Romania and the Steel Curtain – Could/Should be Romania the future ally of the United States of America?

Today we are hosting an interview with Mr. Alexandru Cristian, author of the study Romania – The United States of America – Past, Present and Future.

Radu Georgescu: Can you discuss some specific examples where the US-Romanian Strategic Partnership has significantly impacted regional security and stability in the Wider Black Sea Region?

Alexandru Cristian: An example is the recent adoption of a security strategy in the Black Sea, which represents that the United States of America has a major strategic interest in the area. This adoption will strengthen security and stability in the region. We must not forget the support given to Ukraine in the context of this conflict in the proximity of our country, the efforts, especially of the United States of America and Great Britain, made Ukraine resist Russian aggression.

R.G.: You’ve mentioned the evolution of this partnership from a Joint Statement to a potential treaty. Could you outline the key differences between a Joint Statement and a formal treaty in the context of international relations and bilateral cooperation?

A.C.: The emergence of the Joint Statement was boosted by external objective historical factors and by the intrinsic American geopolitical thinking, besides Romania’s need for strategic security. The statement arose around both countries’ willingness to develop some complex defense system against ballistic missiles in Eastern Europe. We concluded trading agreements, we set our bilateral relations on a permanent route, we have been allies without an alliance (according to Ion Stanciu’s definition) during the First World War, we had smooth relations during the communist era, and everything reached a peak with the Strategic Partnership. Subsequent to the Strategic Partnership was signed the Joint Statement, which made our Partnership even stronger. The historical event rationale shows us we are heading towards another stage of our cooperation, i.e. that of formalizing and institutionalizing the Strategic Partnership. A sound cooperation and alliance treaty between the US and Romania would be paramount for the good bilateral relations, as well as a persuasive message for our partners in the European Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

R.G.: In your opinion, what are the pivotal areas, beyond military and security cooperation, where the US and Romania can further deepen their collaboration within the framework of this Strategic Partnership?

A.C.:  For this Partnership to resist and to evolve towards institutionalization, by signing an alliance treaty required by History, it needs to rely on a few fundamental pillars. We identified three pillars difficult to measure and to evaluate, yet which underlie every human relation in general, and good relations between states in particular.

• Trust
• Loyalty
• Cooperation

We can develop cooperation at the cultural, economic, scientific level, briefly we can deepen the civilizational relations between the two states.

At the present, the Romanian-American relations are at a high level and extremely solid. One explanation would be the shared history and destiny and the fact that both peoples have their own exceptionalism.

American exceptionalism is difficult to find in the world history: a people which has made the greatest power in history. Romanian exceptionalism unified three territories surrounded by opposing interests and desires. These historical explanations can highlight the solidity of the Strategic Partnership in early 2021, as well as the new evolutions of the Strategic Partnership that we will experience in the years to come.

R.G.: You mentioned the significance of the Partnership in dealing with geopolitical challenges, especially concerning Russia’s influence. How do you perceive the future dynamics of this partnership in light of evolving global geopolitical scenarios?

A.C.: The Steel Curtain, as I called it, is a geographical area that includes countries such as Poland, Slovakia, Hungary, and Romania. This corridor will connect the Gdansk harbor to the Constanta harbor through a complex infrastructure network. It should be reminded that Ukraine is a buffer country between this corridor and the Russian mainland. This corridor must be established by building an economic and military infrastructure through which the United States can achieve this main goal in Europe. The Steel Curtain will thus stop the expansion of the Russian Federation and the unification of the continental bloc. This corridor can also be extended to Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Bulgaria and Greece, to connect the Baltic Sea to the Mediterranean Sea.

Romania is located on the route of this corridor, in this pivot of the world, so our country has an extremely important geographical position as it controls the mouths of the Danube and the exit to the Black Sea. Romania’s Strategic Partnership with the United States of America must evolve and be based on this geopolitical and geostrategic idea. This will allow our country to be part of this corridor and to be placed under a security umbrella unique in its entire history. We must be key partners of the United States and deepen the bilateral relationship through a full analysis of the Strategic Partnership and of its formalization.

