President Iohannis: Socialist PMs met in Sibiu; PSD wasn't invited, nobody wants to see them

President Klaus Iohannis stated on Saturday in Iasi that, at the meeting in Sibiu of the European Socialist Prime Ministers, prior to the Summit of the European Council, the Social Democratic Party (PSD) wasn't invited "because nobody wanted to see them." 

"The Sibiu Summit - people, some people accused me of not inviting X and Y, to do what? At the European Council meeting there was one seat, one man, in this case [it was] me for Romania, because I get involve for the Romanians. The story goes on, usually, prior to such meetings which are called Summit or the European Council, the political groups carry out their meetings in view of preparing for the Summit. That is how I went to the EPP [the European People's Party], where I met the EPP leaders. We discussed, we analysed how we can contribute in a positive and concrete way to building a good future plan for Europe, because the Summit in Sibiu was about that. In the same way, the Socialists met, the Socialist Prime Ministers met in Sibiu. Guess who didn't get invited? The PSD wasn't invited. Guess why? Because they don't matter in Europe," President Klaus Iohannis stated at the release of this book called "EU.RO - An open dialogue about Europe." 

He added that not inviting the PSD at the meeting in Sibiu of the Socialist PMs "represents the biggest slap given to a party." 

"To carry out a meeting prior to the Summit and them not to get invited? Because nobody wants to see them, what to discuss with them? About how Dragnea attacks the justice in Romania, how he wants to clean his criminal cases? Who needs that? The rule of law is the foundation of the EU. Without a rule of law there is no EU. (...) The rule of law simply means that - the law is the law. This is what is written in our Constitution, but not everybody reads it and some people try to bend it, we are at that stage with some lawbreakers at the helm of the state who try to bend the independence of justice, to politicise it, to their benefit," the head of state said. 

Iohannis continued by calling on the people to vote on 26 May. "If you are interested in our European future, go to vote and tell others who perhaps are not very interested, yet. We need to send people who represent the Romanians' will, good people who understand how Europe works. How can one send a Social Democrat who shows up at the rally in Iasi and says that Europe harms Romania - how to send him/her in Brussels, to say what? That Europe harms Romania? People look at him/her and move on, if they take a look at him/her," Iohannis pointed out. 

In his view, the Romanians didn't get to the EU by mistake. "We wanted inside the EU, in Europe, because we wanted to get there (...) We wanted and we got to Europe just to wake up today with a lawbreaker at the helm of the state who told us, just a few hours ago that: 'Iohannis called his chiefs, masters in Sibiu.' This is what they understood out of it. It's a shame, because Iohannis called the chiefs of Europe in Sibiu because we, too are pro-Europeans and we proved it," the President stated. 

He added that Romania has good specialists in Brussels. "We did our job well, but, back home, we do bad. They attack, we don't, they attack justice, attack the independence of justice and, instead of capitalising this sensational opportunity of being taken into account in Europe as we should, the Social Democrats led us into the discussion about the rule of law, about the future of democracy in Romania. Now, at popular gatherings, the chief lawbreaker or the chief of lawbreakers, depends how you want look at it, starts to attack the EU, as if it would hurt us. What a nonsense! As we were all stupid. The PSD attacks our welfare, attacks our Romania. We want to be Europeans, if they want something else, then, they should withdraw and leave us to do our jobs as we know better," President Klaus Iohannis concluded.