23rd December 2015
2015: A Year in the Life of the British Embassy in Romania
2015 has been a packed year for the Embassy. These are some of the highlights.
1. Visit of Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond
The Foreign Secretary came to Romania on 14 January to discuss our bilateral Strategic Partnership and EU reform with the President, Prime Minister and Foreign Minister.
2. GREAT Mega Mission
A delegation of some 50 British firms visited Bucharest in March, the largest trade mission from the UK since the fall of communism in Romania.
3. Supporting Open Data
We joined our partners in Romania in promoting the advantages of Open Data, including through this video blog.
4. Strengthened Bilateral Defence Cooperation
We ramped up our bilateral defence agenda through the visit in March of the Secretary of State for Defence, Michael Fallon, the inauguration of a bilateral defence dialogue, a succession of joint exercises, and in November the visit to Constanta of HMS Duncan, the UK’s most modern destroyer.
5. The Prince of Wales’s Foundation Romania
Launched by HRH The Prince of Wales in Viscri in June, the Foundation aims to support heritage preservation and sustainable rural livelihoods in Transylvania.
6. The Queen’s Birthday Party
The celebration of our national day is a highlight of the Embassy’s social calendar: the event this year featured a photographic exhibition highlighting Romanians who have pursued successful careers in the UK, as well as representatives of the Coldstream Guards.
7. Commemoration of the 800th Anniversary of the Magna Carta
We teamed up with The Inner Temple to present a conference highlighting the continuing legacy of the Magna Carta, at which His Excellency President Iohannis gave the keynote speech and received a certified copy of the historical document, which has remained on display in the Bucharest Central University Library.
8. Great Romanian and British Women
We celebrated the achievements of remarkable women of Romania and Britain through a range of interconnected initiatives, including an exhibition at the National Art Museum, a booklet, a blog series, and a seminar highlighting the role of women in peace, security, and humanitarian assistance.
9. Support for the Victims of the Club Colectiv Fire
An appalling fire in a Bucharest night club on 30 October has claimed more than 60 young lives. The UK was quick to offer support to Romania at this most difficult time, with nine victims of the fire flown on 8 November for treatment in hospitals in England and Wales.
10. Promoting a Better Environment for Business
A busy year ranged from work with the NGO Expert Forum in August in promoting a wider dialogue around proposed new legislation on public procurement to the hosting in December at the Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies (ASE) of the BurEUcratia labyrinth, highlighting the impact of excessive bureaucracy on SMEs and entrepreneurship.
11. Visit of Prime Minister David Cameron
The Prime Minister’s visit to Romania on 9 December crowned an unprecedentedly busy year of senior level bilateral engagement. The Prime Minister discussed the bilateral relationship and EU reform with both President Iohannis and Prime Minister Ciolos. The statement the Prime Minister made during his visit is here.
12. Supporting the Disadvantaged
The Embassy has highlighted and supported the work of many Great Britons working in the non-governmental sector in Romania. For example I attended summer camps organised by the Libra Foundation, working with disabled and disadvantaged young people in towns such as Onesti; hosted awareness-raising events such as that for Casa Lumina, aiming to build a hospice for terminally sick children in Bacau; and, just before Christmas, joined my US colleague in serving soup to the homeless of Bucharest in an event organised by the Casa Ioana NGO.
