Romania’s new President Nicusor Dan on Wednesday met US President Donald Trump at the NATO Summit in The Hague for the first time, silencing critics who wrongly claimed the White House was poised not to recognize the Romanian presidential elections.
The Romanian and US leaders were pictured shaking hands at the Wednesday meeting which was attended by the leaders of the 32-member military alliance, EU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
It was the first major foreign visit for pro-European Dan, 55, who won the presidential election last month. The former Bucharest mayor, a pro-European centrist, decisively defeated the nationalist frontrunner who had allied himself to Trump’s MAGA movement. Vice President JD Vance criticized Romania for cancelling its original presidential election, on the basis of Russian meddling in favor of a pro-Russia candidate.
In a further sign of his good standing a month after his election, the Romanian leader also met with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on the sidelines of the NATO Summit.
“We discussed the close relationship between Romania and the United Kingdom, as strategic partners and allies,” Mr. Dan said.
Commentators have noted the prime position allocated to the new Romanian president in the summit’s group photo, which began Tuesday evening with a gala dinner hosted by King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands.
In the photo taken on the steps of the Huis ten Bosch Palace in The Hague, the official residence of King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima of the Netherlands, the Romanian President stands in the second row, with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on his left, and just behind US President Donald Trump, and the royal hosts who were in the front row.
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