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SCHENGEN The president of the European Parliament Roberta Metsola is on a 2-day working visit to Bucharest as of today, with a support message for Romania's Schengen accession efforts. Today, Roberta Metsola is scheduled to have meetings with president Klaus Iohannis, PM Nicolae Ciucă and the speakers of the Chamber of Deputies and Senate, Marcel Ciolacu and Alina Gorghiu, and will address a joint Parliament meeting. On Tuesday, Roberta Metsola will have talks with young Romanians as part of an event called 'Together we are Europe,' organised by the European Parliament Office in Romania in a partnership with the Law School of the University of Bucharest. According to the institution, during their dialogue with Metsola the young participants will be able to find out about the benefits of the European parliamentary democracy, ways to influence European policies, why it is important for them to get involved in protecting European democracy and how the decisions and policies of the European Parliament impact Europeans' day-to-day lives.
VISIT The Romanian foreign minister, Bogdan Aurescu, is on a 2-day official visit to Chişinău, at the invitation of Moldova's deputy PM and minister for foreign affairs and European integration, Nicu Popescu. For 2 days, Bogdan Aurescu will have consultations with his counterpart, will be received by the president of the R. of Moldova Maia Sandu, and will have talks with PM Natalia Gavriliţa and with the parliament speaker Igor Grosu. They will discuss aspects related to countering the war of aggression waged by the Russian Federation against Ukraine, as well as topics related to cooperation in the field of energy security, stepping up sectoral cooperation, economic cooperation and the assistance measures taken by Romania to the benefit of the R. of Moldova. A major topic for discussion will be Moldova's progress in its EU accession efforts, after the country was granted the accession candidate status in June 2022, and Romania's concrete support in this respect.
ENERGY EU energy ministers convene today in Brussels in an attempt to reach an agreement on a natural gas price cap, in the context of the rise in energy prices triggered by the war in Ukraine. Last week, they failed to reach consensus on this topic. The participants will also try to come up with a general approach on a proposed reduction of methane emissions in the energy sector. The draft regulation requires oil, natural gas and coal operators to measure, report and check methane emissions. Moreover, the EU energy ministers will try to reach an agreement with respect to the proposed REPowerEU directive, which modifies the EU legislation on renewable energy, energy efficiency and the energy performance of buildings. The proposal aims to step up the use of renewable energy. On the other hand, the Czech presidency of the EU Council will present a report on the progress made with respect to the natural gas package, which includes a proposed directive and a proposed regulation on single market norms for gas from renewable sources, natural gas and hydrogen.
COMMEMORATION In Timişoara, western Romania, events carry on marking 33 years since the anti-communist revolution of December 1989. The events highlight the courage and sacrifice of the Revolution heroes, and the need for the younger generations to carry on the spirit of freedom. After the marches, religious services, exhibitions, film screenings and roundtables organised in the previous days, today a pilgrimage will be held at the monuments making up the Revolution Memorial. Short reels made by young artists will also be screened in schools, and the traditional "Rockford revolution" festival is also scheduled for today. Also today, the members of the bereaved families are leaving for Bucharest to retrace the route on which the bodies of 43 revolution participants from Timisoara were sent for incineration. The events devoted to the 33 years since the Revolution will culminate on Tuesday, December 20, Victory Day, when Timişoara was declared the first city free of communism in Romania. The uprising against the communist regime in Romania began in Timişoara on December 16, 1989 and spread to Bucharest and other cities in the country. Over 1,000 people died and some 3,000 were wounded in the clashes that took place on that occasion.
FOOTBALL Argentina is the world's new football champion. In the final of the Qatar tournament on Sunday, Argentina defeated the previous champions, France, after penalty shootouts. This is the 3rd world championship won by the South Americans, after the title in 1978 and the one in 1986. The next world championship, held in 2026, will be hosted jointly by the US, Canada and Mexico. (AMP)
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