Country name:
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conventional long form: none
conventional short form:
Romania
local long form:
none
local short form:
Romania
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Government type:
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republic
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Capital:
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name: Bucharest
geographic coordinates:
44 26 N, 26 06 E
time difference:
UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
daylight saving time:
+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
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Administrative divisions:
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41 counties (judete, singular - judet) and 1 municipality* (municipiu); Alba, Arad, Arges, Bacau, Bihor, Bistrita-Nasaud, Botosani, Braila, Brasov, Bucuresti (Bucharest)*, Buzau, Calarasi, Caras-Severin, Cluj, Constanta, Covasna, Dimbovita, Dolj, Galati, Gorj, Giurgiu, Harghita, Hunedoara, Ialomita, Iasi, Ilfov, Maramures, Mehedinti, Mures, Neamt, Olt, Prahova, Salaj, Satu Mare, Sibiu, Suceava, Teleorman, Timis, Tulcea, Vaslui, Vilcea, Vrancea
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Independence:
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9 May 1877 (independence proclaimed from the Ottoman Empire; independence recognized on 13 July 1878 by the Treaty of Berlin); 26 March 1881 (kingdom proclaimed); 30 December 1947 (republic proclaimed)
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National holiday:
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Unification Day (of Romania and Transylvania), 1 December (1918)
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Constitution:
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8 December 1991; revised 29 October 2003
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Legal system:
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civil law system
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International law organization participation:
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has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction
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Suffrage:
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18 years of age; universal
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Executive branch:
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chief of state: President Traian BASESCU (since 20 December 2004)
note: President BASESCU has twice been temporarily suspended since assuming the post: first from 20 April-23 May 2007, second from 6 July-27 August 2012; he survived a national recall referendum on both occasions
head of government:
Prime Minister Victor-Viorel PONTA (since 7 May 2012)
cabinet:
Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister
(For more information visit the World Leaders website )
elections:
president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 22 November 2009 with runoff on 6 December 2009 (next to be held in November-December 2014); prime minister appointed by the president with the consent of the Parliament
election results:
Traian BASESCU reelected president; percent of vote - Traian BASESCU 50.3%, Mircea GEOANA 49.7%
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Legislative branch:
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bicameral Parliament or Parlament consists of the Senate or Senat (176 seats; members elected by popular vote in a mixed electoral system to serve four-year terms) and the Chamber of Deputies or Camera Deputatilor (412 seats; members elected by popular vote in a mixed electoral system to serve four-year terms)
elections:
Senate - last held on 9 December 2012 (next by December 2016); Chamber of Deputies - last held on 9 December 2012 (next by December 2016)
election results:
Senate - percent of vote by alliance/party - USL 60.1%, ARD 16.7%, PP-DD 14.6%, UDMR 5.3%, other 3.3%; seats by alliance/party - USL 122, ARD 24, PP-DD 21, UDMR 9; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by alliance/party - USL 58.6%, ARD 16.5%, PP-DD 14%, UDMR 5.2%, ethnic minorities 2.6%, other 3.1%; seats by alliance/party - USL 273, ARD 56, PP-DD 47, UDMR 18, ethnic minorities 18
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Judicial branch:
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Supreme Court of Justice (comprised of 11 judges appointed for three-year terms by the president in consultation with the Superior Council of Magistrates, which is comprised of the minister of justice, the prosecutor general, two civil society representatives appointed by the Senate, and 14 judges and prosecutors elected by their peers); a separate body, the Constitutional Court, validates elections and makes decisions regarding the constitutionality of laws, treaties, ordinances, and internal rules of the Parliament; it is comprised of nine members serving nine-year terms, with three members each appointed by the president, the Senate, and the Chamber of Deputies
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Political parties and leaders:
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Christian-Democratic National Peasants' Party or PNT-CD [Aurelian PAVELESCU]; Civic Force or FC [Mihai-Razvan UNGUREANU]; Conservative Party or PC [Daniel CONSTANTIN] (formerly Humanist Party or PUR); Democratic Liberal Party or PDL [Vasile BLAGA] (formerly Democratic Party); Democratic Union of Hungarians in Romania or UDMR [Hunor KELEMEN]; National Liberal Party or PNL [Crin ANTONESCU]; National Union for Romania's Progress or UNPR [Gabriel OPREA]; People's Party - Dan Diaconescu or PP-DD [Dan DIACONESCU]; Right Romania Alliance or ARD [Vasile BLAGA, Mihai-Razvan UNGUREANU, and Aurelian PAVELESCU] (a center-right electoral alliance that includes PDL, FC, PNT-CD); Social Democratic Party or PSD [Victor PONTA] (formerly Party of Social Democracy in Romania or PDSR); Social Liberal Union or USL [Victor PONTA and Crin ANTONESCU] (an alliance of the PSD, PNL, UNPR, and PC)
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Political pressure groups and leaders:
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other: various human rights and professional associations
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International organization participation:
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Australia Group, BIS, BSEC, CBSS (observer), CD, CE, CEI, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, ESA, EU, FAO, G-9, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), LAIA (observer), MIGA, MONUSCO, NATO, NSG, OAS (observer), OIF, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, SELEC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, Union Latina, UNMIL, UNMISS, UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
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Diplomatic representation in the US:
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chief of mission: Ambassador Adrian Cosmin VIERITA
chancery:
1607 23rd Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone:
[1] (202) 332-4846, 4848, 4851, 4852
FAX:
[1] (202) 232-4748
consulate(s) general:
Chicago, Los Angeles, New York
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Diplomatic representation from the US:
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chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Duane BUTCHER
embassy:
Bulevardul Dr. Liviu Librescu 4-6, District 1, Bucharest, 015118
mailing address:
American Embassy Bucharest, US Department of State, 5260 Bucharest Place, Washington, DC 20521-5260 (pouch)
telephone:
[40] (21) 200-3300
FAX:
[40] (21) 200-3442
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Flag description:
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three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, and red; modeled after the flag of France, the colors are those of the principalities of Walachia (red and yellow) and Moldavia (red and blue), which united in 1862 to form Romania; the national coat of arms that used to be centered in the yellow band has been removed
note:
now similar to the flag of Chad, whose blue band is darker; also resembles the flags of Andorra and Moldova
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National symbol(s):
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golden eagle
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National anthem:
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name: "Desteapta-te romane!" (Wake up, Romanian!)
lyrics/music:
Andrei MURESIANU/Anton PANN
note:
adopted 1990; the anthem was written during the 1848 Revolution
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