May 26, 2022 UPDATE

EUROPEAN COUNCIL - Romania's president, Klaus Iohannis, on Thursday talked to European Council president, Charles Michel, about the main points on the agenda of the extraordinary European Council summit to be held on Monday and Tuesday. "Ahead of the European Council meeting on May 30-31, I exchanged views with European Council president, Charles Michel, regarding the main points on the summit's agenda: humanitarian and financial assistance to Ukraine, food security, energy, security and defense", the Romanian president tweeted.

AFRICA DAY - The Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs hailed the celebration of Africa Day on May 25, a symbol of African unity and the importance of this continent globally. This year, the African Union has set as theme for the day 'Strengthening resilience in nutrition and food security on the African continent'. The issue is all the more important in the context of Russia's illegal, unjustified and unprovoked aggression against Ukraine, which has complex consequences, including from the perspective of food security, for many states in various regions of the world, many close partners of Romania and the European Union, the Romanian Foreign Ministry has said. In this context, the diplomacy in Bucharest reiterates the call for solidarity, cooperation and coordination, which must be assumed by the entire international community and by all UN member states, in order to ensure global food security and thus respect universal human rights. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs recalls that, in the last weeks, as a result of the war in Ukraine, the Romanian port of Constanta, on the Black Sea, has become one of the main gateways for the transport of Ukrainian cereals to third markets. To date, more than 240,000 tons of grain have been exported from Ukraine via Constanta.

MONKEYPOX - The number of confirmed cases of monkeypox worldwide rose to 219 on Wednesday outside the West and Central African countries where the disease is endemic, according to a report published by the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC). 19 countries where the disease is uncommon, mostly in Europe, have reported at least one confirmed case. Ranking first in terms of confirmed cases are the United Kingdom, Spain and Portugal. "Most of the cases were detected in young men, self-identifying as men who have sex with men. There's been no death", said the Stockholm-based European agency. Monekypox is a less dangerous variant of smallpox, which was eradicated some forty years ago. There are no specific treatments or vaccines for monkeypox, but the multiplication of cases can be stopped by vaccination against smallpox.

PNRR - Next week, Romania is expected to submit to the European Commission the first funding request under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR) worth 3 billion EUR. In Thursday's meeting, the Government adopted the last piece of legislation needed in this process, namely a mechanism that will be implemented to prevent the mismanagement of these funds. Minister for European Funds, Marcel Boloș, said any offenses will be punished under the law. Also on Thursday, the Government decided to extend BA programmes for arts academic programmes to four years, and has earmarked the necessary funds allowing universities to hold classes online as well. Prime Minister Nicolae Ciucă presented a report of his Cabinet's first six months in office, arguing that it is gradually achieving its objectives. The Prime Minister said Romania has "the biggest" economic growth rate at EU level, and over 90 billion EUR available for development and modernization. He pointed out investments are the top concern, and that the government has increased its EU fund absorption rate by 7%. USR in opposition has criticized the government, warning against urgent measures that need to be taken to ensure economic recovery.

DODON - Former pro-Russian president, Igor Dodon, on Thursday was put on a 30-day pre-trial arrest, after being detained for 72 hours on Tuesday in the wake of searches conducted at his home address. The former leader of the Party of Socialists is suspected of passive corruption, facilitating party funding by a criminal organization, treason and unjust enrichment.

TENNIS - Romanian tennis player Simona Halep, former world no. 1, on Thursday was ousted 2-6, 6-2, 6-1 by China's Qinwen Zheng in the second round at Roland Garros, a tournament she won in 2018. Halep also played the French Open final in 2014 and 2017. Also on Thursday, Irina Begu advanced to the third round after knocking out Ekaterina Alexandrova of Russia, 6-7, 6-3, 6-4. Another four Romanian tennis players, Gabriela Ruse, Ana Bogdan, Irina Bara and Mihaela Buzărnescu, were eliminated in the first round. (MI & VP)