March 22, 2022 UPDATE

A round up of local and international news.

Newsroom, 22.03.2022, 19:55

Visit. Romania
and Poland agreed to boost their security cooperation, said Romanian president
Klaus Iohannis after talks in Bucharest on Tuesday with visiting Polish president Andrzej Duda. We urgently need
consistent and balanced consolidation of the eastern flank and enhanced forward
presence, he added. The two states want a clear reaffirmation of NATO’s main
role, namely collective defence. President Iohannis also announced he decided,
together with president Duda, that Bucharest would host a B9 summit to prepare
the NATO summit to be hosted by Madrid in June. The Polish president said a new
NATO concept is needed, given Russia’s aggression against a sovereign state and
the security crisis it generated across Europe. The two leaders reiterated
their firm support for the EU accession of the Republic of Moldova, Ukraine and
Georgia. They also discussed the profound humanitarian crisis triggered by the
Russian invasion.

Ukraine.
Ukrainian president Volodymyr
Zelensky told Italian Parliament on Tuesday that his country was on the brink
of surviving the war. He called for tougher sanctions against Russia, warning
that the latter’s aim is to destroy Europe’s values, democracy and human
rights. Zelensky also talked to pope Francis, who condemned Russia’s war as a
senseless massacre. On the ground, while Russian troops continue to shell Ukraine’s
cities, the humanitarian situation in the besieged city of Mariupol shows no
signs of improving.

Sentence.
Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny was sentenced on Tuesday to nine more
years in prison on fraud charges. His lawyers said they would appeal the ruling.
He is already serving a two and a half year sentence for violating probation
terms, a verdict he said was politically motivated. He was jailed in January
2020 as soon as he returned to Moscow from Germany, where he had been treated
for Novichok poisoning. In the latest case, he was found guilty of illegally
securing funds for his anticorruption foundation, which is banned in Russia.

Refugees. The
number of refugees entering Romania from the neighbouring Ukraine through Vama
Siret check point, in the north, has been on the decrease for a few days.
According to the most recent report, fewer than 2,000 refugees passed through
the check point in 24 hours, half the daily average last week.

Misinformation.
The Romanian economy ministry and major retail chains will set up a crisis cell
to respond promptly to fake news, such as the news that triggered the sudden
and unjustified increase in the fuel prices, said minister Florin Spataru. He
explained that the lack of reaction to such news is likely to affect consumers,
producers and distributors alike. Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, a lot
of false information has emerged in the Romanian public space, generating
panic.

Inflation. The
National Bank of Romania is expecting the inflation rate to exceed the
estimated level of 11% by mid-year, for reasons such as the rise in the price
of fuel, energy and cereals, all of these triggered by the war in Ukraine. In
order to keep things in check, the Central Bank may once again increase the
reference interest rate.

Covid-19.
Romania reported over 5,000 new Covid cases on Tuesday, almost 3,000 more than
on the previous day. 52 related fatalities were also recorded, including 9 from
an earlier date. Some 2,900 Covid patients are receiving hospital treatment,
including 443 in intensive care. All
Covid restrictions were lifted in Romania from 9th March. (CM)