14. Międzynarodowy Kiermasz Dobroczynny SHOM

28 listopada 2021 roku na Stadionie PGE Narodowym w Warszawie odbywała się czternasta edycja Międzynarodowego Kiermaszu Dobroczynnego organizowanego przez Stowarzyszenie Współmałżonek Szefów Misji Dyplomatycznych (SHOM). Palestyński artysta Nidal Kalbouneh i jego zespół rozpoczęli wydarzenie koncertem palestyńskich i arabskich pieśni.

2021/12/03

IV REUNIÓN DE CONSULTAS POLÍTICAS ENTRE LA REPÚBLICA ARGENTINA Y LA REPÚBLICA DE LITUANIA

En el día de 25 de noviembre de 2021 , en la ciudad de Vilna, se realizó la IV Reunión de Consultas Políticas entre la República Argentina y la República de Lituania. La delegación argentina estuvo encabezada por el Subsecretario de Política Exterior Claudio Javier Rozencwaig, quien estuvo acompañado por la Embajadora Ana María Ramírez. La delegación lituana estuvo encabezada por el Vice Ministro de Relaciones Exteriores Mantas Adomėnas.

2021/12/03

Program inwestycji „Francja 2030”

W dniu 12 października 2021 roku prezydent Emmanuel Macron przedstawił program inwestycji „Francja 2030” o łącznej wartości 30 mld euro. Po pierwsze, wezwał do reindustrializacji Francji, aby „ponownie stała się wielkim krajem innowacji i badań naukowych”.

2021/12/02

Ambassador of Kenya to Italy was among the high level panelists on Africa Green Growth

The Italian Exhibition Group convened the 24 edition of Emondo Energy Fair from 26-29 October 2021 in Rimini, Italy. H.E Jackline Yonga, Ambassador of Kenya to Italy was among the high level panelists on Africa Green Growth forum where she articulated Kenya's position on energy sector and invited potential investors to partner with the Government of Kenya in developing renewable energy and energy efficiency.

2021/12/02

Prezentacja potencjału turystycznego miasta Zagrzeb w Warszawie

W piątek 26 listopada 2021 roku w siedzibie Chorwackiej Wspólnoty Turystycznej w Warszawie - przedstawicielstwa w Polsce, odbyła się prezentacja potencjału turystycznego Zagrzebia. W perspektywie świąt Bożego Narodzenia i Nowego Roku Zagrzeb, który w ostatnich latach był wielokrotnie wybierany najlepszą świąteczną destynacją w Europie, z tegoroczną ofertą przedstawiła dyrektor Chorwackiej Wspólnoty Turystycznej w Polsce Agnieszka Puszczewicz.

