News review of the day – February 18th

President Klaus Johannis met with the Foreign Minister of Ukraine, Pavlo Klimkin, at the Cotroceni Palace

The prospect of developing bilateral relations between Romania and Ukraine and the developments in the neighboring country after the signing a new agreement on ceasefire, in Minsk, were the main topics addressed in the discussions which President Klaus Johannis  had with the Ukrainian Foreign Minister, Pavlo Klimkin, at the Cotroceni Palace. Romanian President reiterated the support for the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine and relayed Romania’s firm support for the continuation of the democratic and European path of this country.(RADIO ROMANIA reports)

A Romanian woman was included on the list of the 100 candidates for Mars One space mission

A Romanian woman was included on the list of the 100 candidates for Mars One space mission, which aims to send a crew of astronauts to the Red Planet, in 2025. According to the British newspaper The Independent, there were over 2,000 people who joined the race, but after a new selection process, there were only 50 men and 50 women left, including a 34-year-old Romanian woman, who lives in Canada. Of the one hundred, only less than half will remain in the final phase and they will begin an eight year training programe for the Mars mission, which will cost about 4 billion pounds, informs The Independent newspaper.(RADIO ROMANIA reports)

Over 45% of Romanians fear the possibility of a terrorist attack

Over 45% of Romanians fear the possibility of a terrorist attack, after the attacks on the headquarters of the satirical magazine „Charlie Hebdo”, according to a survey conducted by INSCOP. The barometer, entitled „The Truth about Romania”, was conducted between February 5 to 10 , on a sample of 1,065 people and has a margin of error of 3%. Over three quarters of the respondents said they would not agree to the publication of cartoons of Jesus or the Bible characters, whether those cartoons would offend religious people. The percentage of those who oppose publication is somewhat lower, but still over 70% in the case of cartoons with  Prophet Muhammad, if it would offend the Muslim community. Between 6% of the respondents for biblical characters and 9% for Prophet Muhammad  support the unconditional publication of cartoons, under the right to free expression. (RADIO ROMANIA reports)

Adrian Strugariu