Embassy Press Release

Daily "Evenimentul Zilei"
Headline: "Romania should not pull back from its commitments"

Date: May 10, 2007
Byline: Laurentiu Mihu

One of Condoleezza Rice’s assistants draws the attention of Bucharest politicians on the “derailing” in domestic and foreign policy.

Assistant Secretary of State Daniel Fried has just been on a visit in Romania. He told Bucharest leaders to solve the political crisis, to bear in mind the commitments in Iraq and to give up the variant of having Moscow involved in the political games in Romania.

EVZ: You’re on a brief visit to Romania. Who did you meet with?

Daniel Fried: I’ve had talks with President Basescu, Prime Minister Tariceanu, I’ve also met with President Geoana, of the opposition – I don’t know what’s opposition and what isn’t these days…

How did you find the political scene in Romania?

It’s obviously very confused and very tense. America doesn’t vote in Romanian elections. We want to see a strong active Romania, a Romania that is outward looking and not consumed with its internal politics. Whatever solution you have, I hope that you find it in a way that is lasting.

What were the arguments that the three leaders gave you?

I’m not going to go into the specifics of a private conversation, but all those leaders are committed to a strong Romanian role in NATO, the EU and with the US. All three agree that Romania’s opportunities have never been better. Under these circumstances, my message was: “Find a solution in a way forward for the sake of your country!” Secretary Rice agrees that we should have faith in Romanian democracy. This was also part of my message.

Do you think that, if the crisis is longer-lasting, it will affect the collaboration between Romania and the US?

We’re not here to threaten or to pressure Romania. Politics can be a rough business; we have to expect some turmoil. But if it goes on, then it won’t be Romanian-American relations that get hurt, it’s Romania’s own interests. You’ve got things you need to do now: you’ve got EU funds coming in, you want foreign investments to come in too.

I’ve heard that there’s a major opportunity for American automobile companies to come in and do manufacturing in Romania. Such investments are something you want to have in your country, because that brings wide benefits. But there should be an open investment regime for good, clean and transparent investment. And it’s up to the government to keep the business climate open and good.

How would you characterize the current business climate?

Compared to ten years ago, much much better in relation to what it should be, but there’s more to be done. To give the Romanian people what they deserve, there needs to be a functional government. We want to see Romania active in the world. You’re a member of NATO, and NATO is active in Kosovo, Afghanistan, and Iraq.

Withdrawal from Iraq: “We can discuss about that when the government is stable”

There are debates on this issue. Some people call for the withdrawal of the troops from Iraq.

I know, but these sorts of issues should not be discussed in the middle of a political crisis. I hope that decisions won’t be made within the context of a referendum for the suspension of the president.

Nevertheless, there are differences between the PM and the President on this issue.

We don’t take sides. But while you’re in the middle of this crisis, we hope that you don’t start making long-term decisions on national security. For example, there seems to be some discussion about the number of Romanian soldiers that can serve abroad. We hope that that discussion can be postponed until there’s not a political crisis.

Besides, Romanian soldiers are important parts of important missions. I don’t want to see Romania pulling back from its commitments, just like you wouldn’t want to see America pulling back from its commitments, including our commitment to defend Romania.

So Romania might have a problem then.

You’re a sovereign country and you make your own decisions and we have to respect that. I hope those decisions aren’t made now. We can discuss about it when the government is stable.

Another current debate in Romania is that on the constitutionality of the president’s suspension.

For decades now, we’ve been supporting freedom, democracy and sovereignty in Europe. The Constitutional Court says one thing, there’s a different vote in the Parliament, but that is not our business. The Romanian people did not fight for the Americans to come in on the Constitution.

Romania, in the cards for Europe’s security ensuring process

Let’s move on to the American facilities in Romania. How’s the process going?

It’s going very well, our people are very happy and I’ve heard no complaints.

What would Romania’s role be in this part of Europe where the US is planning to install the anti-missile shield?

First of all, we’ve only made some proposals to the Czech Republic and Poland, we haven’t started our negotiations yet, but they will debate this.

The thing is that we’re facing a potential threat from Iran and other countries. Iran is developing its own weapons and missiles. We don’t want to wake up one day and discover that Iran is a nuclear threat to Europe and the US.

Besides, with these installations, the US can defend itself a little bit better and we can also help defend Europe. We know that if Europe is not secure, the US is not secure. We want to talk to Romania about how it could be part of this system and even to tackle the issue at the Russia-NATO Council, in a cooperative way.

Russia is bothered by the installation of the shield.

We need to be transparent with the Russians and to offer them a partnership. Two weeks ago, I was with Defense Secretary Gates (Robert Gates – US Secretary of Defense) in Moscow and he offered the Russians far-reaching cooperation and he told them in all honesty: “We’re serious about this!”

It is not credible for the Russians to say that ten unarmed missile interceptors are a threat to their gigantic nuclear arsenal. We don’t have anything to hide and we want to cooperate with them. After all, the Russians didn’t like NATO enlargement.

Could the “Mihail Kogalniceanu” air base be used for an attack against Iran?

No, no, no! We want a diplomatic solution through the UNSC.

CV

A diplomat with expertise in the region

Daniel Fried joined the American diplomacy about 30 years ago, in the Economic Department within the Department of State. In the ‘80s, he worked in the General Consulate in Leningrad, he was the political attaché within the US Embassy in Belgrade and he joined the Office of Soviet Affairs within the Department of State.

Between 1987 and 1993, he held several positions within the US Embassy in Poland. He returned to the White House, as specialist in East-European and Eurasian affairs, being part of the working group that outlined the Euro-Atlantic enlargement strategy and the development of NATO-Russia relations. Since 2005, he’s been Assistant Secretary of State, covering Europe and Asian republics in the former USSR.

US PERSPECTIVE

“Don’t attribute this political crisis to Russia”

Is it reasonable to say that the Putin administration could be involved in the political games in Romania?

I don’t think you can attribute the Romanian political crisis to the Russians. For God’s sake, Romanians have done this themselves.

President Traian Basescu drew the attention on one of Vladimir Putin’s advisors, Alexandr Kondyakov. Have you talked about this?

We discussed about Russia and we think that Romanians and Americans should not regard Russia as an adversary. We want a Russia that’s strong, not weak, but strong in 21st century terms.

Do you consider the power of Russian investments? They’re considered with a bit of doubt.

Investments should be open, transparent and honest. There’s also the relation with neighbors and the contribution to world security. Sometimes, Russia does not meet expectations. We believe in the diversity of energy sources (oil and gas – e.n). Monopoly is not good for the consumer or for the supplier, because it perturbs the market.

But monopoly is good for Russia. It can be a currency for its foreign ambitions.

The use of energy as a political tool is not a good thing. This is not an accusation, but a general statement of principle.

Do you think that, within the energy supplier-consumer game, Romania is vulnerable?

It’s important for countries to have multiple resources. But Romania has to decide on its own energy policy, and this is yet another reason for the need of a stable and capable government.

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