Mihai Tudose

Romanian Defence Minister Adrian Tutuianu resigned on Tuesday afternoon after a disagreement with Social Democrat Prime Minister Mihai Tudose over the lack of funds to pay the salaries of military personnel in September.

Romanian Prime Minister Mihai Tudose has angered environmental activists after announcing on Tuesday that the government will ask UNESCO to set aside a request made by the previous government in January to declare the 2,000-year-old Rosia Montana gold mine a protected area.

French President Emmanuel Macron is starting his first official visits to Central and Eastern Europe, heading on Thursday and Friday to the Romanian capital, Bucharest, and to Varna, on Bulgaria's Black Sea coast.

Romania's national airline Tarom faces a government investigation after it reported more significant losses in the first half of 2017. The company has not made a profit since 2007.

The general manager of the company resigned on Monday after a row with Prime Minister Mihai Tudose over the poor results of the company.

Parents who refuse to vaccinate their children after being informed of the risks this entails could be fined and their children could be prevented from attending attend public nurseries, kindergartens or schools, according to the draft Vaccination Law which is to be approved by the Romanian government.

Romania on Thursday joined several Eastern European countries in urging the European Union to address the "double standards" loophole used by global food chains to sell lower-quality products in Eastern Europe.

"We need to know which companies treat us like second-hand citizens," Romanian Prime Minister Mihai Tudose told the cabinet meeting on Thursday.

Moldova's parliament adopted a declaration on Friday, asking Russia to withdraw its troops from the breakaway region of Transnistria where they have been deployed for 25 years.

Romania's new government is due to pass a confidence vote in the parliament and be sworn in on Thursday - despite criticism that it includes many ministers from the former cabinet that was impeached for its poor performance last week.

Romania's ruling Social Democratic Party is set to announce a new government on Wednesday after a two-week-long political crisis that raised questions over stability and threatened the economy.  

Romania's ruling Social Democrats readied on Monday for consultations with President Klaus Iohannis on naming a new Prime Minister, having impeached their own cabinet last week.

Iohannis stressed that his main concern was the new Prime Minister's integrity, adding that he would not appoint a candidate who had been sentenced for any type of crime, including corruption.