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Romania's new government sworn in

Romania's new government sworn in

Arab Times11 hours ago

BUCHAREST, June 24, (Xinhua): Romania's new pro-European government, led by Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan, was sworn in Monday evening before President Nicusor Dan, marking the end of a period of political instability and interim leadership. The new cabinet is backed by a broad ruling coalition comprising the Social Democratic Party (PSD), National Liberal Party (PNL), Save Romania Union (USR), and the Hungarian Democratic Union of Romania (UDMR).
Earlier in the day, the coalition secured a strong parliamentary mandate with 301 votes in favor and only 9 against. Following the swearing-in ceremony, Bolojan outlined the government's core priorities: restoring public financial order, ensuring effective governance, and safeguarding citizens' rights. President Dan welcomed the formation of the new cabinet, emphasizing the urgent need for fiscal reform and expressing optimism about Romania's economic outlook.
He cited the country's dynamic private sector and reiterated the national goal of joining the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) by the end of 2026 - a move he said could enhance foreign investment and reduce borrowing costs. Dan also underscored the importance of state reform and rebuilding public trust, urging both the coalition and minority representatives to act in the national interest.
The newly formed government includes 16 ministers and five deputy prime ministers, one of whom is an independent tasked with overseeing state reform. Cabinet portfolios have been distributed proportionally among the coalition parties. With 311 seats in Romania's 464-member Parliament, the ruling coalition holds an outright majority.
Earlier on Monday, party leaders signed a political agreement outlining a pro-Western agenda, a rotating premiership, and key policy objectives, including structural reforms and increased administrative transparency.

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Gold in their hands
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Arab Times

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In times of instability, gold shines even brighter. The metal closed higher on June 23, driven by escalating tensions in the Middle East following U.S. attacks on Iran. This performance reinforces gold's role as a hedge against inflation and geopolitical risk. More than just a financial asset, gold is a central part of feminine culture in the Middle East. In countries like Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, and others, women buy gold — typically 21, 22, or even 24 karats — as personal savings, security, and family legacy. Unlike men, who tend to invest in property, women favor jewelry that can be converted into capital: necklaces, bracelets, and rings — often given as gifts at weddings and celebrations — that function as reserves in times of crisis. I lived in Amman, Jordan, and now live in Kuwait. In both places, I witness eyes that light up — mine included — at the sight of that deep amber gold. And it's not just about aesthetics. For us Brazilians, used to 18-karat gold — and, it must be said, accustomed to seeing it whether we purchase it or not — the contrast is striking. In Brazil, as in other Western countries, the value of gold is often tied to design, branding, and the prestige of exclusive jewelry houses. The price is high not just because of the metal itself, but because of everything around it. Here in the Middle East, the value lies in the purity of the gold and its direct function as a store of value. It is gold for the sake of gold — investment, security, inheritance, autonomy. Historically, women's use of gold in the Middle East also signaled social status and symbolized familial power. But there's more: buying gold represents financial autonomy — a quiet form of freedom. What may seem like adornment is also a signal of security and protection in uncertain times. At this moment of tension, when conflicts in the Middle East are shaking global markets, this metal gleams beyond its economic worth. It stands as a shield against inflation, a portable form of wealth, and a reflection of feminine resilience, offering, above all, the freedom to choose.

Israel killed at least 14 scientists in an unprecedented attack on Iran's nuclear know-how
Israel killed at least 14 scientists in an unprecedented attack on Iran's nuclear know-how

Arab Times

time6 hours ago

  • Arab Times

Israel killed at least 14 scientists in an unprecedented attack on Iran's nuclear know-how

