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Thousands of pilgrims flocked to Romania's capital for the consecration of religious paintings inside the National Cathedral, the world's largest Orthodox Christian church. Formerly known by the clunkier name of the Cathedral of the People's Redemption, the giant church was opened after 15 years of construction. The presidents of Romania and Moldova were among those who arrived for a service...

In the last decade or for even longer I have been critical of the over-the-top taste of the Romanian Orthodox Church in its monuments, pomp, luxury, and politically questionable relations with less than innocent politicians and businessmen with their  earthly and human failings on full display. It wasn’t the only thing I wrote about, but above all my criticism was...

Romania is facing the worst drought in the last 150 years when weather records began and it looks set to continue a top meteorologist says. "Unfortunately, the drought that has gone on for 43 months is continuing,” said Monica Ioniță, a climatology researcher in Germany, in an interview with HotNews, speaking at the presentation of the State of the Climate...

Carrefour, a French retail chain, is considering exiting the Romanian market, informs L’Informe. Not only would it leave Romania, but also Poland and Argentina.  Carrefour has hired JP Morgan, Deutsche Bank, and BNP Paribas to evaluate interest level.  Just in July, Carrefour left Italy.  But Romanians will likely be sorry to see it go, given that Romania is currently the fourth largest European...

At the request of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO) in Munich (Germany), seven suspects have been arrested, and over 100 searches were carried out in seven countries, in an investigation into organised VAT fraud involving small electronic goods. They are suspected of defrauding €48 million in VAT. The investigation, code-named Mela, stretches across Czechia, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, the...

The following text and speech were made by Cosmin Marinescu, the deputy governor of the National Bank of Romania. I had the pleasure of opening the fourth Central and Eastern European Annual Payments Forum, hosted by the National Bank of Romania. Payments are not merely a technical issue; they are at the heart of economic life. An efficient and secure...

Oil refineries linked to Russia have been hit by explosions in Romania and Hungary leaving at least one person severely injured. A blast occurred at the Petrotel-Lukoil refinery in Ploiesti, southern Romania, on Monday. A 57-year-old worker sustained serious head and leg injuries and was taken to intensive care. The facility is owned by a subsidiary of Lukoil, one of Russia's...

The administration of Donald Trump has imposed sanctions on Russia’s two largest oil companies and urged Moscow to agree to an immediate ceasefire in its war against Ukraine. President Trump had indicated for weeks he would impose penalties against Russia for its continuation of the war but had failed to impose major measures to punish the Kremlin until Wednesday. The announcement...

A huge lawsuit has been filed in the UK against Johnson & Johnson. 3,000 people have accused the firm of knowingly selling baby powder contaminated with asbestos. The lawsuit alleges that Johnson & Johnson has been aware since the 1960s that its mineral-based talcum powder, used for babies around the world, contained fibrous forms of talc, as well as tremolite and...

A 40-year-old Australian man has been arrested and charged with four counts of burglary and two counts of theft, after stealing dozens of Labubu dolls worth around A$9000 (or $5,800, £4,400). 43 such dolls were seized by police from a Melbourne property on Tuesday.  Some of these were limited edition and worth up to A$500 a pop.  Labubu robberies have been rife...