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In the last years, Serbia's determination to join the European Union seems to have decreased. Whether the official positions and the state documents consider the European integration a strategic national interest, recent criticism from both parts have occurred. Therefore, through this article, we intend to discuss the challenges for Serbia's integration in the European Union, focusing on: the adhesion to the rule of law's principle, the problem of Kosovo, and the Ukrainian war. In conclusions, we will try to argue that it is hardly to imagine any European Union's progress with Serbia under the current strategy. However, all the variables must be carefully quantified, and maybe, in the light of Russia's aggression in Ukraine, we need a geopolitical approach at this moment, promoting stability and reconciliation in the Western Balkans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The general aim of the analysis, that we are involved in, is devoted to exploring the EU possibilities -- institutional, civil society, and volunteer persons - to improve the support for the Internationally Displaced Persons (IDPs), commonly called "refugees"; to grant its sustainability. It introduces two main ideas. The first idea is that the international "refuge" is a process that is to be understood and managed in five main stages 1. Admission, 2. Transit, 3. Insertion, - 4. International Protection Status or Subsidiary Protection Status received 5. Voluntary repatriation. The second main idea proposed is to take into consideration that in any process of the refuge and refugees' protection, there are two parts a) those who assume the duty to protect and b) the protegees. Accordingly, the protection should have its peculiarities for each stage. In addition, each of the two parts sees the facts from its own angle. The protectors understand and project the refuge's management from the perspective of the costs involved and that of the available resources and efforts to solve the problems. The protegees see their needs and to what extent these are met. They also see their undeserved suffering. Accordingly, they expect to be assisted to put an end to the refuge cauchemar as soon as possible. To harmonize the perspectives and to conciliate the needs with the available resources, is to put both perspectives together, to enlarge the concept on what the process supposes. To communicate the concept of refuge which encompass the mentioned perspectives -- among the officers, NGOs' members, volunteers that took the mission to support the refugees and further among the receiving communities' members - is a necessity. It is also to deploy efforts to deeply communicate on the refugees' needs and issues among the actors mentioned above. In parallel, it is to develop the communication on the assistance and on its limits (caused by the limited available resources) to the refugees and among them. To contribute to this communication, we elaborate the schema of the refuge' stages, with their main contents seen from both the parts involved. On the other hand, we introduce the Pyramid of the Refugees' needs. To concretize the theory, we also are trying to present Romania's politico-legislative frameworks in the special case of the massive influx of internationally displaced persons (IDPs) and its effectiveness on the Ukrainian "refugees", de facto IDP protection, according to the UN, adopted by the EU too, minimum standards. Here below we focus only on the schema of the stages. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present paper is inspired by the dramas of the Ukrainian refugees, in the 2022 war. It starts from the acknowledgment of the complexity of their needs, from their rights to be supported, and from the difficulties to organize the support, immediately and adequately, with many people untrained to help, and with the bureaucracy blocked in its books of procedures. We launch here the hypothesis that an account of human needs - as it is done in the well-known Maslow Pyramid - could be in itself a guide in supporting the refugees with what they need. It could guide against the agglomerations of all the helpers with items such as clothes, shoes, or blankets when the refugees need medical assistance or news from home. It could guide against the simplistic approach to refugees' support as a simple enterprise done individually and sporadically. With such a hypothesis, we remind here Maslow Pyramid, an example of its adaptation in Nursing - done by Virginia Henderson, which leads to the spider web diagram in nursing care. The main part of the paper is the proposal of the Pyramid of the Refugees' Needs. It is an adaptation of the Maslow Pyramid for refugees in emergency cases. We propose it, as a concept that is easy to put in a diagram, distributed among those involved in support; and ready to be interpreted as a call to pay attention to the refugees' needs as a whole. We focus here only on the general (regular) needs, and not on those of unaccompanied minors or vulnerable people. Our main proposal here is to operationalize the concept of the refugee needs - to realize a spider web diagram with the categories of needs in each stage of refuge and to project the assistance according to the needs, implement the support according to it, and report it on the same bases. The paper - part of a larger project on refugees - is structured in three parts: I. Maslow Pyramid of General Human Needs; II. Maslow Pyramid applied in Nursing; III. Maslow's Pyramid is possible to be applied to get at a glance all categories of Human Needs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The