2021/12/02

Independence day of the United Arab Emirates

United Arab Emirates, federation of seven emirates along the eastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula. The largest of these emirates, Abu Dhabi (Abū Ẓaby), which comprises more than three-fourths of the federation’s total land area, is the centre of its oil industry and borders Saudi Arabia on the federation’s southern and eastern borders. The port city of Dubai, located at the base of the mountainous Musandam Peninsula, is the capital of the emirate of Dubai (Dubayy) and is one of the region’s most vital commercial and financial centres, housing hundreds of multinational corporations in a forest of skyscrapers. The smaller emirates of Sharjah (Al-Shāriqah), ʿAjman (ʿAjmān), Umm al-Quwain (Umm al-Qaywayn), and Ras al-Khaimah (Raʾs al-Khaymah) also occupy the peninsula, whose protrusion north toward Iran forms the Strait of Hormuz linking the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman. The federation’s seventh member, Fujairah (Al-Fujayrah), faces the Gulf of Oman and is the only member of the union with no frontage along the Persian Gulf. Historically the domain of individual Arab clans and families, the region now comprising the emirates also has been influenced by Persian culture owing to its close proximity to Iran, and its porous maritime borders have for centuries invited migrants and traders from elsewhere. In the 18th century, Portugal and the Netherlands extended their holdings in the region but retreated with the growth of British naval power there; following a series of truces with Britain in the 19th century, the emirates united to form the Trucial States (also called Trucial Oman or the Trucial Sheikhdoms). The states gained autonomy following World War II (1939–45), when the trucial states of Bahrain and Qatar declared independent statehood. The rest were formally united in 1971, with the city of Abu Dhabi serving as the capital. The stability of the federation has since been tested by rivalries between the families governing the larger states of Abu Dhabi and Dubai, though external events such as the Persian Gulf War (1990–91) and an ongoing territorial dispute with Iran have served to strengthen the emirates’ political cohesion. The emirates comprise a mixed environment of rocky desert, coastal plains and wetlands, and waterless mountains. The seashore is a haven for migratory waterfowl and draws birdwatchers from all over the world; the country’s unspoiled beaches and opulent resorts also have drawn international travelers. Standing at a historic and geographic crossroads and made up of diverse nationalities and ethnic groups, the United Arab Emirates present a striking blend of ancient customs and modern technology, of cosmopolitanism and insularity, and of wealth and want. The rapid pace of modernization of the emirates prompted travel writer Jonathan Raban to note of the capital: “The condition of Abu Dhabi was so evidently mint that it would not have been surprising to see adhering to the buildings bits of straw and polystyrene from the crates in which they had been packed.” Land of the United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates is slightly smaller in area than Portugal. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the west and south and by Oman to the east and northeast. The precise borders of the country have remained a matter of dispute. Despite a 1974 secret agreement between the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia said to have resolved their three border disputes, the agreement’s legal standing is unclear. The United Arab Emirates claims a strip of coastline that borders Qatar to the northwest, which Saudi Arabia claims was ceded to it in the 1974 agreement. It likewise disputes Saudi claims over the Shaybah oil field to the south, while Saudi Arabia (as well as Oman) has at times challenged the emirates’ claim on oases around the city of Al-Ain. Since the early 1990s, moreover, the emirates have been in a dispute with Iran over the ownership of three islands—Abū Mūsā and Greater and Lesser Tunb (Ṭunb al-Kubrā and Ṭunb al-Ṣughrā). Relief Nearly the entire country is desert, containing broad areas of sand. Some of the world’s largest sand dunes are located east of ʿArādah in the oases of Līwā. Important oases are at Al-Ain about 100 miles (160 km) east of Abu Dhabi. Along the eastern portion of the Musandam Peninsula, the northern extension of the Ḥajar Mountains (also shared by Oman) offers the only other major relief feature; elevations rise to about 6,500 feet (2,000 metres) at their highest point. The Persian Gulf coast is broken by shoals and dotted with islands that offer shelter to small vessels. There are no natural deepwater harbours, however; both Dubai’s Port Rāshid and the gigantic Port Jebel Ali, 20 miles (32 km) southwest of Dubai city, are human-made, as are major ports in Abu Dhabi, Sharjah, and Ras al-Khaimah. The coast of the Gulf of Oman is more regular and has three natural harbours—Dibba, Khor Fakkan, and Kalbā. Drainage The United Arab Emirates has no perennial streams nor any regularly occurring bodies of surface water. Precipitation, what little falls, is drained from the mountains in the form of seasonal wadis that terminate in inland salt flats, or sabkhahs, whose drainage is frequently blocked by the country’s constantly shifting dunes. In the far west the Maṭṭī Salt Flat extends southward into Saudi Arabia, and coastal sabkhahs, which are occasionally inundated by the waters of the Persian Gulf, lie in the areas around Abu Dhabi. Climate The climate is hot and humid along the coast and is hotter still, but dry, in the interior. Rainfall averages only 4 to 6 inches (100 to 150 mm) annually, though it fluctuates considerably from year to year. The average January temperature is 64 °F (18 °C), while in July the temperature averages 91 °F (33 °C). Summertime highs can reach 115 °F (46 °C) on the coast and 120 °F (49 °C) or more in the desert. In midwinter and early summer, winds known as the shamāl (Arabic: “norther”) blow from the north and northwest, bearing dust and sand. Plant and animal life Because of the desert climate, vegetation is scanty and largely limited to the low shrubs that offer forage to nomadic herds, but millions of trees, notably mangroves, have been planted in Abu Dhabi and have provided habitats for various species. In the oases, date palms are raised together with alfalfa (lucerne). Fruits are grown, and the Al-ʿAyn oases east of Abu Dhabi are known for their mangoes. Animal life includes domesticated goats, sheep, and camels, together with cattle and poultry, which were introduced in more recent times. Wildlife consists of predators such as the caracal, sand cat (Felis margarita), and the Ruppell’s (Vulpes ruppelli) and red foxes; larger animals such as the Arabian oryx and Arabian and Persian gazelles; smaller mammals such as the cape hare, lesser jerboa, and various types of gerbil; and a variety of snakes and lizards. The gulf waters harbour schools of mackerel, grouper, tuna, and porgies, as well as sharks and occasional whales. In the 1990s the government initiated a conservation and management program to preserve and protect desert animal and plant life. People - Ethnic groups Only about one-ninth of the emirates’ residents are citizens. The remainder are mostly foreign workers and their dependents, with South Asians constituting the largest of these groups. Arabs from countries other than the United Arab Emirates and Iranians account for another significant portion. Southeast Asians, including many Filipinos, have immigrated in increasing numbers to work in various capacities. Languages and religion The official language of the United Arab Emirates is Arabic. Modern Standard Arabic is taught in schools, and most native Emiratis speak a dialect of Gulf Arabic that is generally similar to that spoken in surrounding countries. A number of languages are spoken among the expatriate community, including various dialects of Pashto, Hindi, Balochi, and Persian. English is also widely spoken. About three-fifths of the population is Muslim, of which roughly four-fifths belong to the Sunni branch of Islam; Shiʿi minorities exist in Dubai and Sharjah. There are also small but growing numbers of Christians and Hindus in the country. More … Source: https://www.britannica.com/place/United-Arab-Emirates    

