December 29, 2025
A roundup of local and world news
Newsroom, 29.12.2025, 13:55
JUDICIARY The Constitutional Court of Romania Monday failed to meet quorum requirements and once again deferred a ruling on the notification lodged by the High Court of Cassation and Justice against the Bolojan Cabinet’s new bill regulating the retirement of magistrates. The ruling had already been postponed twice, most recently on Sunday, also due to lack of quorum, as some of the judges left the room during the session and did not return. Talks will resume on January 16. The new bill on magistrates’ pensions passed by the Government provides for a phased increase in the retirement age to 65, and caps pensions at 70% of the net income made in the last month of work. The High Court of Cassation and Justice argues however that the new legislation violates the independence of the judiciary, and magistrates would be discriminated against. Currently, magistrates can retire at 48, and their pensions can be equal to the last salary. The government’s first attempt to address this social injustice, which can no longer be sustained by the economy, as PM Ilie Bolojan said, was dismissed by the Constitutional Court in October, also at the request of the High Court of Cassation and Justice, on grounds that the government had not requested the opinion of the Higher Council of Magistrates within the time frame provided by the law.
UKRAINE The president of France Emmanuel Macron announced today that a meeting of Kyiv’s allies in the Coalition of the Willing will take place in Paris in early January, to discuss security guarantees for Ukraine as part of a peace agreement with Russia. The announcement comes after Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Donald Trump met on Sunday at the US president’s residence in Florida. At the press conference that followed, Trump said that “we are getting a lot closer, maybe very close” to peace, although Zelenskyy reiterated that Ukraine does not agree with giving up territory to Russia. This would only be possible if the people agreed in a referendum or if the parliament in Kyiv adopted such a decision, he said. However, the Ukrainian president also spoke of “great progress.” He said 90% of the 20-point peace plan is approved, as are the security guarantees for Ukraine, and a prosperity plan is being finalised. “Europe is ready to keep working with Ukraine and our US partners to consolidate this progress. Paramount to this effort is to have ironclad security guarantees from day one,” the European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen posted on X after a phone call with Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the US president Donald Trump, and European leaders.
GOVERNMENT The agenda of the last Cabinet meeting in 2025 includes a draft emergency order that would help people with disabilities integrate more easily into the community. The order concerns the introduction of a new type of social service, called “From Assisted Living in the Community to Independent Living.” The service includes sheltered housing, a Centre for Independent Living and other services that support the social integration of people with disabilities who leave the public system. The government should also make a decision on another draft emergency order, concerning the transfer of the Romanian Copyright Office to the Ministry of Culture. After being twice put on the agenda of government meetings this month, the draft order was withdrawn each time for review. The main goal is to ensure responsible allocation of expenditure and the efficient spending of available resources.
WEATHER In Romania, the wind has been blowing hard in the last 24 hours across the country. Yellow and red code warnings have been issued, especially in the mountains. Due to the blizzard and low visibility, traffic was closed on high-altitude roads, such as Transalpina. In fact, the wind has caused problems in several other parts of the country, where it damaged roofs, destroyed electrical wires and uprooted trees. The weather is expected to stay windy on Monday, with highs ranging between -4 and 7 degrees Celsius, and around 6 degrees Celsius in the capital city Bucharest. (AMP)
