SENATE DEFENSE COMMITTEE GREENLIGHTS U.S. -

C O N F I D E N T I A L BUCHAREST 000761

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE DEPT FOR EUR/NCE - WILLIAM SILKWORTH

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/10/2016
TAGS: MARR MOPS NATO PGOV PREL RO
SUBJECT: SENATE DEFENSE COMMITTEE GREENLIGHTS U.S. -
ROMANIAN DEFENSE COOPERATION AGREEMENT


Classified By: Ambassador Nicholas Taubman for Reasons 1.4 (a),(b) and
(d)


1. (C) George-Cristian Maior, Senate Defense Committee
Chairman and a leading member of the opposition Social
Democratic Party (PSD),confirmed to PolMilOff that the
Defense Committee voted 8 to 1 on May 10 in favor of the
U.S.-Romanian Defense Cooperation Agreement (DCA) and would
send a favorable report to the Senate. The lone dissenter
was a senator from the extreme nationalist Greater Romania
Party (PRM). Maior underscored that the Defense Committee's
vote is "dispositive." He predicted that the Senate Foreign
Affairs Committee would issue a favorable "avis" (opinion)
soon, but underscored that the Foreign Affairs Committee's
decision would be, in essence, an advisory opinion only and
that the "important" vote was the May 10 thumbs up from the
Defense Committee. He stated that the draft law allowing
ratification of the DCA could be ready for plenary debate on
the Senate floor within the next few weeks.


2. (C) MFA Director General for Strategic Policy Cristian
Istrate (Protect) told PolMilOff in a separate conversation
May 10 that the May 9 joint Senate Foreign Affairs and
Defense Committee hearings on the DCA, the prequel to the May
10 Defense Committee hearing, "did not go very well." He
stated that some questions had focused on "technical language
of the agreement, as would be expected," including subjects
such as status of forces and CFE issues, but that other
questions "centered around the Bulgarian agreement." He
expressed consternation at the statement during the hearing
by Senate Foreign Affairs Committee President and PSD
President Mircea Geoana that he had read the U.S.-Bulgarian
DCA, having obtained the same from the U.S. Embassy Sofia
website. Istrate insisted that MFA officials had searched
the website and not been able to locate the agreement.


3. (C) A May 10 MFA press release titled "Ministry of
Foreign Affairs Expresses Surprise at the Statements of
Senator Mircea Geoana" states that the U.S.-Bulgarian DCA is
not available on the U.S. Embassy Sofia website and
criticizes Geoana for making an "unjustified" attack on the
professionalism of the MFA during his questioning of FM
Mihai-Razvan Ungureanu. One analyst observed privately to
Embassy officers that FM Ungureanu was caught "speechless"
during the May 9 hearing by Geoana's assertion that the
U.S.-Bulgaria agreement was available online -- and that the
MFA's public riposte the following day reflected anger at
Geoana's comments during the hearing.


4. (C) Comment. Geoana, during his tenure as FM under the
PSD-led government, was a strong supporter of a DCA and he
has told us, since entering the opposition, that he supports
the agreement. His remarks during the May 9 hearing were
probably aimed at embarrassing Ungureanu (and the GOR),but
should not be interpreted as reflecting opposition to the
DCA. Senator Maior, one of the PSD's most senior officials
and an advisor to Geoana, has consistently predicted Senate
ratification -- and in post's view ratification is not in
jeopardy. End Comment.


5. (U) AmEmbassy Bucharest's reporting telegrams are
available on the Bucharest SIPRNet website:
www.state.sgov.gov/eur/
TAUBMAN