2021/12/02

Proclamation of the Lao People's Democratic Republic

Laos, landlocked country of northeast-central mainland Southeast Asia. It consists of an irregularly round portion in the north that narrows into a peninsula-like region stretching to the southeast. Overall, the country extends about 650 miles (1,050 km) from northwest to southeast. The capital is Vientiane (Lao: Viangchan), located on the Mekong River in the northern portion of the country. The geologically diverse landscape of Laos, with its forested mountains, upland plateaus and lowland plains, supports an equally diverse population that is united largely through agriculture, particularly the cultivation of rice. Interactions—sometimes hostile, sometimes hospitable—with the neighbouring Khmer (Cambodian), Siamese (Thai), and Myanmar (Burmese) kingdoms between the 5th and the mid-19th century indirectly imbued Laos with elements of Indian culture, including Buddhism, the religion now practiced by most of the population. Both Buddhist and Hindu lores have shaped the visual, performing, and literary arts of the country. Many of the indigenous and minority peoples of the remote highland slopes and mountainous regions, however, have maintained their own idiosyncratic ritual and artistic traditions. Colonization by the French from the late 19th to the mid-20th century infused Laos with a European cultural element, which intensified throughout the country’s embroilment in World War II and the Indochina wars, as well as a civil war of its own in the second half of the 20th century. Guided by Marxist-Leninist ideology, Laos emerged from the turmoil in 1975 as a communist country. Economic reforms of the late 20th and early 21st centuries, including the development of tourism, have strengthened Laos’s economy, gradually shrinking the country’s debt and diminishing its dependence on international aid. Land Laos is bounded to the north by China, to the northeast and east by Vietnam, to the south by Cambodia, to the west by Thailand, and to the northwest by Myanmar (Burma). Relief Dominating the landscape of Laos are its inhospitable forest-covered mountains, which in the north rise to a maximum elevation of 9,245 feet (2,818 metres) above sea level at Mount Bia and everywhere constitute an impediment to travel. The principal range lies along a northwest-southeast axis and forms part of the Annamese Cordillera (Chaîne Annamitique), but secondary ranges abound. On the Xiangkhoang Plateau in north-central Laos, the Plain of Jars (Thông Haihin; the name derived from large prehistoric stone jars discovered there) consists of extensive rolling grasslands rather than a true plain and provides a hub of communications. The karst landscapes of the central provinces of Bolikhamxay and Khammouan contain caverns and severely eroded limestone pinnacles. In the south the Bolovens Plateau, at an elevation of about 3,600 feet (1,100 metres), is covered by open woodland and has generally fertile soil. The only extensive lowlands lie along the eastern bank of the Mekong River. Drainage The general slope of the land in Laos is downhill from east to west, and all the major rivers—the Tha, Beng, Ou, Ngum, Kading, Bangfai, Banghiang, and Kong—are tributaries of the Mekong (Mènam Khong). The Mekong flows generally southeast and south along and through western Laos and forms its boundary with Myanmar and most of the border with Thailand. The course of the river itself is severely constricted by gorges in northern Laos, but, by the time it reaches Vientiane, its valley broadens and exposes wide areas to flooding when the river breaches its banks, as it did most notably in August 1966. A few rivers in eastern Laos flow eastward through gaps in the Annamese Cordillera to reach the Gulf of Tonkin; the most important of these is the Ma River, which rises in the northeast, just inside the Vietnam border. Soils Soils in the floodplains are formed from alluvium deposited by rivers and are either sandy or sandy clay with light colours or sandy with gray or yellow colours; chemically, these are neutral to slightly acidic. Upland soils derived from crystalline, granitic, schistose, or sandstone parent rocks generally are more acidic and much less fertile. Southern Laos contains areas of laterite (leached and iron-bearing) soils, as well as basaltic soils on the Bolovens Plateau. Climate Laos has the typical tropical monsoon (wet-dry) climate of the region, though the mountains provide some variations in temperature. During the rainy season (May to October), the winds of the southwest monsoon deposit an average rainfall of 50 to 90 inches (1,300 to 2,300 mm), with totals reaching some 160 inches (4,100 mm) on the Bolovens Plateau. The dry season (November to April) is dominated by the northeast monsoon. Minimum temperatures average between 60 and 70 °F (16 and 21 °C) in the cool months of December through February, increasing to highs of more than 90 °F (32 °C) in March and April, just before the start of the rains. In the wet season the average temperature is 80 °F (27 °C). Plant and animal life Laos has tropical rainforests of broad-leaved evergreens in the north and monsoon forests of mixed evergreens and deciduous trees in the south. In the monsoon forest areas the ground is covered with tall, coarse grass called tranh; the trees are mostly secondary growth, with an abundance of bamboo, scrub, and wild banana. Laos is also home to hundreds of species of orchids and palms. The forests and fields support a wealth of wildlife, including nearly 200 species of mammals, about the same number of reptiles and amphibians, and some 700 varieties of birds. Common mammals include gaurs (wild oxen), deer, bears, and monkeys. Elephants, rhinoceroses, and tigers, as well as several types of wild oxen, monkeys, and gibbons, are among the country’s endangered mammals. Geckoes, snakes, skinks, and frogs are abundant; several types of turtles are threatened. The canopy and floor of the forest are inhabited by countless warblers, babblers, woodpeckers, and thrushes, as well as an array of larger raptors. Numerous water birds live in the lowlands. Several dozen species of Laos’s birds are threatened, including most hornbills, ibises, and storks. More … Source: https://www.britannica.com/place/Laos    

