December 14, 2025 UPDATE

The latest news from RRI

Newsroom, 14.12.2025, 19:58

Protests – Sunday saw the fifth evening of protests in the center of Bucharest after the revelations of a journalistic investigation regarding problems in the justice system. The protesters, from Bucharest and other cities across the country and abroad, have as their demands the recovery of the independence of judges, the abolition of the de facto immunity of magistrates, the reduction of the control exercised by the Superior Council of Magistracy over the judicial system and the urgent dismissal of the heads of prosecutors’ offices. In parallel with the street protests, the petition initiated by the non-governmental organizations Declic and Funky Citizens for the amendment of the Justice Laws is gathering more and more signatures. The signatories call on the Prime Minister and the President of Romania to initiate a real reform of the justice system, through a transparent and honest procedure, which goes beyond simple public declarations. In the documentary Recorder released a few days ago, several prosecutors and judges appear, some with protected identities, revealing how the leadership of the Bucharest Court of Appeal routinely changes judges from panels in order to obtain favorable decisions for individuals accused of corruption. Hundreds of magistrates have publicly denounced abuses in the judiciary. The Judges’ Section of the Supreme Council of Magistracy has decided to notify the Judicial Inspection to conduct checks on the issues reported in the press material broadcast by Recorder.

Motion – Romanian parliamentarians are meeting on Monday afternoon in a joint session to debate and vote on the no confidence motion against the government, initiated by the parliamentary group “PEACE, Romania First” and supported by the Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR), which proposes removing Save Romania Union (USR) from the government. The document is initiated by opposition parliamentarians who criticize the activity of the Executive. They claim that the government led by Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan has not properly managed areas such as justice, health, education or public administration. On the other hand, the representatives of the governing parties assure that the opposition’s approach will not be successful. Social Democratic MPs announce that they will not vote for the motion of censure, but the social democrats will evaluate in the coming period the relations with the other parties in the coalition (Liberal Party, Save Romania Union, Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania). For the motion of censure to pass, 232 favorable votes are needed. Also on Monday, a simple motion against the environment minister Diana Buzoianu will be debated and voted on in the Senate.

Meeting – The Romanian Foreign Minister, Oana Ţoiu, will participate on Monday in the Foreign Affairs Council and in events on the sidelines of this meeting that will take place in Brussels. According to the Romanian Foreign Ministry, the agenda of the meeting includes Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, with the participation of the Ukrainian Foreign Minister, Andriy Sîbiha, via videoconference, the situation in the Middle East, including Syria and Lebanon, and China, with an emphasis on geopolitical and geo-economic aspects. On the sidelines of the meeting, Minister Oana Ţoiu will participate in an informal breakfast of the heads of European diplomacy with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Armenia, Ararat Mirzoyan.

Attack – The international community is condemning the armed attack that targeted a Jewish holiday on the famous Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia, on Sunday, an attack that killed or injured about 20 people. According to the Australian national channel ABC, one of the two attackers is among those killed. Located in the east of Sydney, Bondi attracts a large number of tourists, surfers and swimmers, especially on weekends.

Bridge – Road traffic on the Giurgiu-Ruse friendship bridge, between Romania and Bulgaria, will resume in both directions from December 18 for all types of vehicles, including on the repaired section of the bridge over the Danube, which is currently closed in the direction of Romania. Thus, during the Christmas and New Year holidays, traffic will be possible without restrictions, the Border Police reports. This measure is valid until January 8, 2026, during which time the works will be suspended to allow for smooth and safe transit, in the context of the winter holidays. The works will resume from January 8 on the direction towards Bulgaria.

Fishing – EU agriculture ministers have reached an agreement on fishing quotas for next year, setting catch limits and fishing days for the Atlantic, North Sea, Mediterranean, Black Sea and other waters, with some rules extending until 2028. In the Black Sea, the EU Council agreed on slightly lower total allowable catches than this year for turbot, with Romania and Bulgaria directly concerned. Turbot fishing also has a ban period between April 15 and June 15, and the number of fishing days for authorized vessels is limited to 180. For sprat, assimilated in Romania to the term anchovy, the Commission proposed the same catch limit, of around 11,500 tons, divided unequally between Romania and Bulgaria. Romania receives 30%, which is about 3,500 tons, the distribution taking into account historical and natural fishing data. For sharks in the Black Sea, very small species, such as the dogfish, a ban on commercial fishing remains in place. (LS)