September 9, 2021 UPDATE

Motion – The censure motion tabled by the Save Romania Union- Plus Alliance (USR-PLUS), the former no. 2 in the government coalition and the ultranationalist, opposition party the Alliance for the Union of Romanians - AUR, against the government led by the Liberal Florin Cîţu, was read, on Thursday, in the plenum of the Romanian Parliament. The prime minister and his supporters have shown that group interests are above the public interest, the motion writes. The PM is blamed for turning a national investment plan into a party piggy bank. The debate of and the vote on the motion will take place after the Constitutional Court rules on the PM’s notification regarding the existence of a legal conflict between the Parliament and the Government. The speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, the Liberal leader Ludovic Orban, who is competing with Florin Citu for the Liberal Party - PNL leadership, considers that the decision to postpone the debate and vote on the motion calendar is deeply unconstitutional. In turn, the speaker of the Senate, Anca Dragu representing the Save Romania Union, says that the Liberals are using all possible tricks to prevent the debate and vote on the censure motion. In turn, the PM Florin Citu said he would ask for the resignation of the speakers of the Parliament’s two chambers if the decision of the Constitutional Court on his notification is favorable. We remind that USR PLUS filed a censure motion after they demanded the resignation of the prime minister, whom they accuse of undermining the coalition through his decision to dismiss the justice minister, Stelian Ion, representing USR. Subsequently, the USR PLUS ministers have resigned, and the secretaries and undersecretaries of state, as well as the prefects and sub-prefects representing this party have been dismissed.

Covid-19 – As of Friday the government extends by 30 days the state of alert on the Romanian territory, imposed by the novel coronavirus pandemic. The validity of antigen tests has been extended from 24 to 48 hours. The number of daily cases of infection exceeded on Thursday 2,000. 2,226 new cases and about 40 deaths were reported. The number of patients in ICUs exceeded 500. The National Public Health Institute analyzed the infections confirmed last week and found that over 80% of cases were reported in unvaccinated people. Almost 93% of all deaths were in unvaccinated people and 5% in people vaccinated with only one dose. Interest in vaccination remains low. All in all, about 5.2 million Romanians have been fully vaccinated.

Visit – In 2021 we celebrate 110 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations between Romania and Switzerland and we could see the excellent level of bilateral cooperation at political, economic and social levels, said Thursday in Bern, the President of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, in a joint press conference with his Swiss counterpart, Guy Parmelin. The two heads of state discussed the consolidation of bilateral relations, including economic cooperation, with focus on investments, with Switzerland ranking 10th in the top of investors in Romania. The presidents of Romania and Switzerland have agreed to deepen cooperation in such areas as research and innovation, digitalization, education and cyber security. President Iohannis thanked his Swiss counterpart for supporting Romania's accession to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Discussions also included topical issues of international policy, focusing on political and security developments in the EU’s Eastern Neighborhood and the Western Balkans region.

Untold - The biggest electronic music festival in Romania, UNTOLD, started on Thursday in Cluj-Napoca, in the center of Romania. More than 70,000 people from more than 100 countries are expected daily at this special event, held in pandemic conditions, until Sunday. The organizers allow access to the festival only to vaccinated people, people who have recovered from the infection or who test negative for Sars-CoV-2. Besides famous DJs such as Dimitris Vega and Like Mike, the famous Romanian panpipes player Gheorghe Zamfir will also be performing. Thus, UNTOLD proposes an original synthesis between electronic music and traditional sounds. Performing in this year’s festival will be David Guetta, Martin Garrix, The Script, Parov Stelar, Tyga and Sam Feldt, among others. Spectators will be welcomed by fantastic characters, who will give light and fire shows. Famous bands will get involved in these shows, such as Moon Ladies from Italy. The festival also includes art exhibitions, including a South American art exhibition highlighting the tribal traditions in the Amazonian forest. The organizers have also prepared a fashion exhibition bringing together the creations of 20 designers. The festival also has percussion workshops for those who want to learn the secrets of this art.

Emergency - The Republic of Moldova will instate, as of Friday, the state of public health emergency at national level for a period of 50 days, following the increase in the number of COVID-19 cases, the health minister Ala Nemerenco announced on Thursday. She said that in the next five days the health ministry, in agreement with other institutions, will come up with an action plan regarding measures to combat and prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus, which she will present to the Extraordinary National Public Health Commission. In the Republic of Moldova, 731 new cases of COVID-19 were confirmed on Thursday, out of which 591 among unvaccinated persons. (LS)