October 26, 2022 UPDATE
A roundup of domestic and international news
Newsroom, 26.10.2022, 20:00
NATO. Romania is a very valuable ally and NATO is prepared to defend Romania, the Secretary General of the North Atlantic Alliance, Jens Stoltenberg, said on Wednesday in Brussels, in a joint press conference with Prime Minister Nicolae Ciucă. For his part, the Prime Minister of Romania stated that the security in the region continues to be affected by the illegal war of aggression waged by Russia against Ukraine and reiterated the support for the Euro-Atlantic integration of Ukraine, assumed since 2008, at the Summit in Bucharest. Nicolae Ciuca said that Bucharest remains fully committed to fulfilling all its obligations and will continue to be a responsible and active contributor to the promotion of Euro-Atlantic security and stability. At the same time, he emphasized the need for support and assistance for Ukraine, noting that the Republic of Moldova and Georgia, the most vulnerable partners, also need support, and Romanias decision is to contribute financially to the NATO Trust Funds set up to help these states. On a working visit to Brussels on Wednesday and Thursday, the Romanian Prime Minister has met with the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen and the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola. The topics of discussion included Romanias accession to the Schengen Area and the European Unions response to Russias military aggression against Ukraine.
Energy. Both the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine are in a very difficult situation in terms of energy supply and the EUs emergency involvement is vital before the start of winter, the European Commissioner for Energy, Kadri Simon, said. Chisinau was informed, last week, that Russian gas flows would be further reduced, as well as the supply of electricity from Transnistria (a Russian-speaking separatist region in the east of the Republic of Moldova). Moreover, Ukraine was forced to suspend its electricity exports, while a third of Moldovas electricity imports relied on it. According to Radio Chisinau, Moldova is facing a deficit of gas and electricity, after Russia reduced the volume of gas delivered per day.
Prescription. The prosecutors of the Superior Council of Magistracy in Romania warns that the direct application of prescription in criminal cases at various stages of trial will result in the termination of some trials and the elimination of criminal liability for certain criminal offenses, some of which are very serious. The Council’s reaction comes after, on Tuesday, the Supreme Court decided that the decision of the Constitutional Court regarding the prescription of criminal offenses applies retroactively. In May, the CCR had removed the article from the Criminal Code that allowed prosecutors to interrupt the course of prescription by administering new evidence. After that decision, some courts suspended the trials, pending a clarification from the supreme court, others just ruled the termination of some corruption trials. One of the politicians that could benefit from the new prescription ruling is former minister Elena Udrea, currently imprisoned for corruption.
Food waste. 127 kg of food waste per inhabitant were generated in the European Union in 2020 according to the first EU-wide monitoring of food waste conducted by Eurostat, the European statistical office. The survey also notes that 45% of food waste was generated in the food supply chain, while household food waste represented 55%. Almost 10% of food waste was generated by restaurants and food services. According to the agriculture ministry, Romania wastes 2.5 million tons of food every year, which accounts for at least 70 kg of food waste per inhabitant.
Farming. Romanian farmers managed to obtain, this year, despite extremely difficult natural conditions, 9 million tons of wheat and over 2 million tons of sunflower, thus ensuring Romanias consumption needs and a surplus for export – said, on Wednesday, the Minister of Agriculture, Petre Daea. He participated, in Bucharest, in the opening of Indagra – the biggest agricultural fair in Romania. This year, sustainable crop production and technologies that ensure low energy and fuel consumption are promoted. In parallel with Indagra, there is also Indagra Food – a fair for the food industry, where more than 400 exhibiting companies are present, including from abroad: manufacturers and distributors of equipment and technologies for the meat industry, from the field of bakery, vegetable and fruit industrialization, fish and milk processing. (MI)
