Romania's opposition Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR) Senate group leader Petrisor Peiu said on Monday it remained open to dialogue with all political parties but argued that any talks on forming a new government must begin with President Nicusor Dan lifting what it called his exclusion of AUR from coalition negotiations.
Peiu said the party was willing to engage in dialogue with any political force, including senior Social Democratic Party (PSD) member Marian Neacsu.
"We can talk to anyone, at any time, especially with Mr Neacsu, who has proved to be a balanced dialogue partner. But the party's position must reflect its political objectives, not the person we are talking to. I do not believe there is anyone in Parliament today with whom we cannot hold a discussion," the AUR senator told reporters at the Palace of Parliament.
He argued that any solution regarding the composition of the future government must start with President Nicusor Dan, whom he accused of excluding AUR from consultations on forming a parliamentary majority.
"Any solution must start with President Nicusor Dan, who drew this red line by saying that we should not be consulted or taken into account when it comes to forming a parliamentary majority," Peiu said, adding that if the president had erected that barrier, "he should also be the first to remove it."
Peiu also argued that the Constitution does not allow the president to exclude a political party from coalition talks, suggesting that such a move could constitute grounds for suspension from office.
Asked why AUR had supported the no-confidence motion alongside the Social Democratic Party (PSD) but would not back a government led by PSD leader Sorin Grindeanu, the AUR senator said the vote had been directed against the government's policies rather than any individual.
"We did not vote then for Mr Sorin Grindeanu as a person. We joined an initiative that we had announced well in advance. (...) We are not voting now for any government proposed by Sorin Grindeanu. The issue is public policy and the governing programme. We brought down the Bolojan government because of the programme it was implementing," he said.