scientific purpose of this study is a theoretical one: to propose a concept for a harmful phenomenon, xenophobia upon certain languages, a phenomenon that passes unnoticed, without a proper tool to see and to address it. As consequence, it will be a paper meant to coin and illustrate a concept on xenophobia upon certain languages and to focus on the xenophobia on the languages labeled in the public sphere as "the strange languages". To construct the concept, it is to discriminate among the strangers' languages and "strange languages". (The notion of xenophobia is taken in its simplest meaning: phobia applied to strangers.) The very point of the paper is that certain languages are victims of xenophobia just because they are labeled as strange, connected with those people that are imagined strangers and marginal at the same time. (The word imagined is taken in the Benedict Anderson way.1The concept of xenophobia upon the languages is composed by I. the de facto xenophobia upon languages; and, II. by the xenophobia upon those language speakers. The concept, of de facto xenophobia upon languages, is coined in five major dimensions. Namely the: 1. socio-politically ignoring them as valuable means of communication or cultural expression; 2. de-valorizing and despising and stigmatizing some languages as languages of the immoral and dangerous strangers; 3. discouraging the targeted languages' development; (by not considering those languages' use in administration, in the justice system, in education even in the healthcare system, and neither is the country's culture, religious life, or social life); 4. forbidding them normatively -- in law, an explicit and public executive decision or on another legal formula; 5. denying the existence of the elements of xenophobia in these languages. The socio-cultural purposes of the article are to contribute to the xenophobia identification in the socio-cultural life where it is unnoticed yet and, mainly, to face it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Exploring the Roma's marginal multilingualism leads to the following three main conclusions. First, the Roma -- being present in entire Europe and being largely connected as families practicing the same professions (many times professions for surviving, including those dishonest and dirty) speak almost all the active languages of Europe. That is a) in a traditional multilingual context, temporarily settled Roma spoke fluently all the languages of the context; b) in a new multilingual context, the Roma in mobility speak the languages needed there -- the local languages plus the others mobile groups' languages. Secondly, in the Bihor-county they practiced the languages of the loci (Hungarian, Romanian and some variety of Romani). They select only the economically necessary languages. Thirdly, their linguistic abilities are not due to their musical competences, but to the practical reasons: they earn their living due to the linguistic interactions with Others -- the speakers of different languages. That is why they acquire rapidly new languages, no matter, how many those languages are and to which family they belong to. The need to survive is the first explanatory factor of their active interest and effectiveness in multilingualism. What we believe it became extremely significant, it is to explore -- interpret - the political significance of the Roma marginal multilingualism in the context of the new extreme xenophobia that targets them. Does the Roma's marginal multilingualism carry out a socio-political potential? Does the multilingualism play a role in curving the millennial xenophobia against them? Could it lead to dismantling the Romaphobia in Europe? Answering such questions, we plead for intensively communicate in the scientific milieu on the Roma marginal multilingualism, and to underline constantly its socio-political potential. It is to valorize this positive Roma feature in fighting the stigma on Roma and Romani languages, in curving the xenophobia and to encourage them to contribute to a cohesive Europe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Temporary Protected Status (TPS) is one of the key-notion in the ultra-contemporary debates related with the migrants and refugees' issues. It is the politico-judicial notion of human solidarity and democratic support in cases of political disasters. It is the practical alternative to the xenophobic ideas and attitudes enrooted in the forgetfulness of the tragedies of mankind and solutions commonly agreed to prevent or fight them. It is also the obvious results of the public confusions. The present paper is an attempt to draw the attention to its political meanings and dimensions, as well as, to remember a collective tragedy, the Sturma, as a case for which an active mechanism as TPS could have been the political savior mechanism. It is a call for the public support in immediately saving the people in risks of political persecutions or executions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The rise of China is perhaps the most consequential process for the twenty-first century international politics. China is now the largest trading nation and the second largest economy in the world. Furthermore, China has actively involved in regional and global affairs, increasing its political, diplomatic and cultural influence across the globe, from Southeast and Central Asia to Middle East, Africa, and Europe. In international relations, the concept of "China's rise"is never clear, usually being defined in broader terms such as national capabilities, political influence, or soft power. However, the word "rise" indicates an expansion of the political power perhaps until the superpower status. This paper tries to identify the characteristics of China's foreign policy under Xi Jinping's Administration and to demonstrate that China's "peaceful rise" from 2003 is not the same with its rise in 2017. We can say that China's foreign policy has entered a phase of transition, from peaceful rise to great power status. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The economic growth of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) was emphasized by the global economic crisis from 2008 and it seems to continue in the years to come. However, this economic growth needs to be supported by trade, foreign direct investments, and important energy resources, and it already had many negative effects over these countries' environment. Within the international institutions, many countries request major reforms regarding the vote procedures as well as a bigger responsibility of the Western countries for the costs of the climate change. Therefore, this paper will try to present, in a comparative way, the challenges regarding the economic growth, trade, foreign direct investments and energy resources in the BRICS. On the other hand, we will try to identify the BRICS' strategies over these problems. Finally, we will analyze the negotiations of the BRICS with international institutions, such as UN, G20, WTO and IEA, regarding the global economic and energy governance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the last approximately 15 years, mainly in the last decade, Romania made substantial efforts to establish the institutions fighting THB according with the EU's Directive 38 /2011's requirements and the recommendation assumed by the International Treaties signed and ratified in this area. The plethora of institutions were founded, but they are not functioning yet as a system because of the absence of the independent assessing institution. That is why, it must be, immediately, created. Beside, the institutional system needs, as a unavoidable complement the launching of Cultural Strategy in tabooing for good, the THB in Romania. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses a report by the human-trafficking expert group GRETA on Romania issued in May 2012 which advocated for a new strategic approach on the combating trafficking in human beings (THB) through public participation, urged by public communicators, educators and journalists. Topics discussed include efforts of the professional institutions in fighting THB, proposals for improvement of the legal framework for THB in Romania, and compensation granted to victims of THB.

Central Asia is a region with great geopolitical and geo-economic significance. Although the war on terrorism brought the USA, the EU, and NATO into Central Asia, after the 2005 Andijan event, Russia has been resurgent in the region. This paper analyses the Russian political-military strategies toward the Central Asian states, focusing both on bilateral and multilateral security cooperation. The strengthening of the CSTO (Collective Security Treaty Organisation), especially through the creation of the Rapid Reaction Forces, should not be neglected in Europe. According to Russian officials' speeches, the CSTO requires equal partnership with NATO in Afghanistan. This would strengthen the importance of the CSTO in Eurasia and would limit bilateral dialogue between the former Soviet republics and EU or NATO. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) is now the flags hip policy of the European Union towards its neighbours. Although the ENP did not include the South Caucasus countries from the beginning, last years brought important changes in this respect. The development of the ENP in the South Caucasus can be understood as the result of (he European internal debates, of the institutional corrections made by (he European Commission and of (he external events' influence over the Union. The European Neighbourhood Policy still needs further improvements, especially concerning the Eastern neighbours. In (his paper, I will try to assess the ENP in the South Caucasus, analysing the following aspects: the EU interests in the region, the bilateral relations before the ENP, the Action Plans, the EU's assistance, the perspectives open by the Eastern Partnership - announcedfor spring 2009. The paper will finish with conclusions and recommendations regarding the improvement of the ENP in the South Caucasus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lower respiratory tract infections (LRTIs) are the most common cause for going to the doctor's at pediatric age. Respiratory infections are still of interest because they are widespread, significantly impact public health by potentially leading to pandemics, drive antimicrobial resistance through antibiotic misuse, more often spread globally due to traveling, and benefit from ongoing advancements in diagnostics and research for better management. This paper's main aim was to offer a systematic review of the literature published over the last 10 years on the etiology of LRTIs. The search strategy was based on reviewing original articles, systematic reviews, position papers, and guidelines published in MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, and PubMed. The review was previously registered with PROSPERO. The final review included 27 articles that met the eligibility criteria (studies identifying the etiology of inferior respiratory infections in children, according to the WHO definition, published in the last 10 years). Statistical analysis was performed using Microsoft