January 30, 2014
News and current affairs from Romania
Ştefan Stoica, 30.01.2014, 11:22
All the blizzard alerts for the south and south east of Romania have expired now, but very cold weather follows. Forecasters warn of minimums as low as minus 15 to 18 degrees C. Seven counties in the south east are still under alert. Additional military and civilian aid workers have been sent to the affected regions. A few hundred towns and villages are affected by heavy snow and strong winds. Two motorways and 30 national roads in those areas have been shut down, while most trains are also affected. Schools remain closed Thursday in 14 counties, including the city of Bucharest. At the same time, ports on the Black Sea have resumed traffic.
US General Philip M. Breedlove, Supreme Allied Commander for Europe, spoke in Bucharest, saying he was impressed by Romania’s contribution to NATO missions, as well as by its participation in the anti-ballistic shield. He singled out during his meeting with Defense Minister Mircea Dusa the ISAF mission in Afghanistan, the Baltic aerial policing operation, as well as the Act Defense and Ocean Field operations in Turkey and the Mediterranean Sea respectively. The Romanian minister said that discussions focused on NATO objectives in 2014 as they affect Romania, such as the future Resolute Support mission in Afghanistan, the Smart Defense project and the Connected Forces Initiative.
Romanian President Traian Basescu receives today John Sawers, head of British foreign intelligence. The 59 year-old has been holding this position since 2009, and before that he was British ambassador to the UN. Between 2003 and 2007 he was in the top tiers of the Foreign Office, and between 2001 and 2003 he was ambassador to Egypt. Between 1999 and 2001 he advised Prime Minister Tony Blair on foreign policy and defense.
Romania is ready to work with all interested parties in developing the Black Sea region, as stated in Bucharest by Foreign Minister Titus Corlatean at a conference dedicated to improving the Black Sea’s development potential. Corlatean said that Romania supported enhanced dialog between Black Sea countries and European institutions, but also a strong partnership between the EU and the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organization, adding that Romania plans on being extremely active in its future position of coordinator of the organization’s environmental workgroup, between 2014 and 2016. The conference in Bucharest, organized by the Romanian Foreign Ministry and the European Commission, was attended, among others, by the European Commissioner for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, Maria Damanaki. The conference brought together public and private sector actors from all states around the Black Sea.
