Romania – US Diplomatic Relations

Brief history

Romania and the United States of America established diplomatic relations on June 14, 1880 , initially at diplomatic agency level and two months later at legation level. Interrupted for about than 4 years (December 12, 1941 – February 7, 1946), during World War II, the Romanian-American diplomatic relations remained at this level until June 1, 1964 , when the two countries agreed to upgrade their diplomatic missions in Washington and Bucharest to embassy level.

H.E. Sorin Ducaru , Ambassador of Romania to the United States of America , presented his credentials on June 20, 2001 .

H.E. Nicholas Taubman, Ambassador of the United States of America to Romania , presented his credentials on December 5, 2005 .

Contacts and visits

•  Official presidential visits before 1989:

•  Bucharest : August 1969, August 1975

•  Washington : October 1970, December 1973, April 1978

•  Recent bilateral meetings:

•  May 4, 2006: Romanian President Traian Basescu met U.S. Vice-president Richard Cheney on the occasion of the Common Vision for Common Neighborhood Summit in Vilnius . Topics addressed: evolutions of bilateral relations, fight against terrorism, ratification by the Romanian Parliament of the Agreement regarding the activities of the US forces located on the territory of Romania , energy security in Europe and alternative resources in the Caspian region, the Black Sea Forum for Dialogue and Partnership Summit to be held in Bucharest on June 5, 2006 .

•  March 27-28, 2006: visit of Romanian Foreign Minister Mihai -Razvan Ungureanu to Washington . Schedule included meetings with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley, Director of National Intelligence John Negroponte, Deputy Secretary of Defense Gordon England , Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Nicholas Burns, representatives of Jewish organizations, academic institutions and mass-media. Topics addressed: Romania 's accession to EU, cooperation within NATO, the Black Sea Forum for Dialogue and Partnership Summit, the Black Sea Euro-region, regional issues such as Moldova/Transniestria, Russia , Ukraine , Belarus , Western Balkans, update on Iraq , Afghanistan , Iran , Middle East peace process.

•  December 6, 2005 : visit of US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to Bucharest . Schedule included meetings with Romanian President Traian Basescu, Foreign Minister and other high level officials. On this occasion, the Agreement regarding the activities of the US forces located on the territory of Romania was signed.

•  October 31, 2005: Foreign Minister Mihai -Razvan Ungureanu met Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on the occasion of the UN Security Council Ministerial Meeting presided by Romania. Topics addressed included issues on the Security Council's agenda such as the Middle East , Kosovo, and bilateral agenda.

•  October 22-23, 2005: visit of US National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley to Bucharest as part of a regional trip. Schedule included meetings with Romanian President Traian Basescu, Prime Minister Calin Popescu Tariceanu, Foreign Minister Mihai -Razvan Ungureanu. Topics addressed included concrete projects aimed at strengthening democracy, security and stability in the Black Sea Region.

•  September 13-16, 2005 : visit of Romania 's President Traian Basescu to New York (on the occasion of the 60 th UN General Assembly Meeting), San Francisco and Detroit . Foreign Minister Mihai -Razvan Ungureanu attended the meetings in New York. The visit was aimed at strengthening the dialogue with the Romanian community from the US and promoting business opportunities in Romania .

•  May 3-6, 2005 : visit of Foreign Minister Mihai -Razvan Ungureanu to New York (UN) and Washington. Schedule included meetings with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley and Deputy National Security Advisor Jack Dyer Crouch II, Director of National Intelligence John Negroponte, Under Secretaries of State Nicholas Burns, Paula Dobriansky and Anthony Wayne, members of Congress.

•  March 8-10, 2005 : the fist official visit paid by Romania 's President Traian Basescu. Schedule included meetings with US President George W. Bush, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, IMF Director Rodrigo Rato, World Bank President James Wolfensohn, members of Congress. Topics addressed: Romania 's strategy for the Black Sea region, the US military facility on Romanian territory, Republic of Moldova / Transniestria , Iraq and Afghanistan .

