Romania’s President Klaus Iohannis is participating, Thursday and Friday, in Brussels, in the European Council meeting whose main theme is „The energy crisis and the proposals to combat it”. European leaders are meeting to reach a consensus regarding the reduction of energy prices.
The head of the EC, Ursula von der Leyen, argued, on Wednesday, in front of the MEPs that the manipulation of energy prices by Russia must be fought against. She proposes the joint purchase of natural gas by the member states, a possible capping of gas prices, the setting up of gas companies consortiums and the conclusion of so-called energy solidarity agreements between neighboring countries.
The agenda of the meeting includes the analysis of the evolution of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and the EU’s commitment to continuing the support given to Kyiv on the political, financial, humanitarian and military levels. The European leaders will also address ways to strengthen the resilience of critical infrastructure in the context of the recent acts of sabotage against the Nord Stream pipelines. At the same time, the heads of state and government from the EU member states will have a debate on the EU-China relations.
*
The martial law decreed by the Russian President Vladimir Putin entered into force today in the four Ukrainian territories illegally annexed by Moscow: Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, EFE reports.
The Kremlin leader has granted increased powers to the heads of certain Russian regions to adopt security measures targeting the population and the critical infrastructure. Starting today, the leaders of the occupied Ukrainian regions which are under martial law can evacuate residents to other areas, introduce a special regime for entering and leaving the territories and restrict the residents’ freedom of movement.
The Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, Oleksii Danilov, wrote on Twitter that Putin’s martial law is a preparation for the mass deportation of the Ukrainian population to disadvantaged regions of Russia, in order to change the ethnic makeup of the occupied territory.
*
The first two of the ten French military convoys intended to reinforce NATO’s Eastern Flank are on their way to Romania. Their final destination is the Cincu military base in Sibiu county (central Romania) where the NATO multinational battle group has been installed, which is expected to shelter about one thousand European soldiers until the beginning of next year.
The French will bring approximately 20 armored vehicles and 10 new generation Leclerc tanks, highly efficient combat equipment. In parallel, special transports of ammunition, food and troop maintenance materials will be sent to Romania by special trains.
Radio Romania International
