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Mark Gitenstein, former US ambassador in Bucharest, and Mircea Geoana, former Romanian ambassador in Washington and current NATO deputy secretary general, expressed their conviction on Monday, in an online discussion, that the relationship between the United States and Romania will consolidate during the next US administration, under the presidency of Joe Biden, according to AGERPRES.
Joe Biden has a close connection with Romania. He has been there six or eight times, since he was a member of the US Senate, as chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee. He has been there twice when he was vice president of the United States. Once when I was an ambassador and once when I was no longer there, said Mark Gitenstein, in a Zoom discussion initiated by the Washington-based Alliance nonprofit organization to mark the 140th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the USA and Romania.
Gitenstein recalled that Joe Biden's first major foreign tour as US vice president was in Central and Eastern Europe and included Romania and highlighted the high popularity of America in Romania, but also the fact that elites at all levels of the US government recognize the strategic importance of Romania.
Mark Gitenstein also stressed that Romania and the United States share many common values, including in terms of democracy, and that the relationship between the two countries is a solid one and all the forces are there for it to continue. At the same time, however, he acknowledged that there are things that can happen in Romania and that could undermine this relationship, and this has always been a concern for the United States.
"I think Romania should be proud of its strategic partnership with the United States," former Romanian ambassador in Washington Mircea Geoana said, adding that Joe Biden will use his vast experience in global affairs and recalled the key role of the president-elect in Romania's accession and that of other Central and Eastern European countries to NATO, which paved the way for entry into the European Union.
Mircea Geoana also highlighted Joe Biden's deep conviction that "democracy, integrity, balance of power and the rule of law are indispensable parts of a prosperous and successful society."
"I think it will bring a lot of predictability. I think it will invest in the United States' alliances. I think the strategic partnership between the US and Romania will flourish even more with Joe Biden and Kamala Harris at the helm of the US administration," he said.
Geoana also expects a "very long historical cycle" of the "extremely close alliance between Romania and the USA".
The discussion, which had as guests Mark Gitenstein and Mircea Geoana, was hosted by John Florescu, on behalf of the Alliance, a non-profit organization based in Washington, created to strengthen cultural, economic and security ties between the US and Romania.
