USR president Dominic Fritz says his party is willing to collaborate with PNL to form a parliamentary majority after the 2028 elections, but warns that the liberals must decide whether they will continue their rapprochement with PSD or pursue a reformist agenda.
Fritz claims that within PNL there are two camps, one that would prefer to resume cooperation with the social democrats and another, represented by Ilie Bolojan, which is trying to build a reformist pole.
Invited Tuesday evening on TVR 1, the USR leader explained why, despite talks about a possible rapprochement between the two parties, there is not yet an actual alliance.
“You don’t see us in a marriage now, but what you see, for the moment, is an intention to work together, which obviously will have to prove itself in reality, because PNL is a party that very often collaborated with PSD,” Fritz said.
A majority without PSD and AUR in 2028
The USR president believes that the next parliamentary elections should lead to the formation of a majority that can govern without PSD and AUR.
He accused PSD of the failure of the former pro-European coalition and argued that USR must look for allies in order to implement the promised reforms.
“For 2028 it is important to have a majority that can govern without PSD and without AUR, that can deliver results for Romanians, reduce prices, reduce state spending. And for this it is clear that USR must look for allies and PNL is one of these allies,” Fritz stated.
Predoiu and Bolojan in different camps
The USR leader also criticized the rapprochement of some liberal politicians with PSD, after being shown footage in which former Interior Minister Cătălin Predoiu praised his successor, Marian Neacșu, from PSD.
“This is one of the reasons why I am a USR member and president, and not PNL. Because I believe that the compromises made by PNL, partly by people who have been or are active in PNL, are not necessarily in the direction Romania needs,” Fritz said.
He argued that the tensions within PNL reflect precisely this dispute over the party’s political direction. “It is clear that there is a camp that would like to take PNL back towards PSD and there is the other option that Ilie Bolojan is working on, for PNL to be part of a reformist pole,” the USR leader stated.
Fritz recalled that Predoiu was among the first liberals to attack Bolojan after the adoption of the motion of no confidence. “I do not associate myself with Mr. Predoiu. If PNL wants a reformist path, then our doors are open,” he added.
The USR president specified that he does not intend to interfere in PNL’s internal reforms. In his opinion, any potential collaboration must start from the reforms Romania needs and from the ability of the two parties to convince voters that they can implement a common agenda.
The statements come a few days before the USR Congress, scheduled for Saturday, October 31, in Timișoara, where the party’s new collective leadership will be elected. The stake is control of the National Bureau, for which three candidate lists are being prepared, supported by Dominic Fritz, Ionuț Moșteanu, and the Lucian Stanciu-Viziteu – Clotilde Armand group.