September 5, 2023

A roundup of local and international news.

Newsroom, 05.09.2023, 13:21

VICTIM – Another patient severely injured in the explosions in Crevedia (southern Romania) has died this morning, bringing the number of deaths to 5, the Health Ministry announced. The victim was of Nepalese origin and had burns on more than 90% of his body. We remind you that powerful explosions followed by a fire took place, a week ago, at an LPG (liquefied petroleum gas) station in Crevedia, south of Bucharest, which was operating illegally.

SUMMIT – Romania and President Klaus Iohannis are getting ready to host in Bucharest, as of Wednesday, a summit and a business forum of the Three Seas Initiative, a political platform that brings together 12 EU countries bordering the Adriatic, Baltic and Black seas. Talks will focus on the promotion of economic growth and strategic interconnections, but also on redefining the Initiatives relationship with its neighborhood, which has undergone geopolitical reconfiguration. President Klaus Iohannis has announced that at the summit in Bucharest, the Three Seas Initiative will expand with a new member, while two other countries will receive the associate status. The US reaffirmed its support for the objectives of the Three Seas Initiative and also its willingness to collaborate closely with partner countries. The US special presidential envoy for climate, John Kerry, will head the American delegation to the summit in Bucharest.

DECISIONS – The PSD-PNL Government in Bucharest will assume responsibility in Parliament for the measures aimed at reducing the budget deficit. According to PM Marcel Ciolacu, the legislative package will cover the fight against evasion, the reforms in the local administration, and fiscal changes. The Liberals want to maintain the flat tax and do not agree with measures such as increasing the tax on dividends or reducing the ceiling for SMEs. The main opposition parties, however, criticize the Executives intention to assume responsibility and threaten with motions of no-confidence. The Government assuming responsibility for a legislative bill is a procedure that allows the bill to pass without being debated in Parliament.

EXHIBITION — It is less than a month until the opening of the exhibition “Brâncusi: Romanian sources and universal perspectives”. The exhibition, on display between September 30, 2023 and January 28, 2024 will be hosted by the National Art Museum in Timisoara. It will bring together emblematic sculptures from the mature period of the Romanian sculptor Constantin Brâncuşi, brought from renowned museums such as the Pompidou Center or Tate Gallery, but also works from his youth, who are part of private collections. The exhibition, the largest one dedicated to Brâncusi in the last 50 years, is the peak moment of the programme Timișoara 2023 European Capital of Culture.

MEETING — Romanian President Klaus Iohannis is today receiving the Prime Minister of Luxembourg, Xavier Bettel, on the occasion of his visit to Cincu (centre), at the invitation of the Romanian side, the Presidential Administration announced. The two officials will have political consultations and will visit together the troops stationed at the Getica National Joint Training Center in Cincu. They will address the soldiers from Luxembourg who are part of the NATO battle group in Romania. President Iohannis and Prime Minister Xavier Bettel will discuss about the consolidation of the deterrence posture on NATO’s Eastern Flank, the continuation of the multidimensional support offered to Ukraine, as well as about the support for vulnerable partners in the region, with an emphasis on the Republic of Moldova, a country seriously affected by the consequences of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine.

TENNIS — Romanian tennis player Sorana Cîrstea is playing tonight against the Chech Karolina Muchova in the quarterfinals of the US Open, the last Grand Slam of the year. Cîrstea defeated the Swiss Belinda Bencic in the previous round, 6-3, 6-3. The Romanian athlete, (33 years old, 30 WTA), seed number 30, played only one quarterfinal at a Grand Slam tournament, in 2009, at Roland Garros, when she was 19 years old. (EE)