•  September 20-22, 2004: President Ion Iliescu and Foreign Minister Mircea Geoana participated in the 59 th UN General Assembly Meeting, New York .

•  October 29 – November 3, 2004: visit of Prime Minister Adrian Nastase to the US . Schedule included meeting with President George W. Bush.

•  September 18-20, 2004 : visit of President Ion Iliescu to Chicago . Schedule included meetings with representatives of the Romanian community in Midwest , Illinois State's officials and businessmen.

•  July 18-21, 2004 : visit of Prime Minister Adrian Nastase to New York and Washington . Schedule included meetings with US President George W. Bush, Secretary of State Collin Powell, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham.

•  October 26-29, 2003 : official visit of President Ion Iliescu to Washington . Schedule included meeting with US President George W. Bush, Secretary of State Collin Powell, Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, Attorney General John Ashcroft, Secretary of Treasury John Snow, President of the World Bank James Wolfensohn, members of Congress, representatives of the Romanian community in the US and businessmen.

•  November 23, 2002 : visit of US President George W. Bush to Bucharest .

•  December 4, 2001: meeting of Prime Minister Adrian Nastase with Secretary of State Colin Powell in Bucharest on the occasion of the OSCE Ministerial Meeting.

Key evolutions in the US-Romania bilateral relations

•  1996: the US Congress approves the “Most-Favored Nation” Treatment for Romania ;

•  July 11, 1997 : Romania-US Strategic Partnership was launched on the occasion of the visit paid by the US President Bill Clinton to Bucharest . The Strategic Partnership aimed at strengthening bilateral relations, supporting Romania's reforms and Euro-Atlantic integration process, promoting Romania's role in ensuring stability and security in Southeastern Europe;

•  The US supported Romania 's candidacy for the OSCE Presidency in 2001;

•  After September 11 attacks on the US , Romania has strongly supported the US-led international coalition to fight terrorism, including its operations in Iraq and Afghanistan ;

•  March 10, 2003 : the US Administration granted Romania the “market economy” status, important step in promoting the bilateral economic relations;

•  May 8, 2003 : the US Senate unanimously ratified the NATO Accession Protocols for the seven countries invited in 2002 in Prague ;

•  December 6, 2005 : the Agreement regarding the activities of the US forces located on the territory of Romania was signed on the occasion of the visit paid by the US Secretary of State to Bucharest .

American legislative initiatives regarding Romania

On June 30, 1999 the Democrat Senator Mary Landrieu introduced an amendment to the Foreign Operations, Export Financing and related Programs Appropriations Bill for fiscal year 2000 for an amount of 4,4 million dollars to be provided to the Romanian Department of Child Protection for emergency aid for the child victims of the present economic crisis.

On August 2, 1999, the Republican Congressmen Benjamin Gilman (New York), the Chair of Committee for International Relations, and John Mica (Florida) introduced the resolution 169 expressing the United States policy toward Romania supporting the promotion of the development of a market-based economy and a democratic government that respects the rights of all of its citizens, regardless of ethnic background, the support to the territorial integrity of Romania its respect by all neighboring countries and by all political movements within and outside Romania and the support to the integration of Romania into pan-European and trans-Atlantic economic and security institutions. The resolution formulated a series of recommendations with an accent on the US support of Romanian efforts to integrate into pan-European and trans-Atlantic institutions.

On November 18, 1999 , Democrat Solomon Ortiz ( Texas ), co-chair of Congressional Caucus on Romania , a bi-partisan organization dedicated to fostering a long term and fruitful relationship between Romania and the United States , had introduced the Statements for the Record in favor of Romania 's OSCE Chairmanship in Office for the year 2001.

In June 2002, the US President promulgated the resolution Freedom Consolidation Act that was adopted by Congress that supported NATO enlargement with seven new states including Romania , allocating funds in the amount of 11,5 million dollars for military reforms.

Economic relations

Commercial relations unfold in accordance with the Bilateral Trade Agreement, signed in Bucharest , April 3 rd 1992 . The agreement was ratified by the US Congress on October 21, 1993 and stipulates reciprocated acknowledgment of normal trade relations (most favored nation status). The most favored nation status became permanent in November 1996.

