A roundup of domestic and international news
COVID-19 IN ROMANIA - New vaccination marathons are being held this weekend in Romania. In Bucharest, the marathon addresses people who took the first anti-COVID shot three weeks ago as well as people who want to take the first shot. A vaccination caravan will travel to markets and crowded areas in Brasov. In Petrosani, people can get vaccinated in drive-through centers. Nearly 70,000 people got vaccinated in Romania in the last 24 hours. Since the start of the pandemic, over 4.2 million people got vaccinated, of whom 3.5 with both shots of the vaccine. The number of COVID-19 infections continues to drop in Romania. 265 new infections were reported on Saturday, in addition to 73 related fatalities. 452 people are in intensive care.
PFIZER - Children aged 12-15 can get the anti-COVID vaccine developed by Pfizer / BioNTech. The European Medicines Agency on Friday authorized the vaccine as safe for use by children in this age bracket. Romania is expected to make the first appointments starting next week, the president of the national commission for coordinating the vaccination campaign, Dr. Valeriu Gheorghiţă. This is the first vaccine greenlit for immunizing teenagers in the 27 EU member states. Tests carried out at EU level show that the vaccine has 100% efficiency for young people. The European Medicines Agency has recommended each member state should decide when and how to administer the vaccine.
NATO - NATO Deputy Secretary General, Mircea Geoană, on Monday is paying a visit to Romania, accompanied by the president of the NATO Military Commission, General Stuart Peach. Mircea Geoană's agenda is very busy, including a visit to the NATO Multinational Division Southeast, which is taking part in the NATO Steadfast Defender 21 multinational exercise. Mircea Geoană will meet with Romania's Defense Minister, Nicolae Ciucă and with Chief of General Staff, Daniel Petrescu. The NATO official will also attend the Black Sea Atlantic Security Council, hosted by Aspen Institute - Romania. During his visit Mircea Geoană will open the Euro-Atlantic Resilience Center, alongside Romania's president, Klaus Iohannis, Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu, and EU Commissioner for Inter-institutional relations and forecast, Maros Sefcovic, the vice-president of the European Commission.
DONATION - Romania has donated 40 tons of humanitarian aid to the city of Cernăuţi (Ukraine), with a total worth of €1.2 million, designed to help combat the COVID-19 pandemic. The donation includes protection equipment for health workers: masks, gowns, head protection gear and disinfectants. Secretary of State with the Romanian Foreign Ministry, Dan Neculăescu, attended the donation ceremony, pointed out that "the coronavirus pandemic is a common global challenge that has no geographic barriers". In turn, Ukraine's deputy Foreign Minister, Vasil Bodnar, said that "the humanitarian aid for Ukraine is a strong signal of solidarity from a country that is not just our neighbor, but an important member of the European Union and NATO".
ROMANIANS - The Romanian Patriarchate on Saturday conveyed a message of unity to all Romanians in the Diaspora, ahead of the Day of Romanians Worldwide, to be marked on Sunday. We urge all Romanians living outside Romania to keep in touch with their loved ones back home, to keep the family and Romanian community united, Romanian Orthodox Church Patriarch Daniel has said. Under a 2015 piece of legislation, the Day of Romanians Worldwide is celebrated on the last Sunday of May. In the last decade, the Romanian Patriarchate has founded numerous parishes for Romanian Orthodox Christians living in the Republic of Moldova, Northern Bukovina, Serbia, Bulgaria and Hungary. Churches have also been opened in Western Europe, America, Australia, New Zealand, the Holy Land, Cyprus, Turkey, South Africa and Japan.
IMF - The IMF estimates an economic growth for Romania of 7% this year, 3% over the initial estimate. The budget deficit forecast has also dropped to 6.8% compared to the initial estimate of 7.2%. The IMF confirms Romania has the largest economic growth in the EU, Prime Minister Florin Cîţu writes on his Facebook page. According to the Prime Minister, the effects of implemented reforms are starting to show, and the best period for Romanians is yet to come.
TENNIS - Tennis player Sorana Cîrstea (61 WTA) on Saturday lost to Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic (38 WTA) in the final of the WTA tournament in Strasbourg, 6-3, 6-3. Cîrstea played Krejcikova twice before, the Romanian winning in 2020 in Dubai and losing in 2017 in Nurnberg. This is Cîrstea's sixth final, after the titles won in 2008 in Tashkent and last month in Istanbul, and the finals played in Budapest in 2007, Toronto in 2013 and Tashkent in 2019. (VP)
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