Romanian-German relations, under scrutiny in Bucharest

Germany's president, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, is paying a three-day official visit to Romania

Leyla Cheamil, 25.05.2023, 13:50

The visit to Romania of Germany’s president, Frank-Walter Steinmeier as
well as the frequent bilateral contacts in the recent period highlight the
privileged and strategic character of relations between the two countries, the
president of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, said upon meeting in Bucharest his German
counterpart. We have a strong political dialogue at bilateral and European
levels, a robust economic cooperation and strong personal contacts, owing to
the Romanian community in Germany and the German minority in Romania, president
Iohannis pointed out. Himself a representative of the German minority, Klaus
Iohannis said these communities are a living bridge between the two societies,
with a significant contribution to the development of Romanian-German relations
in the cultural, social and economic fields.

For many years, Germany has been
Romania’s top trade partner. Last year, two way-trade stood at over €40 bln,
the president said, adding that there are over 25,000 companies with German
capital operating in Romania, contributing €5.5 bln in terms of social capital,
which makes Germany the second-largest investor in Romanian economy. On the
other hand, the two heads of state also tackled Romania’s Schengen accession.
Germany has long believed Romania deserves to be part of the free-movement
area, president Steinmeier said, highlighting he is here to visit his friends.
I can assure you that our efforts to persuade those who still oppose Romania’s
accession will continue, the German president also said. Originally slated for
2011, Romania’s Schengen accession was postponed due to opposition from several
member states.

The agenda for talks also included the security developments in the
Black Sea region. We have assessed the threats and concluded that Romania,
Germany and other NATO allies are stronger together and can thus ensure the
security of our countries, Klaus Iohannis said. The president thanked his
German counterpart for his country’s contribution to consolidate NATO’s eastern
flank and take part in allied structures in Romania. Frank-Walter Steinmeier
also met Prime Minister Nicolae Ciucă. Talks focused on vistas for furthering cooperation at bilateral, EU
and NATO levels. The two officials agreed to intensify cooperation between the
two countries at EU and NATO levels in order to cope with current challenges,
not just in terms of security, but economic and social challenges as well. Prime
Minister Ciucă and president Steinmeier highlighted the
importance of ensuring European and Euro-Atlantic unity and securing support
for Ukraine. (VP)