Far-right Eurosceptic candidate George Simion is projected to win the first round of Romania’s presidential election on May 4, gaining nearly 40% of the votes with a majority of polling stations reporting.
The vote follows the annulment of the previous first round held in November 2024, when Romania's Constitutional Court invalidated the outcome due to evidence of social media manipulation and foreign interference.
"I appreciate what the Romanian state has done so far, the direction... was correct and must continue."
Two Romanian diplomats were ordered to leave Russia on April 9 in response to the expulsion of Russian diplomats from Romania in March.
"There has been a policy of favoring Ukrainian grain in terms of access to port facilities in recent years, at the detriment of Romanian grain, and Romanian farmers were greatly affected by it," Romanian presidential candidate Victor Ponta said.
Romania and Bulgaria are wary of a possible deal between the U.S. and Russia that could restore Moscow's influence in the Black Sea, the Financial Times reported on March 24, citing undisclosed officials from the region.
Protests erupted in downtown Bucharest following the Central Electoral Bureau's decision to ban Russian-backed far-right politician Calin Georgescu from running in the upcoming re-run presidential elections. Georgescu, who is openly supported by the Russian and the U.S. administrations, said this was a "direct hit against democracy." Following the announcement
Romania's electoral bureau has disqualified far-right candidate Calin Georgescu from running in the presidential election re-run, multiple Romanian channels announced on March 9.
Romania said on March 5 that it had expelled Russian military attache Victor Makovskiy and his deputy, Evgeny Ignatiev, for breaching diplomatic rules of conduct.
Romanian prosecutors requested the temporary arrest of 21 individuals linked to far-right leader Calin Georgescu on Feb. 28, days after his detention, Reuters reported.
The Romanian Prosecutor General's office has charged pro-Russian Calin Georgescu with "incitement to actions against the constitutional order" and other alleged crimes related to the Nov. 24 first-round elections.
The move comes after multiple incidents in which Russian drones crashed onto Romanian territory during attacks against neighboring Ukraine.
Editor's note: This article is an on-site version of KI Insights' public newsletter The Week Ahead, covering events from May 5-11. Sign up here to start your week with an agenda of Ukraine-related events delivered directly to your inbox every Sunday. The coming week will provide further clarity on the
Far-right opposition parties submitted an initiative to the Romanian parliament to impeach the president, as Klaus Iohannis remained in office longer than the prescribed term after the results of the country's first round of presidential election had been annulled.
"If we compare January with July last year, we see a 45% decrease," State Border Guard spokesperson Andrii Demchenko said.
"I was talking about a very simple thing, by the way. We have to learn from our historical experience. The world is changing," Romanian far-right presidential candidate Calin Georgescu said.
Georgescu's comments, made in a Jan. 29 interview, were dismissed by Ukraine as revisionist and contrary to international norms, the U.N. Charter, and democratic values.
"On 100% it will happen," Calin Georgescu said in the interview with journalist Ion Cristoiu about redrawing Ukraine's borders as a result of the Russia-Ukraine war, suggesting Romania could claim some of Ukraine's regions.
Romania's Defense Ministry confirmed on Jan. 17 that it had found Russian drone fragments in two communities situated on the Romania-Ukraine border.
Navy Commander Oleksii Neizhpapa said that 4,651 vessels arrived in Ukraine, while 4,410 departed for other ports, enabling the export of over 74.4 million tons of cargo, including agricultural products.
Russian Gazprom's decision to halt gas supplies to Moldova resulted in a heating outage in the Russian-controlled region of Transnistria, prompting Chisinau to seek alternative sources of electricity.
"Moldova condemns these acts and stands in full solidarity with Ukraine," Moldovan President Maia Sandu said.
Editor's note: This article is a shortened on-site version of KI Insights' The Week Ahead newsletter covering events from Dec. 9 to Dec. 15. Sign up here to start your week with an agenda of Ukraine-related events, delivered directly to your inbox every Sunday. Romania's newly elected Parliament to set
The Romanian Constitutional Court annulled the results of the first round of the presidential election, which had been led by anti-NATO, pro-Russian independent candidate Calin Georgescu, Digi24 reported on Dec. 6.
Romanian authorities on Dec. 4 declassified evidence of what they described as a "highly organized" social media campaign backed by a "state actor" to boost pro-Russian presidential candidate Calin Georgescu in a recent vote.
The suspect reportedly carried out reconnaissance missions, photographing and recording potential targets he intended to destroy with explosives or fire, Romanian prosecurors allege.
Romania's presidential and parliamentary elections saw a strong showing for far-right politicians critical of military support for Ukraine. Anti-NATO and Russia-admiring independent candidate Calin Georgescu came in first during the initial round of the presidential vote on Nov. 24, with nearly 23%, a shock result that contradicted previous polling. Nationalist
Romania’s ruling Social Democratic Party (PSD) received 22.5% of the votes during the parliamentary elections, according to results from more than 99% polling stations published on Dec. 2.
Editor's note: This article is a shortened on-site version of KI Insights' The Week Ahead newsletter covering events from Dec. 2-Dec. 8. Sign up here to start your week with an agenda of Ukraine-related events, delivered directly to your inbox every Sunday. The NATO Ministers of Foreign Affairs Meeting will
The meteoric rise of hardcore nationalist Călin Georgescu in Romania’s first-round presidential election over the weekend is nothing short of remarkable. Georgescu surged from just a few percentage points in polls weeks before the vote to claim over 23% of the electorate, defeating candidates from the country’s two
Calin Georgescu, a far-right critic of Romania's pro-NATO and pro-Ukraine policy, is projected to enter the presidential run-off vote after a shock result in the first round on Nov. 24.
Editor's note: This article is a shortened on-site version of KI Insights' The Week Ahead newsletter covering events from Nov. 24-Nov. 30. Sign up here to start your week with an agenda of Ukraine-related events, delivered directly to your inbox every Sunday. It is Thanksgiving next week. Expect significant disruptions
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