Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
07BUCHAREST202
2007-02-22 13:45:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Bucharest
Cable title:  

PNL LAUNCHES PARLIAMENTARY DEBATE TO WITHDRAW

Tags:  PGOV PREL MOPS MARR IZ RO 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXRO4692
OO RUEHDBU RUEHFL RUEHKW RUEHLA RUEHROV RUEHSR
DE RUEHBM #0202 0531345
ZNY CCCCC ZZH
O 221345Z FEB 07
FM AMEMBASSY BUCHAREST
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 6103
INFO RUEHZL/EUROPEAN POLITICAL COLLECTIVE
C O N F I D E N T I A L BUCHAREST 000202 

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EUR/NCE

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/22/2017
TAGS: PGOV PREL MOPS MARR IZ RO
SUBJECT: PNL LAUNCHES PARLIAMENTARY DEBATE TO WITHDRAW
ROMANIAN FORCES FROM IRAQ


Classified By: Polcouns Theodore Tanoue for 1.4 (b) and (d)

C O N F I D E N T I A L BUCHAREST 000202

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE FOR EUR/NCE

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/22/2017
TAGS: PGOV PREL MOPS MARR IZ RO
SUBJECT: PNL LAUNCHES PARLIAMENTARY DEBATE TO WITHDRAW
ROMANIAN FORCES FROM IRAQ


Classified By: Polcouns Theodore Tanoue for 1.4 (b) and (d)


1. (C) Liberal Party (PNL) legislators, led by former
Defense Minister Teodor Atanasiu and Senator Norica Nicolai
opened a new front in the current political war by announcing
at a press conference February 21 that they will launch a
debate in Parliament on withdrawing Romanian troops from
Iraq. Atanasiu said that he would also introduce a bill to
rewrite existing legislation in order to give to Parliament
the authorities now given to the Supreme Defense Council in
deciding on the deployment or withdrawal of Romanian armed
forces abroad. PNL Senator (and Secretary of the Senate
Defense Committee) George Scutaru, a close associate of
Anatasiu, subsequently told Embassy that the proposed bill
would likely be ready for introduction in "two or three
weeks' time".


2. (C) In a telephone discussion with Polcouns February 22,
Mihnea Constantinescu, a senior advisor to Prime Minister
Tariceanu, underscored that the move to reopen debate on
troop deployments should be viewed as part of the ongoing
domestic political "noise", and not a shift in official
Romanian government policy. He noted that the PNL had
initiated a nationwide petition campaign against Iraqi troop
deployements last fall, and the move to escalate the debate
on the issue was an obvious attempt to capitalize on the
recent UK decision to begin drawing down British forces in
Iraq. (Note: the PNL claims it has gathered over a million
signatures in the petition campaign.) Constantinescu also
drew parallels between the parliamentary debate in Romania
and the recent nonbinding resolution in the U.S. Congress.
He added that Atanasiu had "no credibility" as a spokesman
for official Romanian policy, and expressed skepticism that
the proposal to empower parliament to withdraw military
forces from abroad would succeed. No branch of government
willingly cedes authority to another, he said.


3. (C) Constantinescu acknowledged that the heated political
rhetoric now being exchanged by all sides in Romania was
viewed by some observers abroad as an indication of potential
domestic instability. He said that he had just received a
report from the Romanian NATO Permrep, Ambassador Ducaru,
that NATO colleagues had expressed concern about the
increasing acrimony of the domestic political debate.
Constantinescu reiterated the need for the Embassy and other
foreign observers to differentiate between tough political
language intended for domestic consumption and official
government policy. Despite the unprecedented levels of
political "noise" right now, the institutions of governance
in Romania were still working, he said. On the troop
withdrawal issue, he promised that the Prime Minister's
office would "try to play it down."


4. (C) Constantinescu called back later to report that he
had just spoken with Prime Minister Tariceanu (who is
currently visiting Tokyo). He said the Prime Minister had
reconfirmed the points that Constantinescu had provided us
earlier, including: 1) the parliamentary debate was not
reflection of official GOR policy; and 2) the PM's office
will "play down" the issue. GOR Secretary General (and PNL
parliamentarian) Radu Stroe subsequently issued a public
statement that stressed the desire to effect a "gradual
withdrawal in conformance with a timetable agreed to jointly
with our partners."


5. (C) Other Embassy contacts, including Defense Minister
Frunzaverde and Presidential Office senior National Security
Advisor Medarmade the point that there has been no/no change
n current GOR policy on troop deployments in Iraq. Medar
assured the Ambassador that no decision wold be taken
without close consultations with alles. He said that
President Basescu would be retrning later this afternoon
from a visit to Egypt and would be expecting a call from the
Ambassadr. We will report Basescu's comments septel.


6. (C) Comment: As Constantinescu noted, authorities
including the Prime Minister will be loath to ced to
Parliament the power to control Romanian trop deployments
abroad, and we remain skeptical tht Atanasiu's proposed law
will succeed. Rather, the PNL move appears to be driven by
the desire t put President Basescu on the spot by forcing
hi to either back down on Romania's troop commitments in
Iraq, or to defend an unpopular decision before the public
and the Parliament. Either way, it forces Basescu to expend
valuable political capital when it is a dwindling asset. End
Comment.
TAUBMAN