Eugen Tomiuc is a senior correspondent for RFE/RL.
(official website) Representatives of the 192 signatory countries of the Geneva Conventions are scheduled to meet in Switzerland next month to discuss adding a new emblem to represent the Red Cross and Red Crescent organizations. The red square on a white background has been dubbed the "red crystal." The symbol is free of any religious connotations and would allow countries with mixed religious traditions to become full members of the Red Cross and Red Crescent societies. If adopted, the new emblem would also clear the path for Israel's membership.
A Romanian health-services worker killing birds in October in an effort to prevent the spread of avian flu International officials are warning that the world is not yet fully prepared to deal with a possible pandemic if the bird-flu virus mutates into a human strain. EU foreign ministers are urging global cooperation to tackle the threat, while many countries are seeking to boost their stockpiles of Tamiflu, an anti-viral drug seen as a first line of defense. Roche, the Swiss company that manufactures the drug, says it might allow other countries to produce Tamiflu under license, while a Dutch company has announced it is developing a vaccine against the virulent H5N1 bird-flu strain.
Greece has become the latest country to announce that it has detected the bird-flu virus on its territory. The announcement comes amid warnings from the United Nations health agency that more outbreaks can be expected in Europe and other regions. Cases of bird flu have already been confirmed in Romania and Turkey, while tests are now being carried out on birds in Bulgaria and Croatia. EU foreign ministers met today in Brussels to discuss measures to contain what they called a global threat.
King Michael The lower house of the Romanian parliament has approved a restitution bill awarding 30 million euros ($36 million) to King Michael, the country's former monarch, to compensate for property confiscated by the communist regime. The decision marks the end of a long struggle by Romania's former royal family to obtain material and moral reparations. It also shows that relations between Romanian authorities and the country's former royal family are improving.
Prague, 29 June 2005 (RFE/RL) -- Thomas Pietschmann is research officer at the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC). He is also one of the main authors of the World Drug Report 2005, which was issued today. Pietschmann talked to RFE/RL about the report and the role of Afghanistan, Central Asia, and Russia in the global drug market. Pietschmann said drug production has links to crime, terrorism, and the spread of HIV/AIDS.
Transdniestrian leadership's headquarters (file photo) A recently proposed plan for the resolution of the conflict between Moldova and its breakaway region of Transdniester was met with moderate optimism by both sides during a two-day meeting in Ukraine this week. The Ukrainian proposal raised hopes that negotiations to resolve the frozen conflict could be restarted. The plan provides for expanding the negotiations framework to include the European Union and the United States alongside Russia, Ukraine, and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). But doubts still persist about the separatists' commitment to the plan, which also envisages the initiation of a democratization process in Transdniester.
As we mark the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II, RFE/RL is looking again at some of the factors that determined the course of the struggle and shaped the new world that emerged from it. The former monarch of Romania, King Michael, is currently in the Czech Republic as part of his tour to honor the memory of Romanian soldiers who died while fighting to liberate Hungary and Czechoslovakia from Nazi occupation. The king is the last surviving head of state from World War II. King Michael spoke today with RFE/RL about the impact Romania's decision to join the Allied cause had on the outcome of the war.
Thousands of laboratories across the world are scrambling to destroy samples of a flu virus that killed up to 4 million people in the 1950s. A U.S.-based private organization sent out samples of the H2N2 virus to more than 4,000 laboratories beginning last autumn. Experts say the danger is minimal that the virus may be released into the general population, but recommend quick measures to contain the risk..
Moldovan President Vladimir Voronin (file photo) Over the past year, Moldova's Communists have kept their hold on power even as they shift focus away from Moscow and toward Brussels. That U-turn is seen as a sign that Moldova has grown weary of Moscow's still-unfulfilled promises of closer economic integration. The continued impasse over the breakaway Transdniester region has also been a source of discontent. But is Moldova truly committed to its new pro-Western stance? Analysts say it will take more than rhetoric for Moldova to prove it is ready to integrate with Europe.
Prague, 19 February 2005 -- Romanian President Traian Basescu, in a wide-ranging interview with RFE/RL, has called for his country's participation in negotiations to settle Moldova's dispute with separatists in Transdniester and for the creation of a regional task force to monitor criminal activities in the Black Sea basin. Basescu also spoke about relations with Russia and Moldova as well as outstanding issues with Ukraine. The president reiterated his determination to fight widespread corruption in Romania and called for the total opening of Romania's dreaded Securitate files -- an issue that still divides Romanian society 15 years after the fall of communism.