Trends in Romanian-American trade exchanges:

Compared to the same interval last year, there was a 12.42% increase in the overall level of bilateral trade relations. Romanian exports increased by 29.46%, while imports decreased by 0.83%.

As to Romanian export, the main categories of goods that registered positive growth in comparison with last year are: chemical products, mineral products, cars and other electronic equipment, optical, cinema and photographic equipment, foods, automotive vehicles and aircrafts.

At the same time, the beginning of 2006 brought a significant increase in imports of foods, feeds, beverages and tobacco, as well as in plastics, rubber, basic metals, chemicals, quarried stone, building materials, vehicles and electronic equipment.

US investment in Romania totaled 794,146 million USD on December 31, 2005 (6 th place after Austria , Netherlands , France , Germany and Italy ) and 5% of overall foreign direct investment in Romania . This amount represents capital subscribed or invested by the 4.411 US companies (3.95% of foreign companies in Romania ) registered in Romania by December 31, 2005 .

US investment was mainly directed towards the following fields: telecommunications, electronic industry, chemical industry, wood plants, food industry, trade, forestry and mining.

Some of the most important US investors in Romania are companies such as Qualcomm, Philip Morris, Solectron, Timken, Kraft Foods, McDonald's, Procter & Gamble, Citibank, Precision Castparts Corporation, Colgate Palmolive, Coca Cola, Sara Lee, Smithfield.

Other significant American companies expressed their interest in investing in Romania , by enhancing and/or initiating diverse economic projects. In December 2003, US announced the establishment of the “Romanian American Enterprise Fund” (RAEF). US assistance to RAEF totaled 50 million USD, that were used to promote privatization and development of small and medium enterprises, as well as creating US-Romanian joint-ventures. The fund became functional in 1994. In 1999, USAID disbursed additional funding of 5 million USD to RAEF, in order to promote direct investments of 25 million dollars targeted towards Romanian companies in the fields of mobile communications, agriculture, financial services, etc.

There was also a important increase in bilateral economic contacts – in 2005, the most significant ones were the US visits of the Romanian Economy and Trade Minister, Ioan Codrut Seres (May 2005), and Romanian President Traian Basescu (San Francisco and Detroit – September 2005), as well as – in previous years – the Forum Invest conference in Washington DC, that intended to boost US investment in Romania and to organize an important American trade mission in Romania.

US assistance for Romania

Since 1990, via its “Support for East European Democracies (SEED)” programs, the US Agency for International Development (USAID) has provided around $410 million to help Romania in its transition from Communism to a market-based democracy.

USAID/Romania's programs contributed to Romania 's progress in three main areas:

• Enhancing living standards (increasing the effectiveness of select social and primary health care services to vulnerable populations, especially women and children);
• Improving democratic governance at the local and central level;
• Accelerating private sector growth by supporting a market-driven environment.

The USAID SEED program is expected to be concluded by 2007, when Romania is scheduled to join the EU.

Between April-October of 2005, when severe flooding occurred in Romania , the U.S. Government provided humanitarian assistance to Romania that totaled more than $5 million. The U.S. Department of Defense has also donated goods and equipment for the renovation of houses, schools, and medical facilities, and matching contributions from private companies have brought in additional hundreds of thousands of dollars. These funds have been used for: provision of emergency relief supplies such as water and water purification kits, personal hygiene items, food supplies, and portable stoves; direct assistance to farmers and small businesses; public information campaigns to prevent flood-related health emergencies; and other health, social, and economic projects.

To date, the U.S. Government has also contributed $1,250,000 to a program that helps Romania fight avian influenza. The assistance is coordinated by the US Department of Agriculture and it consisted of providing laboratory testing equipment for Romania , as well as training for Romanian specialists involved in detection and surveillance of areas affected by Avian Influenza or preventing the spread of the disease.

