Relations between
Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...
and the United States were formally established in 1880, with the appointment of
Eugene Schuyler
Eugene Schuyler (February 26, 1840 – July 16, 1890) was a nineteenth-century American scholar, writer, explorer and diplomat. Schuyler was one of the first three Americans to earn a Ph.D. from an American university; and the first American tran ...
, a renowned and talented diplomat and historian, as the first American diplomatic representative to Romania. After Romania
left
Left may refer to:
Music
* ''Left'' (Hope of the States album), 2006
* ''Left'' (Monkey House album), 2016
* "Left", a song by Nickelback from the album ''Curb'', 1996
Direction
* Left (direction), the relative direction opposite of right
* L ...
the
Eastern Bloc
The Eastern Bloc, also known as the Communist Bloc and the Soviet Bloc, was the group of socialist states of Central and Eastern Europe, East Asia, Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin America under the influence of the Soviet Union that existed du ...
in 1989, US-Romanian relations have matured into a strategic partnership that encompasses a wide range of political, military, economic and cultural issues. The US supported Romania's entry into
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
, setting the stage for further integration into Europe. Today, Romania is a strong ally of the United States, and the two countries work together to build democracy, fight terrorism, and promote regional security and stability.
In addition to close historical and cultural ties, Romania is one of the most consistently
pro-American nations in Europe and in the world. According to a 2018 European poll, 78% of
Romanians
The Romanians ( ro, români, ; dated exonym ''Vlachs'') are a Romance languages, Romance-speaking ethnic group. Sharing a common Culture of Romania, Romanian culture and Cultural heritage, ancestry, and speaking the Romanian language, they l ...
view the United States favorably. This is the second-highest pro-American sentiment in the
European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...
, after
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
.
Another poll showed that a very large percentage of Romanians, 87%, want future US ambassadors to Bucharest to continue supporting the fight against
corruption
Corruption is a form of dishonesty or a criminal offense which is undertaken by a person or an organization which is entrusted in a position of authority, in order to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's personal gain. Corruption m ...
in Romania. The same poll showed that 74% of Romanians want the United States to remain the main strategic partner of Romania.
History
The United States established diplomatic relations with Romania in 1880, following Romania's independence.
On June 5, 1942, in the midst of
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, the United States declared war on Axis-aligned Romania, in response to Romania having declared war on the United States on December 12 of the previous year. The US declared war on
Hungary
Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...
and
Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...
the same day. The declaration of war passed both houses of
Congress
A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...
unanimously, by votes of 361–0 in the
House of Representatives
House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...
and 73–0 in the
Senate
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
.
Relations remained strained during the Cold War era while Romania was under communist influence.
US bilateral relations with Romania began to improve in the early 1960s with the signing of an agreement providing for partial settlement of American property claims. Cultural, scientific, and educational exchanges were initiated, and in 1964 the legations of both nations were promoted to full embassies.
[ ]
After
Communist Party general secretary Nicolae Ceaușescu
Nicolae Ceaușescu ( , ; – 25 December 1989) was a Romanian communist politician and dictator. He was the general secretary of the Romanian Communist Party from 1965 to 1989, and the second and last Communist leader of Romania. He was ...
began to distance Romania from Soviet foreign policy, as in Romania's continued
diplomatic relations with Israel and
denunciation
Denunciation (from Latin ''denuntiare'', "to denounce") is the act of publicly assigning to a person the blame for a perceived wrongdoing, with the hope of bringing attention to it.
Notably, centralized social control in authoritarian states re ...
of the 1968
Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia
The Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia refers to the events of 20–21 August 1968, when the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic was jointly invaded by four Warsaw Pact countries: the Soviet Union, the Polish People's Republic, the People's Rep ...
, President
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...
paid an official visit to Romania in August 1969. Despite political differences, diplomacy continued between US and Romanian leaders throughout the 1970s, culminating in the 1978 state visit to Washington by President Ceauşescu and
his wife.
In 1972, a consular convention to facilitate the protection of citizens and their property in both countries was signed.
Overseas Private Investment Corporation
The Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) was the United States Government's Development finance institution until it merged with the Development Credit Authority (DCA) of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID ...
(OPIC) facilities were granted, and Romania became eligible for US Export-Import Bank credits.
A trade agreement signed in April 1975 accorded
most favored nation (MFN) status to Romania under section 402 of the Trade Reform Act of 1974 (the
Jackson-Vanik amendment that links MFN to a country's performance on emigration). This status was renewed yearly after a congressional review confirmed a presidential determination that stated Romania was making progress toward freedom of emigration.
In the mid-1980s, criticism of Romania's
deteriorating human rights record, particularly regarding the mistreatment of religious and ethnic minorities, spurred attempts by Congress to withdraw MFN status. In 1988, to preempt congressional action, Ceausescu renounced MFN treatment, calling Jackson-Vanik and other human rights requirements unacceptable interference in Romanian sovereignty.