2021/12/02

Day of the Central African Republic

Central Africa, region of Africa that straddles the Equator and is drained largely by the Congo River system. It comprises, according to common definitions, the Republic of the Congo (Brazzaville), the Central African Republic, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Kinshasa); Gabon is usually included along with the Central African Republic because of their common historical ties, both of these countries having once been part of French Equatorial Africa. Rwanda and Burundi, although they are located east of the East African Rift System, which forms the eastern divide of the Congo basin, are also often considered part of the region because of their long administrative connections with the former Belgian Congo (now Congo [Kinshasa]). The island republic of São Tomé and Príncipe, off the Atlantic coast of Gabon, is also included in the region. The landscapes of Central Africa are most often wide plateaus, which are smooth in the central part and etched at the periphery. The interior basin of the Congo River is joined to the Atlantic Ocean by a narrow neck traversing ridges parallel to the coast. The basin contains some marshlands in the region where the Congo, Ubangi, Likouala, and Sangha rivers converge and where Lakes Mai-Ndombe and Tumba are found. Its major part, however, consists of drier surfaces (low plateaus or alluvial terraces). Higher plateaus, which extend through older sedimentary strata around the centre of the Congo basin, reach an elevation of 2,600 to 3,000 feet (790 to 900 metres) north of Brazzaville and exceed 3,000 feet near the Angolan border to the south. In the north a low divide (2,000–2,300 feet [610–700 metres]) separates the Congo River and its tributaries from the Chad basin. The landscape beyond the divide descends by steps toward Lake Chad. Southwest and south of the Chaillu Massif (3,000–3,300 feet [900–1,005 metres]) in Gabon and Congo (Brazzaville) are ridges, traversed through deep and narrow gorges by the Kouilou and Congo. East of this complex the Congo River has eroded a broad basin, known as Malebo Pool, into the upper sedimentary strata before cutting rapids farther downstream. The most rugged terrain lies on the eastern fringe of the Congo basin. North of Lake Kivu and of Rwanda, the Virunga volcanoes form an east-west–trending range. The highest point in Central Africa, Margherita Peak (16,795 feet [5,119 metres]), whose summit bears residual features of glaciation, is located on the eastern fringe of the Rift Valley on the border of Congo (Kinshasa) and Uganda. The Congo River basin is second only to that of the Amazon in rate of flow. In the central part of the basin, the fan of quiet rivers constitutes one of the most attractive networks of navigable waters in the world, but this network is cut off from the Atlantic by a succession of rapids in western Congo (Kinshasa) between Kinshasa and Matadi. Downstream from Matadi the river becomes navigable again before entering its estuary. All the rivers in the region flow down through rapids or waterfalls from the peripheral plateaus to the central basin. The rivers of the western region are navigable for only a few miles from their estuaries, though the Ogooué, in Gabon, which lies in a wider sedimentary coastal basin, is navigable for more than 100 miles (160 km). Some parts of Central Africa lie within the Chad basin (northern Central African Republic) or the Nile basin (eastern Rwanda and northeastern Burundi, the Western Rift Valley north of the Virunga Mountains). Lava fields from the Virungas have blocked the outlet of an ancient hydrographic network previously oriented to the north. This created Lake Kivu; its waters discharge to the south, through the Ruzizi (Rusizi) River gorge into Lake Tanganyika, one outlet of which links the lake with the Lualaba River and thus the Congo. The volcanic dam also caused a river course reversal in northern Rwanda, generating lakes and marshes. Central Africa is characterized by hot and wet climates on both sides of the Equator. The equatorial strip that extends from the Atlantic Ocean to the Western Rift Valley is influenced throughout the year by the intertropical convergence zone (ITCZ), resulting in intense, heavy precipitation. The mean annual temperatures in the region vary from 77 to 82 °F (25 to 28 °C), and monthly means vary only a few degrees throughout the year. The diurnal range of about 20 °F (11 °C) always exceeds the range of monthly means. Annual rainfall exceeds 80 inches (2,000 mm) in coastal Gabon, in the centre of the Congo basin, and on the mountain summits bordering the Western Rift Valley. There is no serious dry season, but in the extreme east and west there are two months (July and August) of lower rainfall. North and south of the equatorial strip the dry season increases in severity with latitude. It is driest in the Northern Hemisphere in January (when the area receives dry Saharan air masses) and in the Southern Hemisphere in July; the season lasts nearly seven months in the far northern part of the Central African Republic and in far southern Congo (Kinshasa). Notwithstanding its low latitude and proximity to humid air masses, the coastal region of southwestern Central Africa has an abnormally long dry season with a low annual rainfall because of the presence of a cold marine current (the Benguela Current) along the coast. Highland areas tend to be wetter and cooler. Equatorial Central Africa is covered by an evergreen forest with an area of almost 400,000 square miles (1,035,920 square km). This rainforest—an exuberant world of high trees, rich in epiphytes and lianas—takes three main forms: permanently wet marshy forests at the confluence of the Ubangi and Congo rivers; gallery forests, which are subject to periodic flooding, along banks and river floodplains; and, most extensive, forests of dry land, either featuring a single dominant species or, more often, harbouring a variety of species (sometimes several hundred per acre). This last type of forest is also found on the eastern slopes of the Congo basin, but it changes to high-altitude life-forms on the highlands of the Western Rift Valley. The rainforest is surrounded by a patchwork of savannas and other forests. Savannas of poor, permeable sandy soils unevenly strewn with small trees cover the plateau surfaces, whereas subequatorial forests fill the valleys. Large areas of the savanna probably were created by slash-and-burn agricultural techniques, through which the original forest was cleared and the resulting grasslands maintained by periodic bushfires. Savannas also border the cooler and drier Atlantic coast of the two Congo republics, while mangrove thickets stretch along the banks of nearby estuaries, lagoons, and deltas. Beyond this savanna forest region the most distinctive vegetal formation is the dry tropical forest (called miombo in the southeast). Its trees are smaller and less dense than those of the equatorial forest, and they are deciduous, losing their leaves during the dry season. The dry tropical forest covers the southern Kwango and Katanga (Shaba) plateaus in Congo (Kinshasa) but exists only in shreds north of the Equator, in the Central African Republic. In the far north the thorny steppe is a typical Sahelian landscape. With its steep gradients over short distances, rainy highlands, and relatively dry bottoms, the Western Rift Valley region is characterized by sharp vegetation contrasts. Central Africa’s most famous national park, Virunga National Park in Congo (Kinshasa), is home to elephants, lions, hippopotamuses, warthogs, forest hogs, okapis, and mountain gorillas on the volcano slopes. Also in the same region is Kahuzi-Biega National Park, which features mountain gorillas. In savanna or wooded savanna regions are Garamba National Park in northeastern Congo, well known for its white rhinoceroses, Upemba National Park in southern Congo, parks in the northern part of the Central African Republic, and Akagera National Park in northeastern Rwanda. Other parks and reserves are located in the equatorial forest in Congo, such as Maiko and Salonga national parks. National borders have split the territory of many ethnic groups. Twa (Pygmies) are scattered in the forests from Cameroon to the mountains surrounding Lake Kivu. The Fang of Gabon also occupy Equatorial Guinea and southern Cameroon. The Teke are spread throughout Congo (Brazzaville), Gabon, and Congo (Kinshasa). The Kongo inhabit western Congo (Kinshasa), western Congo (Brazzaville), and Angola; the Chokwe and the Lunda occupy Congo (Kinshasa) and Angola. In each country some major groups enjoy a numerically dominant position—for example, the Fang in Gabon and the Mboshi, Teke, and Kongo in Congo (Brazzaville). Burundi and Rwanda contain a Hutu majority, a Tutsi minority, and some Twa (Pygmies). In Congo (Kinshasa) the major groups are the Kongo (southwest), Mongo (central basin), Luba (south-central), Zande and Mangbetu (northeast), and Ngbaka (northwest). In the Central African Republic the Baya, in the west, are the most numerous, but the Banda, in the centre, occupy the largest territory. The islands of the Gulf of Guinea have a mixed population originating from Angola as well as from West and Central Africa because of their history as slave plantations and, later, as plantations with largely forced labour. Most languages spoken in Central Africa belong to the Bantu group of the Niger-Congo language family. In northern Central Africa, Adamawa-Eastern and Sudanic languages are also spoken. The area’s rich linguistic diversity includes the use of lingua francas born of local languages, pidgin creoles (in the islands of the Gulf of Guinea), and European languages, which are the official languages of the various countries (Portuguese in São Tomé and Príncipe, French elsewhere). These lingua francas often overlap borders. Lingala, which is important in Congo (Kinshasa), is also spoken in Congo (Brazzaville), as are Kongo and Sango, which in turn is the main language in the Central African Republic. Swahili, the eastern Africa language, is the lingua franca in eastern Congo (Kinshasa) and among the merchants of Burundi and Rwanda. In the latter countries Rundi and Rwanda are (along with French) the official languages. This article covers the history of the region from prehistoric time to the end of the colonial period in the 20th century. For the postcolonial history of the region, see Burundi, Central African Republic, Congo (Brazzaville), Congo (Kinshasa), Gabon, Rwanda, and São Tomé and Príncipe. Area, 1,402,367 square miles (3,632,116 square km). Pop (2001 est.) 75,001,000. More … Source: https://www.britannica.com/place/central-Africa  

