5 May, 2019 UPDATE

A roundup of domestic and international news

Newsroom, 05.05.2019, 19:20

VISIT – On Sunday, in Sofia, Pope Francis called on the European leaders to approach issues such as wealth inequality and the low birth rates, which, he said, have created an ice curtain between the rich and the poor countries in Europe and have fuelled migration. Pope Francis is in Bulgaria on his first visit to that country and the first by a Pope in the past 17 years. His agenda includes meetings with diplomats and representatives of civil society and of various religious denominations, including Patriarch Neofit. After Bulgaria, Pope Francis will travel to North Macedonia. The BBC reports that the Roman-Catholics account for less than 1% of the populations of the two countries, where Orthodox believers are the majority. We recall that over May 31st – June 2nd, the Sovereign Pontiff will travel to Romania. Some twenty years ago, Pope John Paul II came to Romania, which became the first Orthodox country ever to be visited by a Pope since the Great Schism of 1054.

BUSINESS – In the first quarter of 2019, the number of foreign ownership companies newly set up in Romania grew by 9% as compared to the same period last year, going up to 1500, according to data provided by the National Trade Registry Office in Bucharest. On March 31st, 2019, there were some 223,000 such companies in Romania. Most of them, approximately 48,000 are Italian, but the highest value of the capital – 13 billion dollars – is that of the Dutch companies.

EUROPE DAY – Events devoted to Europe Day, which is celebrated each year on May 9th, have started in all the members states. On Sunday, in Rome, the Auditorium Parco della Musica hosted a concert given by the Romanian Youth Orchestra, under the baton of Rafael Butnaru. Europe Day has also been marked in Paris, with exhibitions, concerts, debates, film screenings and culinary workshops. As the country holding the rotating presidency of the Council of the EU, Romania is a guest of honour, alongside Finland, the country that will take over the presidency in July.

MIRCEA – The training ship Mircea, described by the Romanian Naval Forces as Romanias oldest maritime ambassador, has set sail for an international training march, marking 80 years of active service. For a period of three months, the vessel will sail across the Black Sea, the Sea of Marmara, the Aegean and the Mediterranean, as well as the Atlantic Ocean and the North Sea. The crew will be joined by cadets from naval academies in Albania, Bulgaria, China, France, Poland, Portugal, Turkey and Ukraine. The march was planned as a memento due to end in the port of Hamburg, Germany, where the ship was built. The name of the ship is that of ruler Mircea cel Batran (Michael the old), who ruled Wallachia six centuries ago and under whose reign domestic navigation and sea trade developed significantly.

STRIKES – The Israeli army have strengthened their presence along the border with Gaza, after reporting that some 600 missiles have been fired against southern Israel by the Palestinian radical groups Hamas and the Islamic Jihad in the past days. At least three Israelis have been killed and dozens have been qounded. In Gaza Strip, which is controlled by Hamas, at least eight Palestinians were killed in the Israeli air strikes. According to an Israeli army spokesperson, armoured vehicles are ready for a ground operation. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has stated that he ordered the continuation of air strikes, in response to the Palestinian attacks.

TENNIS – On Sunday, three Romanian tennis players qualified for the second round of the Madrid Open. In the first round of the tournament with 7 million dollars in prize money, Simona Halep, no. 3 in the WTA rankings, defeated the Russian Margarita Gasparian 6-nil, 6-4. Halep won the Madrid trophy in 2016 and 2017. Last year, she left the tournament in the quarterfinals. Also on Sunday, Sorana Cirstea defeated the American Madison Keys, 3-6, 6-4, 6-1. And finally, the third Romanian, Mihaela Buzarnescu, defeated the Australian Ajla Tomljanovic 6-3, 6-2.