After welcoming the
revolution of December 1989 with a visit by Secretary of State
Baker
A baker is a tradesperson who bakes and sometimes sells breads and other products made of flour by using an oven or other concentrated heat source. The place where a baker works is called a bakery.
History
Ancient history
Since grains ha ...
in February 1990, the US Government expressed concern that opposition parties had faced discriminatory treatment in the
May 1990 elections, in which the
National Salvation Front won a sweeping victory. The slow progress of subsequent political and economic reform increased that concern, and relations with Romania declined sharply after the
June 1990 Mineriad
The June 1990 Mineriad was the suppression of anti- National Salvation Front (FSN) rioting in Bucharest, Romania by the physical intervention of groups of industrial workers as well as coal miners from the Jiu Valley, brought to Bucharest by the ...
, where an anti-NSF sit-in was suppressed by Romanian police. Anxious to cultivate better relationships with the US and Europe, and disappointed at the poor results from its gradualist economic reform strategy, the
Stolojan government implemented economic reform and conducted free and fair parliamentary and presidential elections in September 1992. Encouraged by the conduct of local elections in February 1992, US Deputy Secretary of State
Lawrence Eagleburger
Lawrence Sidney Eagleburger (August 1, 1930 – June 4, 2011) was an American statesman and career diplomat, who served briefly as the Secretary of State under President George H. W. Bush from December 1992 to January 1993, one of the shortest te ...
visited in May 1992. Congress restored MFN in November 1993 in recognition of Romania's progress in instituting political and economic reform. In 1996, the US Congress voted to extend permanent MFN graduation to Romania.
As Romania's policies became unequivocally pro-Western, the United States moved to deepen relations. President
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...
visited Bucharest in 1997. The two countries initiated cooperation on shared goals, including economic and political development, defense reform, and non-traditional threats (such as trans-border crime and non-proliferation).
Following the events of
September 11, 2001
The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commerc ...
, Romania was fully supportive of the US in the
Global War on Terror
The war on terror, officially the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT), is an ongoing international counterterrorism military campaign initiated by the United States following the September 11 attacks. The main targets of the campaign are militant I ...
. Romania was part of the American-led "
Coalition of the Willing
The term ''coalition of the willing'' refers to an international alliance focused on achieving a particular objective, usually of military or political nature.
Usage
*One early use was by President Bill Clinton in June 1994 in relation to possib ...
" that supported the
invasion of Iraq
The 2003 invasion of Iraq was a United States-led invasion of the Ba'athist Iraq, Republic of Iraq and the first stage of the Iraq War. The invasion phase began on 19 March 2003 (air) and 20 March 2003 (ground) and lasted just over one mont ...
in 2003. Romania was invited to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in November 2002 and formally joined NATO on March 29, 2004, after depositing its instruments of treaty ratification in Washington, D.C. President
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...
helped commemorate Romania's NATO accession when he visited Bucharest in November 2002. On that occasion, he congratulated the
Romanian people
The Romanians ( ro, români, ; dated exonym ''Vlachs'') are a Romance-speaking ethnic group. Sharing a common Romanian culture and ancestry, and speaking the Romanian language, they live primarily in Romania and Moldova. The 2011 Romanian c ...
on building democratic institutions and a
market economy
A market economy is an economic system in which the decisions regarding investment, production and distribution to the consumers are guided by the price signals created by the forces of supply and demand, where all suppliers and consumers ...
after the
fall of communism
The Revolutions of 1989, also known as the Fall of Communism, was a revolutionary wave that resulted in the end of most communist states in the world. Sometimes this revolutionary wave is also called the Fall of Nations or the Autumn of Natio ...
. Romanian troops still serve alongside US troops in
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
and were among the last to withdraw from
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
.
![Traian Băsescu meets George W](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b3/Traian_B%C4%83sescu_meets_George_W._Bush_2005March09.jpg)
In March 2005, President
Traian Băsescu
Traian Băsescu (; born 4 November 1951) is a conservatism, conservative Romanian politician who served as President of Romania from 2004 to 2014. Prior to his presidency, Băsescu served as Romanian Minister of Transport on multiple occasions ...
made his first official visit to Washington to meet with President Bush, Secretary of State
Condoleezza Rice
Condoleezza Rice ( ; born November 14, 1954) is an American diplomat and political scientist who is the current director of the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. A member of the Republican Party, she previously served as the 66th Uni ...
, Secretary of Defense
Donald Rumsfeld
Donald Henry Rumsfeld (July 9, 1932 – June 29, 2021) was an American politician, government official and businessman who served as Secretary of Defense from 1975 to 1977 under president Gerald Ford, and again from 2001 to 2006 under Presi ...
, and other senior US officials. In December 2005, Secretary Rice visited Bucharest to meet with President Băsescu and to sign a bilateral defense cooperation agreement that would allow for the joint use of Romanian military facilities by US troops. The first proof of principle exercise took place at Mihail Kogălniceanu Air Base from August to October 2007.
Romania formally terminated its mission in Iraq on June 4, 2009, and pulled out its troops. On July 23, the last Romanian soldiers left Iraq. Three Romanian soldiers had been killed during their mission, and at least eight were wounded.