2021/12/01

Grand Unification of Romania

Romania, country of southeastern Europe. The national capital is Bucharest. Romania was occupied by Soviet troops in 1944 and became a satellite of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (U.S.S.R.) in 1948. The country was under communist rule from 1948 until 1989, when the regime of Romanian leader Nicolae Ceaușescu was overthrown. Free elections were held in 1990. In 2004 the country joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), and in 2007 it became a member of the European Union (EU). The Romanian landscape is approximately one-third mountainous and one-third forested, with the remainder made up of hills and plains. The climate is temperate and marked by four distinct seasons. Romania enjoys a considerable wealth of natural resources: fertile land for agriculture; pastures for livestock; forests that provide hard and soft woods; petroleum reserves; metals, including gold and silver in the Apuseni Mountains; numerous rivers that supply hydroelectricity; and a Black Sea coastline that is the site of both ports and resorts. The Romanian people derive much of their ethnic and cultural character from Roman influence, but this ancient identity has been reshaped continuously by Romania’s position astride major continental migration routes. Romanians regard themselves as the descendants of the ancient Romans who conquered southern Transylvania under the emperor Trajan in 105 ce and of the Dacians who lived in the mountains north of the Danubian Plain and in the Transylvanian Basin. By the time of the Roman withdrawal under the emperor Aurelian in 271, the Roman settlers and the Dacians had intermarried, resulting in a new nation. Both the Latin roots of the Romanian language and the Eastern Orthodox faith to which most Romanians adhere emerged from the mixture of these two cultures. From the arrival of the Huns in the 5th century until the emergence of the principalities of Walachia and Moldavia in the 14th century, the Romanian people virtually disappeared from written history. During this time Romania was invaded by great folk migrations and warriors on horseback who traveled across the Danubian Plain. It is believed that in the face of ceaseless violence the Romanians were forced to relocate, finding safety in the Carpathian Mountains. As military chief Helmuth von Moltke observed: “Resistance having nearly always proven useless, the Romanians could no longer think of any other way of defense than flight.” For the next 600 years the Romanian lands served as battlegrounds for their neighbours’ conflicting ambitions. The Romanians were unable to withstand the imperial pressures first from the Byzantines and then from the Ottoman Turks to the south in Constantinople (now Istanbul), or later from the Habsburg empire to the west and from Russia to the east. In 1859 the principalities of Walachia and Moldavia were united, and in 1877 they proclaimed their independence from the Ottoman Empire as the modern Romania. This was accompanied by a conversion from the Cyrillic alphabet to the Latin and by an exodus of students who sought higher education in western Europe, especially France. Despite its late start as a European nation-state, Romania in the 20th century produced several world-renowned intellectuals, including composer Georges Enesco, playwright Eugène Ionesco, philosopher Emil Cioran, religion historian Mircea Eliade, and Nobel laureate George E. Palade. On the eve of World War II, journalist Rosa Goldschmidt Waldeck (Countess Waldeck) described her strongest impression of the Romanians: Two thousand years of severe foreign masters, barbarian invasions, rapacious conquers, wicked princes, cholera, and earthquakes have given Rumanians a superb sense of the temporary and transitory quality of everything. Experience in survival has taught them that each fall may result in unforeseen opportunities and that somehow they always get on their feet again. Land of Romania Romania is bounded by Ukraine to the north, Moldova to the northeast, the Black Sea to the southeast, Bulgaria to the south, Serbia to the southwest, and Hungary to the west. There is a certain symmetry in the physical structure of Romania. The country forms a complex geographic unit centred on the Transylvanian Basin, around which the peaks of the Carpathian Mountains and their associated subranges and structural platforms form a series of crescents. Beyond this zone, the extensive plains of the south and east of the country, their potential increased by the Danube River and its tributaries, form a fertile outer crescent extending to the frontiers. There is great diversity in the topography, geology, climate, hydrology, flora, and fauna, and for millennia this natural environment has borne the imprint of a human population. Romania comprises a number