ROMANIAN AMBASSADOR TO MOROCCO EXPLAINS POSITION

UNCLAS RABAT 001299 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR NEA/MAG E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PREL MO SUBJECT: ROMANIAN AMBASSADOR TO MOROCCO EXPLAINS POSITION ON IRAQ ¶1. This message is sensitive but unclassified. Please protect accordingly. ¶2. (SBU) Ambassador July 5 received Romanian Ambassador to Morocco Vasile Popovici, who had requested an urgent meeting to discuss Romania's position on its troops in Iraq. Reaffirming Romania's commitment to the coalition in Iraq, Popovici explained that the Romanian Supreme Council for National Defense voted June 30 to reject the proposal announced by Prime Minister Calin Tariceanu and Defense Minister Teodor Atanasiu to withdraw Romanian troops by the end of the year. Popovici argued that the 9-2 vote to reject the proposal demonstrated important support for the Romanian President, and for the US, with only the Prime Minister and Ministry of Defense supporting the proposal. ¶3. (SBU) Explaining that troop involvement in Iraq is an emotional issue for Romania, Popovici said that the Prime Minister's announcement of this proposal was politically motivated. Approximately 65 percent of Romanians are against troop involvement in Iraq, which certainly was one of the considerations for the Prime Minister's decision. Minister of Defense Atanasiu sent a telegram to troops in Iraq "announcing" the pullout, which clearly violated Romanian law and was a "slap in the face" to the President, he said. Popovici added that several high level government officials, including the Foreign Minister Mihai Razvan and himself, offered to submit their resignations if the "announcement" was not corrected immediately. ****************************************** Visit Embassy Rabat's Classified Website; http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/rabat ****************************************** RILEY