Romania and peace in the Middle East

Peace in the Middle East dominated the talks held by Romanias president Traian Basescu this week with the leaders in Tel Aviv and Ramallah.

Bogdan Matei, 22.01.2014, 13:48

Although thousands of kilometres away from the epicentre of the conflict, Romanians have always shown a special interest in the situation in the Middle East. The religious sensitivity of a majority Orthodox nation has been the source of a constant fascination for what religious writings call the Holy Land.

The hundreds of thousands of Romanian-born Israeli citizens are the most solid bridge between the two countries. The tens of thousands of young Arabs, including many Palestinians, who studied in Romanian universities post-WWII have also fuelled Romanians’ interest in the region. Not to mention the unexpected decision taken in 1967 by Romania, which was the only country in the communist bloc who disobeyed Moscow’s orders and refused to break off diplomatic ties with Israel. Beyond the ambitions of the former communist dictator Nicolae Ceausescu who acted as a mediator between the Israelis and the Palestinians hoping to win the Nobel Peace Prize, the fact remains that Romania has always been a credible interlocutor for both sides.

In fact, after Ceausescu’s fall, all Romanian post-communist presidents joined the Middle East peace efforts of the international community, travelling to the region and meeting the leaders in Tel Aviv and Ramallah. This week, president Traian Basescu told both his Israeli counterpart Shimon Peres and the Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas that Romania unreservedly supports the peace initiative of the US secretary of state John Kerry.

Faced with the irreconcilable positions of the two sides, Kerry again had talks recently with the Israeli and Palestinians leaders about an agreement on the borders, security, the status of Israel and the situation of Palestinian refugees. Basescu reiterated that peace is not possible without guarantees regarding Israel’s security and without acknowledging that the Palestinians are entitled to have their own state. “I think it’s the belief of all those who love this region”, said president Basescu “that none of these problems can be solved without a compromise whose chief goal is to have two states living in security and peace.

The purpose of Palestinian-Israeli talks is to bring peace, not to restore historical truth”, he concluded. President Basescu also said he was interested in finding a solution to the peace talks because both Israel and the Palestinian territories are home to many Romanian citizens, for whom the Bucharest authorities feel they have a direct responsibility.