of geographic regions, some of which correspond roughly to the historic regions whose names they share. In the southern part of the country, following the general contours of the former principality of the same name, Walachia (Wallachia) stretches south from the Southern Carpathians (Transylvanian Alps) to the Bulgarian border and is divided by the Olt River. In the southeast, situated between the lower Danube and the Black Sea, is the historic and geographic region of Dobruja, which also encompasses part of Bulgaria. The geographic region of Moldavia, comprising only part of the former principality of Moldavia (the remainder of which constitutes the country of Moldova), stretches from the Eastern Carpathian Mountains to the Prut River on the Ukrainian border. In western Romania, the historic Banat region is bounded on the north by the Mureș River and reaches west and south into Hungary and Serbia. Finally, bounded on the north and east by the Eastern Carpathians, on the south by the Southern Carpathians, and on the west by the Bihor Mountains is the geographic region of Transylvania, which is roughly contiguous with the borders of the former principality of Transylvania and in most schemes includes the Banat. Relief The relief of Romania is dominated by the Carpathian Mountains, which can be divided into the Eastern Carpathians, the Southern Carpathians, and the Western Carpathians. The Eastern Carpathians extend from the Ukrainian frontier to the Prahova River valley and reach their maximum elevation in the Rodna Mountains, with Pietrosu rising to 7,556 feet (2,303 metres). They are made up of a series of parallel crests that are oriented in a more or less north-south direction. Within these mountains is a central core that is made up of hard, crystalline rocks and has a bold and rugged relief. Rivers have cut narrow gorges here (known as cheile)—including the Bistriței and Bicazului gorges—which offer some magnificent scenery. This portion of the Carpathians is bounded on the eastern side by a zone of softer flysch. For some 250 miles (400 km) on the western fringe, the volcanic ranges Oaș and Harghita, with a concentration of volcanic necks and cones, some with craters still preserved, lend character to the landscape. St. Ana Lake—the only crater lake in Romania—is also found there. The volcanic crescent provides rich mineral resources (notably copper, lead, and zinc) as well as the mineral-water springs on which are founded several health resorts. The Carpathian range proper is made up in large part of easily weathered limestones and conglomerates, which again provide some striking scenery. The Maramureș, Giurgiu, Ciuc, and Bârsei depressions further break up the mountainous relief. The Southern Carpathians, or Transylvanian Alps, lie between the Prahova River valley on the east and the Timiș and Cerna river valleys to the west. They are composed mainly of hard crystalline and volcanic rocks, which give the region the massive character that differentiates it from the other divisions of the Carpathians. The highest points in Romania are reached in the peaks of Mounts Moldoveanu (8,346 feet [2,544 metres]) and Negoiu (8,317 feet [2,535 metres]), both in the Făgăraș Mountains, which, together with the Bucegi, Parâng, and Retezat-Godeanu massifs, form the major subdivision of the region. The latter contains Retezat National Park, Romania’s first established (1935) national park, which covers about 94,000 acres (38,000 hectares), offers spectacular mountain scenery, and provides an important refuge for the chamois (Rupicapra rupicapra) and other animals. Ancient erosion platforms, another distinguishing feature of the area, have been utilized as pastures since the dawn of European history. Communication is possible through the high passes of Bran, Novaci-Șugag, and Vâlcan, at elevations up to 7,400 feet (2,260 metres), but the scenic Olt, Jiu, and Danube river valleys carry the main roads and railways through the mountains. At the Iron Gate gorge, on the Danube, a joint navigation and power project by Romania and the former federation of Yugoslavia harnessed the fast-flowing waters of the gorge. In addition to greatly improving navigation facilities, the project created two power stations, which are jointly administered by Romania and Serbia. Finally, as in the Eastern Carpathians, there are important lowland depressions within the mountains (notably Brezoi, Hațeg, and Petroșani), and agriculture and industry are concentrated in them. The Western Carpathians extend for about 220 miles (350 km) between the Danube and Someș rivers. Unlike the other divisions of the Carpathians, they do not form a continuous range but rather a cluster of massifs around a north-south axis. Separating the massifs is a series of deeply penetrating structural depressions. Historically, these