in research, development and innovation, support businesses to implement digital transformation, improve healthcare and education and modernise its defence industry. Globally, Switzerland has lost its position as the most competitive economy in the world, being overtaken by Singapore and Hong Kong.
Resolution. The European Union will not be intimidated by Russia’s campaign of destabilisation and is determined to defend its security, according to a resolution adopted by MEPs on Thursday, the European Parliament said in a press release. Drone incursions and airspace violations of EU territory are not isolated incidents but an integral part of Russia’s broader strategy of intimidation of the EU and its allies, MEPs said. These hostile acts are compounded by an aggressive disinformation campaign seeking to intimidate people living in these areas, spread fear, damage the local economy and create a pretext for possible retaliatory actions. MEPs expressed their total solidarity with Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania and Romania, whose territories, airspace or critical infrastructure have been targeted by Russian hybrid provocations. There is an urgency to the need to accelerate the production and delivery of priority military equipment to Ukraine, especially air defence systems, ammunition, drones and missiles, MEPs also said.
Festival. Over 5,000 theatre professionals from 83 different countries and 848 events are on the agenda of the International Theatre Festival due to kick off in Sibiu, central Romania, on Saturday. This is the 33rd edition of the festival, which is believed to be the most important of this kind in Romania and the third largest in Europe. (CM)
