June 22, 2022 UPDATE

A roundup of domestic and international news

Newsroom, 22.06.2022, 19:50

Summits. The President of
Romania, Klaus Iohannis, will attend, on June 23-24, in Brussels, the meeting
of the leaders of the European Union and the Western Balkans, the European
Council and the Euro Summit in extended format. According to the Presidency in
Bucharest, the meeting of the leaders of the European Union and of the Western Balkans
will be an opportunity to reaffirm, in the current geopolitical context, the EU
leaders’ support for the European anchoring of the Western Balkans and for
advancing and consolidating the enlargement process within the established
framework. At the same time, the meeting will focus on an exchange of views
with partners in the region to identify concrete ways to stimulate reform
processes and strengthen cooperation in key areas of common interest, in order
to enhance resilience. The agenda of the European Council meeting will include
a strategic debate on defining the European Union’s relations with its European
partners, the situation in Ukraine, from the perspective of security
developments and the support provided by the European Union on multiple levels,
and Ukraine’s, Moldova’s and Georgia’s applications for EU membership. At the
extended Euro Summit, the participants will discuss the economic situation in
the Union and the developments regarding the Banking Union and the capital
markets.

Cooperation. In Abu Dhabi, Romanian
Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu co-chaired with Ahmed bin Ali Al Sayegh,
Minister of State for Economic and Trade Affairs of the United Arab Emirates, the
second session of the cooperation commission of the the governments of the two
countries. The meeting took place in the context of the visit of the Romanian
Prime Minister, Nicolae Ciuca, to the United Arab Emirates, between June 20-21.
Aurescu expressed a strong interest in further developing and diversifying
cooperation in areas of major importance to the two states, namely economy,
trade, maritime and air transport, energy, IT&C, cyber security,
agriculture and food security, environment and aerospace research. A bilateral
governmental agreement on military cooperation and a memorandum of
understanding have been signed between the Romanian Ministry of Transport and
Infrastructure and the Dubai Ports, Customs and Free Zones Authority.

NATO. The United States said
NATO is ready to defend Lithuania in the event of a Russian invasion. The US
State Department emphasized that Washington firmly supports Article 5 of the
North Atlantic Treaty stipulating that an attack on one is an attack on all.
This is in response to Russia’s threats against Lithuania after this Baltic
state banned the transit of EU sanctioned goods to Russia’s Kaliningrad enclave
citing the EU ban imposed after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. According to
Radio Romania’s correspondent in Moscow, the EU ambassador in Moscow Markus
Edler was summoned by the Russian foreign ministry over the ban, with the
Russian side saying it violates EU commitments and escalates tensions in the
area. Edler, who urged Moscow to solve the issue through diplomatic means,
emphasised Lithuania was not taking unilateral measures, but imposing EU
sanctions, with the movement of people and of goods that are not subject to
sanctions continuing as usual.

Poll. Three quarters of
Romanians are worried about a possible economic crisis that may influence their
financial situation, according to the latest edition of a barometer on risk
perception and insurance culture in Romania conducted by UNSAR-IRES. 68% are
most worried about the rising inflation rate, 64% about the war, 61% about
fires and car accidents and 57% about the pandemic and sickness.

Violence. In Romania,
victims of domestic violence will benefit from social housing and temporary
accommodation, based on a bill adopted by the Chamber of Deputies. According to
the document, the houses are made available to the abused persons only until
the completion of the settlement, as provided by law. Almost 85% of beatings or
violence occur at home, and one in three protection orders is violated.
According to a report by the Network for the Prevention and Combating of
Violence against Women, the Romanian police registered almost 20,000 cases of
domestic violence last year.

Swimming. On Wednesday evening,
the 17-year-old Romanian swimmer David Popovici won the 100m freestyle final at
the FINA World Championships in Budapest. On Monday evening, Popovici had won
the gold in 200m free, Romania’s first world title in men’s swimming. (MI)