The Steel Curtain is a major goal of the Great American Strategy, a fundamental purpose for the geopolitical future of the United States. A goal that must start working for this very year, as we celebrate 245 years since the founding of the Great Republic.

R.G.: Institutionalizing the Strategic Partnership through a treaty has been suggested. Could you elaborate on the potential challenges or complexities involved in formalizing such an agreement between the US and Romania?

A.C.: The future of the Strategic Partnership will only depend on the strengthening of bilateral relations and on the effort made by the two diplomatic missions in Bucharest and Washington D.C. on behalf of cooperation between the two countries. The Strategic Partnership needs to be developed and deepened on several levels of action, with an extra effort for cultural and economic cooperation. In the field of security and foreign policy, cooperation has been excellent and must be pursued. În opinia mea cea mai mare provocare este Cortina de Oțel- The Steel Curtain.

R.G.: Beyond military bases and security agreements, what efforts do you believe are essential to foster deeper cultural, economic, and societal ties between the United States and Romania? Â

A.C.: To strengthen bilateral relations we must start from simple things. Scholarships, cultural exchanges, opportunities for students to study, opportunities for business, visa- waiver program  are opportunities to exploit.    Recently I saw a news that we will have direct flights.  It i s a big step in mobility between the two countries. We just have to go for cooperation and collaboration at the youth level so that the younger generations understand the role of this bilateral relationship.

R.G.: Considering the historical context and geopolitical dynamics, how do you envision the role of Romania within the European Union and NATO evolving in conjunction with the development of this Strategic Partnership?

A.C.: In my opinion, an alliance treaty with the United States of America might seem disturbing to the other European partners, but at the same time it represents a great guarantee for us that we are a country that can be counted on. Romania must continue its foreign policy on the three pillars, membership of the European Union, the North Atlantic Alliance, but also the development and deepening of the Strategic Partnership.

R.G.: Lastly, you’ve highlighted the potential for unforeseen events to impact the trajectory of this partnership. Can you provide an example of such an event that could significantly alter the course of US-Romanian relations, and how it might manifest in terms of collaboration or divergence between the two nations?

A.C.: I note with disappointment how certain people do not realize the importance of the Strategic Partnership between our country and the United States. Some try certain subterfuges to destabilize this relationship reinforced by time, and put to test by conflicts in the theaters of joint operations.

The fake news spread in Romania only deteriorates Romania’s relation with the United States of America – I will further provide two recent examples.

The first example refers to the dramatic case in Caracal and the false allegation regarding some American citizens who benefited from certain services of an unorthodox nature from certain organized crime groups in our country. Briefly, some suggest that the American army is an occupation army, which is deployed on our territory to trade on the innocence of some young women to have fun, as well as other types of services. This is very dangerous fake news, favoring certain enemies of our country. First of all, there was not even a single American soldier in Deveselu in 2012, the year when some soldiers deployed in Deveselu allegedly had intimate relations with trafficked minors from the Caracal area. As we know, any soldier comes with his family or else involved in a stable relationship. Not to mention that the US military services are careful that such actions do not occur around military bases that seriously jeopardize the public confidence in the professionalism of the US military. That was merely fake news meant to shake the strong relationship between the two countries, but it was all doomed to failure.

A second example concerns the Black Sea gas. As we know, Romania’s technological possibilities for exploiting that gas are quite limited, and the fact that an American company can exploit them is a positive thing for our country because of the royalties we collect. The manipulation that the Americans were stealing Romania’s gas was launched by an old enemy who developed an art of false propaganda.

Alexandru Cristian is an historian, writer, lawyer  born on October 23, 1987 in Brăila, county Brăila, Romania. He holds a Ph.D. Thesis in Information and National Security from the “Carol I” National Defense University in 2015.  He graduated in Law in 2019 at Titu Maiorescu University  in Bucharest.  He published several studies over US- Romanian Relations like 140 years of Us-Romanian Relations, Partners without Partnership in 2020 published on Amazon Kindle Edition, Romania- The United States of America – Past, Present and Future, Prouniversitaria Publishing House, 2023.  He studied Romanian-American diplomatic relations. He is a member of the American Academy of Poets.