Morning headlines – August 10th 2021
Florin Jipa
Image source: ESA
Coronavirus and vaccines
- Vaccination in Romania: In the last 24 hours, less than 13.000 people got vaccinated. Totally, more than 5 million people got the vaccine, with more than 4,9 getting both doses.
- Coronavirus in Romania: In the last 24 hours, there were recorded 181 new SARS CoV-2 cases, 3 deaths, and in ICU there are now 80 people hospitalized.
Global political and military events
- Russia started massive drills in the Black Sea and Crimea. More than 10.000 troops and 40 ships are participating at military drills organized by the Southern Military District. There will also be mobilized the troops from occupied provinces, Abkhazia and Southern Osetia. Live fire exercises will also take place in more than 20 ranges. (Aleph News)
- The US is warning China on the consequences of a conflict. Antony Blinken has denounced, during a UN Security Council session on maritime safety, developed online, the `intimidation attempts of other states to access maritime resources’ in the South China Sea. `Some can state that his is not US’s or other nations’ responsibility, which do not have territorial ambitions to solve the South China Sea disputes. But it is the task and responsibility of any nation to defend the rules we have all established to follow and peacefully solve the maritime disputes’, stated Antony Blinken.
- The US is warning Iran, due to the attack on the oil tanker that led to the death of a Romanian sailor. The Joseph Biden Administration has warned, on Monday, that Iran will be held responsible for the attack on the MV Mercer Street oil tanker, which ended with the death of a Romanian and a British sailor.
- Moldova summons its ambassador from Moscow for consultations. The Moldova’s MFA summoned its ambassador from Russia, Vladimir Galovatiuc, for consultations. It is not about the relations between the two countries, but the ambassador’s activity and possibly his removal. (TASS)
Romania’s defence and security
- Romanian pilots executed 9 missions in North Macedonia. The Romanian detachment which is using a C-27J Spartan aircraft to extinguish the fires in North Macedonia executed nine missions in the last three days. (MoND)
- Romania will pay its debt to the European Space Agency. The minister of Research, Innovation and Digitalization, Ciprian Teleman, has stated that our country will pay the first amount of money from the total amount of 125 million euro that it owes to the European Space Agency. According to Teleman, by participating to this program, Romania has access to the European scientific space missions, the creation of the missiles Ariane 6, Vega C and Space Rider ship, the Sentinel, Aeolus, Truths, Novacom satellites, the Proba-3 and Hera missions, Terra’s observation data network, satellite navigation systems, the monitorization and tracking systems, high-end technological programs. (MRID)
- Protest in Bucharest "We want justice for August 10". 11 organizations and associations are organizing a protest in Bucharest today, because three years have passed since the demonstration on August 10, 2018 in Victoriei Square, against legislative changes in the field of Justice, was violently shattered by the state authorities, without the judiciary finding the culprits.
