Former US Ambassador to Bucharest, currently Mark Gitenstein, says there is substantial evidence of Russia’s interference in the elections in Romania. What is happening now in Romania will ultimately affect us all, he warns.
Mark Gitenstein (78 years old) was the Ambassador of the United States of America to Romania between August 2009 and December 2012, during the presidency of Barack Obama. In the last three years, he served as the US Ambassador to the European Union during Joe Biden’s term.
Gitenstein writes, in an opinion article published by EUObserver, that there is substantial evidence of Russian intelligence services' intervention in the presidential elections in Romania in November 2024, promoting their favorite candidate, a reference to Călin Georgescu, whom the diplomat does not name.
"As a result, the highest court in Romania annulled the elections, and they have been rescheduled for May. The annulment of an election is as extraordinary as it is worrisome," he emphasizes in the article titled "The Agony of Romania."
Gitenstein mentions the important role our country plays in the EU and on NATO's eastern flank, with the planned deployment of 10,000 troops in Constanța, the short-range missile defense system at Deveselu, and "additional plans for expanding NATO forces elsewhere in Romania."
The former ambassador recalls his Romanian origins and being a constant observer of Romanian reality, noting that he has visited the country over 20 times since leaving his post in Bucharest.
He expresses deep concern about foreign interference in elections and strongly supports the European Commission's investigations under the Digital Services Act and the Romanian Government's efforts to enforce electoral law violations.
On the other hand, the diplomat believes that Romania's problems run much deeper: "As we see in other parts of Europe, deep dissatisfaction with governance has created a toxic atmosphere where disinformation and propaganda thrive."
Therefore, the European Commission should conclude and make public the results of its investigation into Russia's interference before voters return to the polls in May. Similarly, Romanian authorities should inform about their investigation. Most importantly, political parties must offer solutions to the chronic issues facing ordinary Romanians, Gitenstein points out.
"I am confident that there are political leaders with the political talent to do so. But if they do not, the far right, nativists, and Russian trolls will continue to stoke tensions in Romania and other EU member states," he emphasizes.
"Now is the time for action, in Romania, Central and Eastern Europe, and in the United States. Because what is happening in Romania will ultimately affect us all. As President Reagan said in his final year in office regarding Europe: 'Preserving a peaceful, free, and democratic Europe is essential for maintaining a peaceful, free, and democratic State,'" the diplomat recalls.
In his view, a politically unstable European Union torn by political turmoil caused by corrupt autocratic member states is a threat to the transatlantic alliance of NATO and the EU – a partnership that has been highly beneficial for Americans and has maintained peace and stability in the world since the end of World War II.
T.D.