Prague, 8 February 2005 -- In a wide-ranging interview, Moldovan President Vladimir Voronin talked to RFE/RL today about the current status of the Transdniester dispute; the influence of Ukraine's Orange Revolution on Moldova's foreign policy; relations with Russia; and the upcoming Moldovan general election.
One of Ceausescu's hunting stands (photo credit: AVES) Authorities are investigating reports that a group of high-profile politicians and businessmen killed almost 200 wild boar during a recent hunting excursion in northwestern Romania. Reports said the hunting party included former Prime Minister Adrian Nastase, as well as a number of Western executives. Environmentalists called the hunt a "massacre" and demanded an investigation. Hunting was long the pastime of the communist elite in Romania and other Eastern European countries. The country's "new rich" are now accused of trying to emulate the traditions of their communist forebears.
Scientists and politicians are calling for the creation of a global network of experts to help save tens of thousands of endangered animals and plants from extinction. Their appeal, launched during a conference that is under way in Paris, aims to give the planet's looming extinction crisis the same prominence as global warming. The conference on biodiversity, sponsored jointly by France and UNESCO, is seeking to help reduce the alarming rate of extinction of living species and their ecosystems. The meeting is gathering more than 1,200 experts and policymakers and is expected to endorse a set of proposals when it wraps up at end of the week. But environmental groups are criticizing what they say is a lack of immediate action on the side of governments and international organizations.
Plans are gaining momentum for a global early warning system to avert another tragedy on the scale of the Asian tsunami disaster. The issue is under discussion at a meeting of the world's small islands in the Mauritius Islands. UNESCO, the UN education and scientific agency, will take the lead in coordinating the effort. UNESCO helped set up an early warning system in the Pacific in 1968. The agency says it is ready to put its experience and expertise to work for a global system.
A powerful aftershock today hindered aid efforts for the tsunami-hit Indonesian island of Sumatra, adding to difficulties the relief operations already face. Meanwhile, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan toured the Maldives on the final leg of a three-nation trip to acknowledge firsthand the damage caused by the 26 December tsunami. The visit comes amid mounting concern over the slow pace of relief efforts for the tsunami survivors.
President-elect Basescu (file photo) Romanian President-elect Traian Basescu has outlined his foreign policy goals following his upset victory in a runoff election on 12 December. Basescu strongly endorsed Romania's partnership with the United States and Britain. He also said he wants stronger ties with Moldova and increased regional cooperation, including with Ukraine, Russia, and the Caucasus. Basescu said his top priority remains Romania's membership in the European Union. But he has stirred controversy by suggesting that he might call for reopening EU entry negotiations on some issues.
President-elect Basescu Romanian opposition candidate Traian Basescu today claimed victory in the country's presidential election, after nearly complete results gave him an unassailable lead. He defeated the center-left prime minister, Adrian Nastase, in a close runoff and will replace outgoing president Ion Iliescu.
U.S. President George W. Bush today nominated Condoleezza Rice as his next secretary of state. Rice, Bush's national security adviser for the past four years, is set to replace Colin Powell, who has stepped down along with six other cabinet members. Should the Senate confirm Rice's appointment -- as appears likely -- she would become the first African American woman to hold the top cabinet post and only the second woman to do so other than Madeleine Albright.
Hundreds of thousands of Moldovans have left their country over the past decade in search of better lives. Some have headed West, while others have chosen to seek their fortunes in Russia. Some have succeeded in their new lives abroad, while others, mostly young women, have fallen prey to human traffickers. Officially, Moldova is one of Europe's poorest countries, with an average monthly salary of less than $100. But according to estimates, Moldovans living abroad send home between $500 million-$1 billion annually -- up to twice the country's 2004 budget. RFE/RL looks into the causes of Moldova's mass migration and at its long-term effects on the country's future.
President Putin (file photo) Russian President Vladimir Putin began a three-day visit to China today. Putin's talks with Chinese leaders are likely to focus on economic issues, such as competing proposals by China and Japan for a Siberian oil pipeline, and on better cooperation in the fight against terrorism.
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