Romanian president skips Navy Day for second year, advisor delivers message as interim PM heckled in Constanța

Romanian President Nicușor Dan attended a religious service at Dejani Monastery in Brașov County on Saturday, marking the Adormirea Maicii Domnului (Dormition of the Mother of God) feast, accompanied by his partner, Mirabela Grădinaru, and their two children. Images published by Antena 3 showed Dan and Grădinaru with their heads bowed in prayer, and they received anafura (blessed bread) from the priest after the service .
Dan later visited relatives in his hometown of Făgăraș, where he was photographed in casual summer attire with local children and his family, accompanied by his security detail . A local woman described the president’s presence at the monastery as “an emotional moment,” adding that “no one expected him to come here today” .
For the second consecutive year, Dan did not attend the Navy Day ceremonies in Constanța, where over 3,500 Romanian and foreign military personnel participated in naval and aerial exercises before thousands of spectators. Instead, his presidential advisor, Marius Lazurca, delivered Dan’s message at the event .
Interim Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan attended the Constanța ceremonies and was heckled during his speech. “Dear Romanians, I am here as a sign of respect for the Romanian Navy. At a time when security at the eastern border is no longer a given, and safe navigation in the Black Sea is a daily challenge rather than a certainty, the equipment, courage, and professionalism of our Naval Forces matter more than ever,” Bolojan said .
Bucharest’s general mayor, Ciprian Ciucu, defended Bolojan in a Facebook post, stating that Bolojan knew he would be heckled but attended because “someone had to be there to represent the Romanian state.” Ciucu added that Bolojan “has no reason to be ashamed” and “can look every Romanian in the eye because he has taken on a mission of sacrifice” .
The Navy Day events included military demonstrations such as mine countermeasures, anti-aircraft defense, submarine searches, and maritime rescue operations, alongside a musical performance by the Naval Forces band . The celebrations occurred amid recent security concerns, with authorities reporting the detection of 100 drones near Romanian airspace and the discovery of two crashed drones in Tulcea County, as well as drone fragments on beaches in Costinești and Saturn .
Dan’s absence from the Navy Day ceremonies marked the second year in a row he did not attend. In 2025, he also skipped the event, instead visiting Sâmbăta de Sus Monastery. The last president to miss the Constanța ceremonies before Dan was Traian Băsescu in 2011, who cited his wife’s birthday as the reason for his absence .
Follow us for live European news
- 3
