Romania’s finance minister has warned against the dangers of a Kremlin-friendly candidate who rejects the country’s European path and threatens a rift with Ukraine, ahead of a rerun of presidential elections.
Finance Minister Barna Tanczos slammed the far-right radical Calin Georgescu, who last week made claims on territory that is part of Ukraine, calling him “a danger for Romania.”
The candidate threw the EU and NATO ally into political chaos last year with his unlikely victory in a presidential ballot that was later canceled and rescheduled. Romanian declassified intelligence reports said that Russia had interfered in the election and boosted the anti-Western maverick. Moscow denied meddling.
Coming from a candidate for Romania’s highest office, such statements can be perceived as tantamount to a “declaration of war,” Tanczos said in a television interview.
“We have four months to explain to our voters what another path means for Romania — how dangerous it is to have an individual who wants to take territories from other countries,” he said in an interview Monday with Digi24.
Soil scientist and one-time diplomat Georgescu has taken an aim at NATO and has expressed admiration for Vladimir Putin in interviews with friendly media outlets and journalists.
In a discussion last week with Ion Cristoiu, a journalist with a sympathetic ear, he suggested reclaiming territories that once belonged to Romania, drawing criticism from Romania’s foreign ministry and Ukraine.
He backpedaled this week saying his comments were “theoretical” and Romania should acknowledge its “historical landmarks.”
Despite condemnation from the EU over accusations of Kremlin interference, and a top court decision to invalidate the presidential vote, Georgescu remains a frontrunner for president.
Romania’s pro-European government led by Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu has vowed to keep the nation of 19 million in the family of Western nations, despite unpopular budget cuts required to meet EU fiscal targets. Tanczos has vowed to bring spending under control.
Romania’s nationalist parties and Georgescu successfully tapped into frustration with endemic corruption and the failure of mainstream parties to communicate with ordinary people and understand their problems.
Tanczos belongs to the Democratic Alliance of Hungarians in Romania, which represents ethnic Hungarians in Romania.
Pro-European parties still have a majority in parliament, which maintains a constitutional check on the presidency. Tanczos said as a committed NATO member, Romania will keep defense spending above 2% of GDP.