depressions have functioned as easily defended “gates,” as is reflected in their names: the Iron Gate of Transylvania (at Bistra); the Eastern Gate, or Poarta Orientală (at Timiș-Cerna); and, most famous, the Iron Gate on the Danube. Among the massifs themselves, the Banat and Poiana Ruscăi mountains contain a rich variety of mineral resources and are the site of two of the country’s three largest metallurgical complexes, at Reșița and Hunedoara. The marble of Ruschița is well known. To the north lie the Apuseni Mountains, centred on the Bihor Massif, from which emerge fingerlike protrusions of lower relief. On the east the Bihor Mountains merge into the limestone tableland of Cetățile Ponorului, where the erosive action of water along joints in the rocks has created a fine example of the rugged karst type of scenery. To the west lie the parallel mountain ranges of Zărand, Codru-Moma, and Pădurea Craiului; to the south, along the Mureș River, the Metaliferi and Trascău mountains contain a great variety of metallic and other ores, with traces of ancient Roman mine workings still visible. The Western Carpathians generally are less forested than other parts of the range, and human settlement reaches to the highest elevations. The great arc of the Carpathians is accompanied by an outer fringe of rolling terrain known as the Subcarpathians and extending from the Moldova River in the north to the Motru River in the southwest. It is from 2 to 19 miles (3 to 31 km) wide and reaches elevations ranging between 1,300 and 3,300 feet (400 and 1,000 metres). The topography and the milder climate of this region favour vegetation (including such Mediterranean elements as the edible chestnut) and aid agriculture; the region specializes in cereals and fruits, and its wines—notably those of Odobești and the Călugărească Valley—are known throughout Europe. The area is densely populated, and there are serious problems of economic development in remoter areas where there is little scope for further agricultural expansion. Tablelands are another important element in the physical geography of Romania. The tableland of the Transylvanian Basin is the largest in the country and has an average elevation of 1,150 feet (350 metres). In the east, between the outer fringe of the Subcarpathians and the Prut River, lies the Moldavian Plateau, with an average elevation of 1,600 to 2,000 feet (500 to 600 metres). The Dobruja (Dobrodgea) tableland, an ancient, eroded rock mass in the southeast, has an average elevation of 820 feet (250 metres) and reaches a maximum elevation of 1,532 feet (467 metres) in the Pricopan Hills. Plains cover about one-third of Romania, reaching their fullest development in the south and west. Their economic importance has increased greatly since the early 19th century. In the southern part of Romania is the Walachian Plain, which can be divided into the Romanian Plain to the east of the Olt River and the Oltenian Plateau to the west. The whole region is covered by deposits of loess, on which rich black chernozem soils have developed, providing a strong base for agriculture. The Danube floodplain is important economically, and along the entire stretch of the river, from Calafat in the west to Galați in the east, former marshlands have been diked and drained to increase food production. Willow and poplar woods border the river, which is important for fishing but much more so for commerce. River port towns—including Drobeta–Turnu Severin, Turnu Măgurele, Giurgiu, Brăila, Galați, and Tulcea—complement the rural settlements. On the northern edge of the Dobruja region, adjoining the Moldavian Plateau, the great swampy triangle of the Danube delta is a unique physiographic region covering some 2,000 square miles (5,180 square km), of which the majority is in Romania. The delta occupies the site of an ancient bay, which in prehistoric times became wholly or partially isolated from the sea by the Letea sandbanks. The delta, which was designated a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1991, contributes about half of Romania’s fish production from home waters, with fishing off the Danube mouth contributing to the majority of the catch of sturgeon (banned since 2006) and Danube herring. It also is home to hundreds of species of birds, some of which are rare. For this reason the delta region is of great interest not only to a growing number of tourists but also to scientists and conservationists. Two dozen or more settlements are scattered over the region, but many are exposed to serious flood risks. Sulina and Tulcea are the major ports. Romania lies in an active earthquake zone at the junction of three tectonic plates. Devastating earthquakes in both 1940 and 1977 caused considerable damage and loss of life in Romania. More … Source: https://www.britannica.com/place/Romania

2021/12/01