Prime Minister Ciolacu plays hard: President Iohannis' envoy to the USA, excluded from official meetings

Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu excluded Andrei Muraru - Romania's ambassador to the USA - from the official meetings he has in the USA, reasoning that the presence of the President's envoy Klaus Iohannis is not necessary at the political meetings that the Head of Government will have with representatives of the Administration from White House.

Marcel Ciolacu stated, according to Andrei Muraru, that "it is not necessary" for the Embassy's representatives to participate in Washington.

Mr. Muraru declared, two days ago, at a reception during which the Head of Government met with representatives of the Romanian community in the USA: "My role in this visit ends here. I thank my team in Washington for the effort made in the last few days to facilitate the meetings of the following days, but Mr. Prime Minister considered that it is not necessary for the representatives of the Romanian Embassy in Washington to participate in the political meetings of the following days. Having said that, Mr. Prime Minister, I can only wish you and the government team great success, because your success here, in America, means Romania's success. And, finally, we wish you what we all wish - meaningful meetings, fruitful for the peace, prosperity and security of Romanians".

In reply, Marcel Ciolacu told him during the same event: "I will allow myself... I think the ambassador is younger than me, I think the greatest quality in politics is patience. I don't think there is much difference between politics and diplomacy and I am firmly convinced that Mr. Ambassador has not lost his patience yet, as I have not done it many times and in more difficult contexts. The important thing is to see our mission that we each have in an important moment for Romania and less for our interests or our personal visions".

Marcel Ciolacu's statements have some coverage, if we take into account that his delegation on the official visit to the USA includes, in addition to the Minister of Defense, Angel Tîlvăr, the Minister of Economy, Radu Oprea, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Luminiţa Odobescu.

Especially since yesterday and tonight, Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu and Ministers Tîlvăr, Oprea and Odobescu met with the American Secretary of State Antony Blinken, with the Secretary of Defense, Lloyd Austin, and with the Secretary of Energy of the United States of America, Jennifer Granholm.

As for the political meetings, these will take place only in Congress, with the representatives of the leadership of the Armed Forces Committee in the House of Representatives, Mike Rogers and Adam Smith, with the co-chairs of the Committee on Foreign Relations in the US Senate, Senators Ben Cardin and James Risch, and with the co-presidents of the Friendship Group with Romania in the House of Representatives, Mike Turner and Elissa Slotkin.

Moreover, an important component of the working visit is the economic one, with Marcel Ciolacu and the government delegation going to talk with the representatives of the companies Google, Lockheed Martin and with the representatives of the management of the United States Energy Association.

Probably the head of the government considered that the presence of the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Luminiţa Odobescu, in his delegation was sufficient, given the fact that before occupying this position Mrs. Odobescu was an advisor to President Klaus Iohannis. It seems that Marcel Ciolacu thought that Luminiţa Odobescu would inform President Iohannis about the discussions in the USA and told himself that one of the president's men in his delegation was enough and that there was no need for the second one, Ambassador Andrei Muraru.

However, according to the provisions of art. 91 of the Romanian Constitution, the president of the country is the one who manages the foreign policy.

Thus, according to the constitutional text, the conclusion of international treaties on behalf of Romania is done by the country's president, who, at the proposal of the Government, accredits and recalls Romania's diplomatic representatives and approves the establishment, abolition or change of rank of diplomatic missions. At the same time, the diplomatic representatives of other states are accredited next to the President of Romania.

Indeed, Minister Luminiţa Odobescu is also in charge of foreign policy, and from an administrative point of view, Ambassador Muraru is included in the body of dignitaries of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but he must also inform President Klaus Iohannis about what what the Ciolacu government representatives are discussing with their US counterparts.