Representatives of the parliamentary parties were received, on Wednesday, at Cotroceni Palace, by the interim president, Ilie Bolojan, who convened the consultations, in which the parties presented their strategies on the most important points of foreign policy.
The meetings took place before Bolojan’s participation in the European Council in Brussels, on March 6, and addressed in particular Romania’s response to current security challenges.
Most parties rejected the scenario of Romania sending peacekeeping troops in the event of an end to the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.
The order in which the party delegations were called by the president, for meetings of approximately half an hour, coincided with the number of parliamentarians that each political party has.
*Social Democratic Party (PSD) – The party’s president, prime minister Marcel Ciolacu, announced that the first proposal with which the social democrats went, on Wednesday morning, to the consultations at the Cotroceni Palace, was not to send Romanian troops to Ukraine.
The social democrats also advocate for an additional allocation for Defense, in the form of investments in the national armaments industry, as well as for the exclusion of defense spending from the calculation of the budget deficit.
*Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR) – The consultations with the head of state are a sign of a return to dialogue, declared the president of the AUR, George Simion, before entering the discussions at the Cotroceni Palace. He voiced the same theme that the PSD also advocated for – the refusal to send Romanian troops to Ukraine.
*Save Romania Union (USR) – USR president Elena Lasconi later stated that she proposed during the consultations at the Cotroceni Palace that the money not used from the PNRR should go to a defense component, a plan to participate in the reconstruction of Ukraine, the formation of a European defense task force in hybrid warfare, anti-disinformation measures, noting that she had asked the interim president, Ilie Bolojan, for clarifications regarding the cancellation of the elections.
As to the possibility that Romania would send peacekeeping troops to Ukraine, the USR leader considered that it was not the time for such an analysis.
„When we do not have peace in Ukraine, we do not even have a ceasefire, so I think it is premature to discuss this,” the USR leader said.
*S.O.S. Romania – Party’s president Diana Sosoaca declared, at the meeting with the interim president, that the political party she leads is open to dialogue.
„Romania is not sending any troops to Ukraine, no matter under what name they are camouflaged and is firmly opposed to the continuation of the Russian-Ukrainian war, as well as Romania’s participation in this conflict”, S.O.S. transmitted in a post-meeting press release.
*Young People’s Party (POT) – party leader Anamaria Gavrila said that her party’s delegation will no longer go to consultations, in the context in which former presidential candidate Calin Georgescu was summoned for hearings at the Prosecutor’s Office. Previously, Gavrila had declared that the Young People’s Party would go to the consultations in Cotroceni with a mandate for peace.
„We cannot talk about sending troops when peace has not already been negotiated and concluded. It seems a defiance to talk about sending troops when the negotiation is about peace,” she said.
*Hungarian Democratic Union of Romania (UDMR) – Romania can provide logistical and infrastructural support for Ukraine, for EU states and for those who want to get more actively involved, but without Romanian troops in Ukraine, was the conclusion presented by the party delegation at the consultations held at Cotroceni, stated the leader of the Union, Kelemen Hunor.
„Security guarantees must be ensured including through the United States and Romania can provide logistical and infrastructural support for Ukraine, for EU states and for those who want to get more actively involved, but without troops in Ukraine,” he pointed out.
*Parliamentary Group of National Minorities – Varujan Pambuccian welcomed the president’s dialogue initiative.
„You did well to invite us all, because these are issues that we haven’t discussed with the president for a long time and it’s good to have meetings like this,” he said, at the meeting with the interim head of state.
*The National Liberal Party (PNL) delegation was led by Catalin Predoiu, interim president of the PNL, along with the party’s first vice-presidents, Dan Motreanu, Emil Boc, Ciprian Ciucu and the secretary general, Adrian Ioan Vestea.
AGERPRES