Economic legal framework and cooperation agreements

Trade relations

The Agreement on Trade Relations between the Romanian and US Governments, signed in Bucharest on April 3, 1992 , came into force on November 8, 1993 . The agreement stipulates that the two signatories reciprocally grant each other the most favored nation status. Since November 8, 1996 , Romania benefits from permanent normal trade relations with the US .

On February 20, 1997 , by Decree of US President William Clinton, the safeguard clause concerning Romania , invoked by the US when the WTO agreement came into force, was annulled. This requires changing and updating the bilateral trade agreement, in order to accommodate formal changes concerning the transformation of GATT into WTO, as well as structural changes concerning the fields of bilateral exchanges where WHO agreement precedes over the Trade Agreement.

Since March 4, 1994 , Romania benefits from custom facilities agreed under the Gene ralized System of Preferences (GSP) ; once Romania will join the EU, these facilities granted by the US will be revoked.

Economic cooperation

On January 15, 1994 , the Agreement between Romania and the United States of America on investment promotion and mutual guarantee came into force. It had been signed in Bucharest , on May 28, 1992 .

Since the exchange of ratifying instruments, the US Administration announced its decision to establish a Romanian-American Investment Fund, that functions both as a credit facility and as a capital investment bank.

Investment Incentive Agreement between the Government of Romania and the Government of the United States of America (Overseas Private Investment Corporation) was signed on June 30, 1992 and ratified by both signatories in 1992.

Bilateral Cooperation on the Educational, Cultural and Scientific Fields

Legal framework – Cultural field

• Agreement between the Government of Socialist Republic of Romania and the Government of the United States on cooperation in the fields of culture, education, science and technology, signed in Bucharest on December 13, 1974 ;
• Agreement between the Government of Romania and the Government of the United States on the establishment of an office of Romanian-American exchanges in the fields of education and science, signed in Bucharest on July 30, 1992 ;
• Agreement between the Government of Romania and the Government of the United States on educational and scientific exchanges administered by the Romanian-U.S. Fulbright Commission, signed in Bucharest on October 26, 2000.

Framework of Cooperation in the Education Field:

• The Romanian-American Strategic Partnership, initiated on July 11, 1997 ;
• Agreement between the Government of Socialist Republic of Romania and the Government of the United States on cooperation in the fields of culture, education science and technology, signed in Bucharest on December 13, 1974 ;
• Agreement between the Government of Romania and the Government of the United States on the establishment of an office of Romanian-American exchanges in the fields of education and science, signed in Bucharest on July 30, 1992 ;
• Agreement between the Government of Romania and the Government of the United States on educational and scientific exchanges administered by the Romanian-U.S. Fulbright Commission, signed in Bucharest on October 26, 2000;
• Protocol of Cooperation between the Romanian Ministry of Education and Research (The Office of Precollege Education) and the United States Peace Corps, Romanian Office (2001-2006).

Level of Cooperation

Based on these agreements and protocols, the following programs are ongoing:

• The Romanian Ministry of Education and Research, through the Office of Precollege Education welcomes American English teachers to the Romanian education system; the Romanian Government pays the salary of the teachers according to their education, professional training and work experience;
• The Romanian Ministry of Education and Research supports the activities of American professors selected by the Fulbright Commission and the Civic Education Project at various Romanian universities;
• Through the International Relations Office, the Romanian Ministry of Education and Research maintains a permanent dialogue with the Americans citizens of Romanian origin who live in the United States, in order to strengthen their relationship with Romania; As a result of this dialogue, the Romanian Government offers a number of scholarship opportunities (between 6 and 12 every year) for Romanian-American students interested in studying in Romania, at both college and Precollege levels.
• In the 2004-2005 academic year, a number of 95 students of Romanian origin study at Romanian universities (according to statistical data of January 2005) as follows:

•  66 students of Romanian origin from the United States are enrolled in undergraduate classes;

•  29 students of Romanian origin from the United States are enrolled in graduate classes, at various education levels: Masters Degree (1 student), Residency (8 students), Full-Time Doctoral Degree ( 1 student), Part-Time Doctoral Degree (19 students).