PARIS, June 24, (AP): Israel's tally of the war damage it wrought on Iran includes the targeted killings of at least 14 scientists, an unprecedented attack on the brains behind Iran's nuclear program that outside experts say can only set it back, not stop it. In an interview with The Associated Press, Israel's ambassador to France said the killings will make it "almost" impossible for Iran to build weapons from whatever nuclear infrastructure and material may have survived nearly two weeks of Israeli airstrikes and massive bunker-busting bombs dropped by U.S. stealth bombers. "The fact that the whole group disappeared is basically throwing back the program by a number of years, by quite a number of years," Ambassador Joshua Zarka said. But nuclear analysts say Iran has other scientists who can take their place. European governments say that military force alone cannot eradicate Iran's nuclear know-how, which is why they want a negotiated solution to put concerns about the Iranian program to rest. "Strikes cannot destroy the knowledge Iran has acquired over several decades, nor any regime ambition to deploy that knowledge to build a nuclear weapon," U.K. Foreign Secretary David Lammy told lawmakers in the House of Commons. Here's a closer look at the killings: Zarka told AP that Israeli strikes killed at least 14 physicists and nuclear engineers, top Iranian scientific leaders who "basically had everything in their mind.' They were killed "not because of the fact that they knew physics, but because of the fight that they were personally involved in, the creation and the fabrication and the production of (a) nuclear weapon," he said. Nine of them were killed in Israel's opening wave of attacks on June 13, the Israeli military said. It said they "possessed decades of accumulated experience in the development of nuclear weapons' and included specialists in chemistry, materials and explosives as well as physicists. Zarka spoke Monday to AP. On Tuesday, Iran state TV reported the death of another Iranian nuclear scientist, Mohammad Reza Sedighi Saber, in an Israeli strike, after he'd survived an earlier attack that killed his 17-year-old son on June 13. Experts say that decades of Iranian work on nuclear energy - and, Western powers allege, nuclear weapons - has given the country reserves of know-how and scientists who could continue any work toward building warheads to fit on Iran's ballistic missiles. "Blueprints will be around and, you know, the next generation of Ph.D. students will be able to figure it out," said Mark Fitzpatrick, who specialized in nuclear non-proliferation as a former U.S. diplomat. Bombing nuclear facilities "or killing the people will set it back some period of time. Doing both will set it back further, but it will be reconstituted.' "They have substitutes in maybe the next league down, and they're not as highly qualified, but they will get the job done eventually,' said Fitzpatrick, now an analyst at the International Institute for Strategic Studies, a London think tank. How quickly nuclear work could resume will in part depend on whether Israeli and U.S. strikes destroyed Iran's stock of enriched uranium and equipment needed to make it sufficiently potent for possible weapons use. "The key element is the material. So once you have the material, then the rest is reasonably well-known,' said Pavel Podvig, a Geneva-based analyst who specializes in Russia's nuclear arsenal. He said killing scientists may have been intended "to scare people so they don't go work on these programs.' "Then the questions are, 'Where do you stop?' I mean you start killing, like, students who study physics?" he asked. "This is a very slippery slope.' 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International humanitarian law bans the intentional killing of civilians and non-combatants. But legal scholars say those restrictions might not apply to nuclear scientists if they were part of the Iranian armed forces or directly participating in hostilities. "My own take: These scientists were working for a rogue regime that has consistently called for the elimination of Israel, helping it to develop weapons that will allow that threat to take place. As such, they are legitimate targets,' said Steven R. David, a professor of political science at Johns Hopkins University. He said Nazi German and Japanese leaders who fought Allied nations during World War II "would not have hesitated to kill the scientists working on the Manhattan Project' that fathered the world's first atomic weapons. Laurie Blank, a specialist in humanitarian law at Emory Law School, said it's too early to say whether Israel's decapitation campaign was legal. 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Romania's new government sworn in
Romania's new government sworn in

Arab Times

time11 hours ago

  • Arab Times

Romania's new government sworn in

BUCHAREST, June 24, (Xinhua): Romania's new pro-European government, led by Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan, was sworn in Monday evening before President Nicusor Dan, marking the end of a period of political instability and interim leadership. The new cabinet is backed by a broad ruling coalition comprising the Social Democratic Party (PSD), National Liberal Party (PNL), Save Romania Union (USR), and the Hungarian Democratic Union of Romania (UDMR). Earlier in the day, the coalition secured a strong parliamentary mandate with 301 votes in favor and only 9 against. Following the swearing-in ceremony, Bolojan outlined the government's core priorities: restoring public financial order, ensuring effective governance, and safeguarding citizens' rights. President Dan welcomed the formation of the new cabinet, emphasizing the urgent need for fiscal reform and expressing optimism about Romania's economic outlook. He cited the country's dynamic private sector and reiterated the national goal of joining the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) by the end of 2026 - a move he said could enhance foreign investment and reduce borrowing costs. Dan also underscored the importance of state reform and rebuilding public trust, urging both the coalition and minority representatives to act in the national interest. The newly formed government includes 16 ministers and five deputy prime ministers, one of whom is an independent tasked with overseeing state reform. Cabinet portfolios have been distributed proportionally among the coalition parties. With 311 seats in Romania's 464-member Parliament, the ruling coalition holds an outright majority. Earlier on Monday, party leaders signed a political agreement outlining a pro-Western agenda, a rotating premiership, and key policy objectives, including structural reforms and increased administrative transparency.

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