Excel Version 2406 (Microsoft Corporation, Redmond, Washington, USA) and SPSS Statistics V.23 (IBM Corp., Armonk, New York, USA). The total number of patients was 2,193,978. Eight articles focused on children younger than five years, and two included children under the age of two. The results revealed that Mycoplasma pneumoniae and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) are significant respiratory pathogens with seasonal peaks and age-specific prevalence and that nasopharyngeal aspirates (NPAs) are more reliable than throat swabs for confirming infections due to their higher positive predictive value (PPV). The impact of COVID-19 interventions led to reduced infections from RSV, adenovirus, and influenza viruses, but an increase in rhinovirus post-reopening, with high co-infection rates. Co-infections are common, particularly with pathogens like human bocavirus (HBoV) and RSV, underscoring the need for comprehensive diagnostic approaches. The impact of non-pharmaceutical interventions during the COVID-19 pandemic significantly reduced the prevalence of many respiratory pathogens, except for rhinovirus, which increased post-reopening. Understanding these dynamics is crucial for managing respiratory infections, especially in pediatric populations., Competing Interests: Conflicts of interest: In compliance with the ICMJE uniform disclosure form, all authors declare the following: Payment/services info: All authors have declared that no financial support was received from any organization for the submitted work. Financial relationships: All authors have declared that they have no financial relationships at present or within the previous three years with any organizations that might have an interest in the submitted work. Other relationships: All authors have declared that there are no other relationships or activities that could appear to have influenced the submitted work., (Copyright © 2024, Bulata-Pop et al.)

Background Lower respiratory tract infections (LRTIs) remain a significant concern in pediatrics due to their substantial burden among childhood diseases. Romania has recently attained the status of a high-income country. Even though the mortality rate from respiratory diseases has significantly declined from 24.1 per 100,000 individuals in 2000 to 5.3 per 100,000 in 2022, the rate remains notably higher than the European average. Diagnosing LRTI is challenging due to its clinical similarity to noninfectious respiratory illness and frequent false-positive results or incidental findings on microbiologic tests. This often leads to antimicrobial overuse and adverse outcomes. Additionally, antibiotic resistance poses a significant global public health threat. Patients and method We conducted a retrospective analysis of pediatric LRTI cases at a tertiary pediatric center in Romania to evaluate diagnostic testing, imaging use, etiology identification, and treatment approaches. Children under 18, admitted to the Emergency Clinical Hospital for Children in Cluj-Napoca during an eight-month peak respiratory season, were included. Data from electronic medical records were analyzed for demographics, symptoms, physical exams, laboratory data, presence of fever, etiology, treatment, and outcomes. Results In total, 222 children were included in this study, with a median age of 29 months. Among the participants, 58% were male. The average hospital stay was 11 days. The total number of cases was almost equally split between bronchiolitis and pneumonia, with lobar pneumonia accounting for 12% of the included patients. We found two statistically significant correlations between the presence of fever, intercostal retracting, and the subtype of LRTI. An inflammatory response defined as an elevated leucocyte count and elevated C-reactive protein (CRP) was more likely to appear in pneumonia cases than bronchiolitis. From a therapeutic point of view, the prescription of hydrocortisone was statistically linked to bronchiolitis, but its use did not shorten hospitalization time. Conclusion Policy interventions and targeted treatments can reduce LRTI incidence and improve outcomes. Based on our correlations between specific clinical traits and subtypes of LRTIs, the use of assessment scores in children helps predict severe illness and the need for hospitalization. Promoting hygiene, social distancing, and addressing socioeconomic factors are crucial. Larger sample sizes and advanced diagnostics are needed to refine treatment strategies further. Early antibiotic use in children has long-term health implications, including a higher risk of respiratory-caused premature death in adulthood. This emphasizes the need for improved diagnostic processes and specific etiological identification, with metagenomics showing promise in this area., Competing Interests: Human subjects: Consent was obtained or waived by all participants in this study. Animal subjects: All authors have confirmed that this study did not involve animal subjects or tissue. Conflicts of interest: In compliance with the ICMJE uniform disclosure form, all authors declare the following: Payment/services info: All authors have declared that no financial support was received from any organization for the submitted work. Financial relationships: All authors have declared that they have no financial relationships at present or within the previous three years with any organizations that might have an interest in the submitted work. Other relationships: All authors have declared that there are no other relationships or activities that could appear to have influenced the submitted work., (Copyright © 2024, Bulata-Pop et al.)