The fields of study chosen by these students include: medical studies, political science, public administration, computer science, theology.

• The Romanian Ministry of Education and Research has encouraged cooperation between universities in order to develop professor and student exchange programs, in which participants engage in research, training programs and joint projects;
• Based on the autonomy that Romanian universities enjoy, they develop every year partnerships with American universities, focused on research and graduate studies training (Masters, residential course, joint team research, etc.);
• The agreement between the Government of Romania and the Government of the United States of America on the American International School of Bucharest is currently under negations.

Perspectives and Course of Action

• The establishment of a Romanian studies scholarship at Indiana University in Bloomington, which will be given annually to an American student, interested in following the Romanian studies requirements of Indiana University, according to the Agreement of Cooperation between the University of Bucharest and Indiana University;
• Hosting and participating in various events (conferences, congresses, seminars) on the management of the quality of university Romanian education;
• Setting partnerships between Romanian and American schools, including the establishment of the legal frame for student exchanges;
• In the strategy on cooperation between universities, Romania 's priorities on graduate and post- graduate education, which are mostly needed, along with programs for reciprocal recognition of diplomas have been taken into account;
• The development of MBA-type programs at Romanian universities in cooperation with American universities, non profit organizations and business associations has been seriously considered;
• In order to develop student mobility and the partnership between Romanian and American universities, and in taking into account the model offered by the agreement between the EU and the US on the establishment of a cooperation program in the field of college education, the establishment of a common fund to sustain cooperation and research projects has been has been put forward.. These projects will be developed by a number of institutions from the two countries, focused on the advancement of information and expertise exchanges at the university level, the scholarships opportunities, as well as technical assistance as part of the various ongoing joint programs between Romania and the United States .

Research

• Legal frame of the cooperation: Agreement between the Government of Romania and the Government of the United States on the scientific and technological cooperation signed in Washington , on July 15, 1998 and approved by H.G. nr. 10/2000, published in M.O. Nr. 14/17.01.2000);
• Fields of interest: IT and telecommunication, materials, technology of chemical processing, physics of high energies, agriculture, environment and natural resources, bio-technology, health and pharmaceutics, hydrological resources, maritime technologies and sciences, space research, Antarctic research, socio-economics research.

Current programs:

• In 2000 the European and Eurasian Office of the National Council of Research of the USA included Romania in the “Collaboration in basic Science and Engineering” (COBASE) program, administered by the National Science Foundation (NSF).
• This program helps the Romanian and American researchers to initiate common research projects. The American researcher must submit the project proposals to the NSF, while the Romanian research partners have to submit the proposal to the Romanian Ministry of Education and Research. As part of the COBASE program, currently, there are 9 project financed by the NSF. The field of study for these projects include: seismology, isotopic physics, chemistry, environment, mathematics, social sciences, etc. Out of the 9 projects, 5 belong to universities and 4 to the national institutes of research and development.

Other collaborations

• Agreement between the Government of Romania and the Government of the United States on the establishment, functioning and exploration of earthquakes monitoring stations , signed on September 28, 2000 at Patrick Air Force Base, Florida; approved by O.G. 1/2001 (M.O.397/July 19, 2001). The Agreement includes provisions regarding the installation of an automatic earthquakes network, in order to improve the study of earthquakes that occur in Romania and the region.
• As part of this cooperation, the Air Force Technical Applications Center (AFTAC) finances the installation and maintenance of a limited area automatic earthquake station, while the Romanian part is responsible for the administration and the exploitation.
• The Agreement also stipulates the establishment of a Romanian-American scientific Committee, responsible for the enforcement of the agreement. The Committee will set the responsibilities of the executive agents (for Romania : The National Institute of Research-Development for Earth Physics –INCFDP and for the United States by AFTAC).

The Romanian Ministry of Education and Research (MEC) and the National Institute of Health (NIH) are currently negotiating a bilateral cooperation program.

