March 20, 2026 UPDATE 2
JUST IN: Romania joins the declaration of Great Britain, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Japan on ensuring freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, a fundamental principle of international law.
Newsroom, 20.03.2026, 20:00
UPDATE (21.00, local time):
Romania joins the declaration of Great Britain, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Japan on ensuring freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, a fundamental principle of international law, according to Romania’s President Nicusor Dan.
“Romania’s joining this initiative takes place against the backdrop of the serious implications the closure of the Strait has on global energy markets, as well as on the world economy. The effects are also felt in Romania, especially in terms of fuel prices. In this regard, we are ready to participate in the efforts of the international community that will lead to maintaining prices at a bearable level for the population.
Romania maintains its clear decision not to get involved in the conflict in the Middle East and we are working alongside international partners for de-escalation”, president Nicusor Dan writes in a Facebook post on Friday evening.
Budget – The draft law on the state budget for 2026 was adopted on Friday by the reunited plenary session of the Romanian Parliament. There were 319 votes “for”, 104 votes “against” and one abstention. The social security budget also passed the vote of senators and deputies, with 314 votes “for”, 105 “against” and 12 abstentions. After the vote, Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan stated that the budget for 2026 represented Romania’s safety belt in the face of unwanted slippages. The PM specified that the state budget ensured the necessary funds for investments, salaries and pensions, being built on a prudent estimate of state revenues and ensuring social protection for vulnerable categories, but within realistic limits. In turn, the president of the Social Democratic Party (PSD) in the governing coalition, Sorin Grindeanu, said that, after the adoption of this very important law, the Government’s priority must be the price of fuel and energy. He also mentioned that the Social Democrats were not giving up on internal consultations regarding the possible exit from government. When drawing up Romania’s budget, they took into account a decrease in the deficit to 6.2%, an economic growth of 1% and an inflation of 6.5% at the end of the year.
Visit – The President of Romania, Nicuşor Dan, was received, on Friday, at the Royal Castle of Laeken, by the King of Belgium, Philippe. The Romanian head of state has been in Brussels since Thursday and he had a meeting, at the headquarters of the North Atlantic Alliance, with the NATO Secretary General, Mark Rutte, and participated in the European Council meeting. The agenda of the discussions with Rutte included security developments in the international environment and those on the Eastern Flank, with an emphasis on the Black Sea region, a context in which measures were addressed meant to strengthen deterrence and collective defense, as well as to increase Romania’s security through and with the support of NATO.
Brâncuşi – A retrospective exhibition that partially reconstructs the famous Parisian studio of Constantin Brâncuşi was opened on Thursday evening in Berlin. It is the first time in 50 years that an exhibition dedicated to the great Romanian sculptor is being organized in Germany, an event held under the high patronage of the presidents of Germany, France and Romania. According to the Romanian Cultural Institute, until August 9, 150 sculptures, photographs, films and archival documents from international collections, as well as objects borrowed from museums in Romania, will be presented to the public. The exhibition in Berlin is part of the Constantin Brâncuşi National Year program, dedicated to the 150th anniversary of the birth of the great sculptor.
Fuels – The situation of the fuel market, in the context of the conflict in the Middle East, was analyzed on Friday by Romanian Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan with the ministers of finance and energy, with representatives of the Ministry of Economy, National Agency for Fiscal Administration (ANAF), the Competition Council and the National Agency for Public Procurement. The technical teams will work at the end of this week and at the beginning of next week there will be a new meeting to finalize the solutions, the Prime Minister writes in an online post. He also says that these are not easy decisions to make, because an arbitrary price cap can lead to shortages, and a possible decrease in excise duties must guarantee a reduction in prices, and which should also be bearable by the budget for 2026, in the context of reducing the deficit. Ilie Bolojan emphasizes that he refuses to sell populist solutions, which would create the appearance of aid, but which would in fact generate new imbalances and costs. In Romania, fuel prices set a new record on Friday, recording the biggest increase since the beginning of the war. The price of standard gasoline exceeded the 9 lei threshold in many gas stations, while a liter of standard diesel is approaching the psychological threshold of 10 lei (about 2 Euros).
Iran – Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed to have shot down a US military F-35 fighter jet in the Iranian airspace. The United States confirmed that a similar aircraft was forced to make an emergency landing in the Middle East, but the maneuver was reportedly carried out without incident, and the pilot is in stable condition. US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said that his country’s armed forces had completely destroyed Iran’s submarine fleet and significantly damaged the Islamic Republic’s military ports, as part of the war waged alongside Israel against Tehran. US President Donald Trump is considering capturing Kharg Island or a blockade around it, multiple sources within the Washington administration told Axios. Military installations on the island, which is located in the Persian Gulf, about 25 kilometers from the Iranian coast, have already been bombed. In addition, thousands of marines have recently been sent to the Gulf region, who have the military equipment and training necessary for a seaborne assault. Tehran exports 90% of its oil through Kharg, and the calculation in Washington would be that if the Iranians lose Kharg, they will be willing to unblock the Strait of Hormuz. In peacetime, 20% of the oil sold globally passes through it. Meanwhile, Israel continues its campaign to eliminate Iranian leaders, most recently killing the spokesman for the Revolutionary Guards. Bombings on Tehran have also continued, as has Iranian missile launches in the direction of Israel and the Gulf states, Reuters reports. (LS)