Archives

The National Archives of Romania currently do not have bilateral relations with the US National Archives (NARA), but would like to establish such relations, on the basis of a cooperation agreement in the archive field, which would stipulate specific methods for cooperation: exchange of expertise on archive theory and practice, exchange of delegations in order to conduct research in the archives, exchange of archive copies of documents, publications and research materials.

Mass Media

Television

The relationships between the Romanian Public Television and American TV stations are not regulated by formal agreements or protocols of cooperation (with the exception of the agreement of cooperation between CNN and Realitatea TV). The lack of such formal agreements is also a reason for the limited number of Romanian television journalists present in the US .

Sport

There are no formal bilateral agreements or protocols between the governmental institutions of then two countries. However, the Romanian and US sport agencies have had excellent relations, particularly on gymnastics, track and field, boxing, tennis, etc.

The Romanian National Sports Agency as well as the Romanian sports federations are interested in developing relations with all US sports agencies at all levels.

The legal bilateral framework:

• Agreement regarding Peace Corp programs between the Government of United States of America and the Government of Romania (signed in Washington , January 24, 1992 , entered in to force from the signing date)
• Agreement between the Government of United States of America and the Government of Romania for preserving and protection of cultural sites (signed in Bucharest , July 8, 1992 , entered in to force from the signing date)
• Agreement between the Government of United States of America and the Government of Romania for establishment of exchange office for education and science (signed in Bucharest , July 30, 1992 , entered in to force from the signing date)
• Agreement by exchange of verbal notes between the Government of United States of America and the Government of Romania for the opening in Cluj of an Information Office of the US Embassy from Bucharest (signed in Bucharest , 10 December, 1993 , entered in to force at the same date)
• Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of United States of America and the Government of Romania regarding the transfer of confiscated goods (signed in Washington , July 15, 1994 , entered in to force at the same date)
• Agreement by exchange of verbal notes between the Government of United States of America and the Government of Romania regarding the training of military and civilian personnel in US military institutions within the International Military Education and Training Program (IMAT) (signed in Bucharest , November 23, 1994 )
• Agreement between the Government of United States of America and the Government of Romania for protection of military classified information (signed in Washington , August 21, 1995 )
• Agreement between the Government of United States of America and the Government of Romania regarding economic, technology and related domains; (signed in Washington, October 24, 1995, entered in to force November 1, 1996)
• Agreement between the Government of United States of America and the Government of Romania concerning cooperation in the area of counter proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and the promotion of defense and military relations (signed in Washington , March 30, 1998 )
• Agreement between the Government of United States of America and the Government of Romania concerning air transportation (signed in Washington , on August 15, 1998 , entered in to force on August 19, 1999 )
• Agreement between the Government of United States of America and the Government of Romania regarding the technical and scientific cooperation (signed in Washington , on July 15, 1998 , entered in to force on April 5, 2000 )
• Agreement between the Government of United States of America and the Government of Romania for the peaceful use of atomic energy (signed in Washington , on July 15, 1998 , entered in to force on August 25, 1999 )
• Agreement between the Government of United States of America and the Government of Romania for the mutual reinforcement of custom administrations (signed in Washington , on July 15, 1998 , entered in to force on June 1, 1999 )
• Treaty between Romania and United States regarding the criminal law assistance (signed in Washington , on May 26, 1999 )
• Agreement between Romanian and United States of America for the educational and scientific exchanges under the Romanian-American Fulbright Commission (signed in Washington , on October 26, 2000 )
• Agreement between Romanian and United States of America regarding the Status of United States Forces in Romania (signed in Washington , on October 30, 2001 )
• Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of United States of America and the Government of Romania regarding the improvement of reproductive health of Romanian population (signed in Washington on November 14, 2001 )
• Agreement between the Government of United States of America and the Government of Romania to protect persons from surrender to the International Criminal Court (signed in Bucharest , on August 1, 2002 )
• The Additional Protocol to the Understanding Letter regarding the Drug Control and Law Enforcement signed on July 3, 2001 for 2005 fiscal year
• Romania pursues the negotiation of a new Extradition Treaty with USA covering extradition of citizens of both countries.