In 2011, the United States and Romania issued the "Joint Declaration on Strategic Partnership for the 21st Century Between the United States of America and Romania." The two countries identified key areas for enhanced cooperation, focusing on their political-military relationship, law-enforcement cooperation, trade and investment opportunities, and energy security. The United States and Romania are mutually committed to supporting human rights, strengthening the rule of law, and increasing prosperity in both countries. Romania and the United States also have ties in the form of business, arts and academic programs, including the Future Leaders Exchange (FLEX) for high school students and a Fulbright program managed by the bilateral Fulbright Commission. Romania's promotion of greater cooperation among its Black Sea neighbors in the areas of defense, law enforcement, energy, economic development, and the environment complements the US goal of enhancing stability in this sensitive and vital region.
In October 2013, the Romanian Government allowed the United States military to use a Romanian base for US troop withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Economic relations
Following the 1989 revolution, Romania's economy began to transition from state control to capitalism. The country worked to create a legal framework consistent with a market economy and investment promotion. Romania became a member of the European Union in 2007. In 1992, the United States and Romania signed a bilateral investment treaty (BIT), which came into force in 1994. In 2003, before Romania's accession to the EU, the United States and Romania amended the BIT, which remains in effect. Romania attracts US investors interested in accessing the European market, with relatively low costs and a well-educated, tech-savvy population being major draws. In Romania, major US firms operate in the energy, manufacturing, information technology and telecommunications, services, and consumer products sectors. Top Romanian exports to the United States include machinery, vehicle parts, steel, and metallic items, and fertilizers.
Resident diplomatic missions
;of Romania in the United States
*Embassy (1): Washington, D.C.
* Consulate General (5): Chicago, Los Angeles, New York City, Miami,
Houston
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
* Honorary Consulate General (1):
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
* Consulate Honorary (17):
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
,
Cleveland
Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
,
Dallas
Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
, Detroit,
Hartford
Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since the ...
,
Indianapolis
Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...
,
Las Vegas
Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...
,
Minneapolis
Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...
,
, Norfolk,
Norman
Norman or Normans may refer to:
Ethnic and cultural identity
* The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries
** People or things connected with the Norm ...
,
Philadelphia
Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...
,
Portland
Portland most commonly refers to:
* Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States
* Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...
,
Phoenix
Phoenix most often refers to:
* Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore
* Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States
Phoenix may also refer to:
Mythology
Greek mythological figures
* Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...
,
Sarasota
Sarasota () is a city in Sarasota County on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The area is renowned for its cultural and environmental amenities, beaches, resorts, and the Sarasota School of Architecture. The city is located in the sout ...
, San Francisco,
Sacramento
)
, image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg
, mapsize = 250x200px
, map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...
;of United States in Romania
*Embassy (1):
Bucharest
Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north of ...
U.S military assistance to Romania
99th Military Base Deveselu
![Deveselu airbase Romania](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/89/Deveselu_airbase_Romania.jpg)
The
Romanian Air Force
The Romanian Air Force (RoAF) ( ro, Forțele Aeriene Române) is the air force branch of the Romanian Armed Forces. It has an air force headquarters, an operational command, five airbases and an air defense brigade. Reserve forces include one ai ...
91st Air Base was closed in 2003, forcing approximately 200 personnel into early retirement; about 15 still live in the commune in the "airmen neighborhood".
The airbase near
Deveselu
Deveselu () is a Commune in Romania, commune in Olt County, Oltenia, Romania. It is composed of two villages, Comanca and Deveselu.
Geography
The commune is situated on the Wallachian Plain, about west of the river Olt (river), Olt. It is locat ...
was selected for the
NATO missile defense system
The NATO missile defense system is a missile defense system being constructed by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in several member states and around the Mediterranean Sea. Plans for this system have changed several times since fir ...
employing
Aegis Ashore Ballistic Missile Defense System and the inauguration ceremony was held in December 2015. The system uses the
SM-3 Block I.B. interceptor. There are about 500 Romanian soldiers, 250 U.S. troops, and other personnel working at the base.
On 29 April 2022, a ceremony was held at the base with the occasion of the 10th anniversary of its establishment. On this occasion, the
military colours
In military organizations, the practice of carrying colours (or colors), standards, flags, or guidons, both to act as a rallying point for troops and to mark the location of the commander, is thought to have originated in Ancient Egypt som ...
of the 99th Military Base Deveselu were decorated with the
Order of Military Virtue.
57th Air Base Mihail Kogălniceanu
The base has been used by the
US Military
The United States Armed Forces are the Military, military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six Military branch, service branches: the United States Army, Army, United States Marine Corps, Marine Corps, United States N ...
since 1999. In 2003, it became one of four Romanian military facilities that have been used by US military forces as a staging area for the invasion of and ongoing counter-insurgency efforts in
Iraq
Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...
, operated by the
458th Air Expeditionary Group
The 458th Air Expeditionary Group is a provisional United States Air Force unit assigned to United States Air Forces in Europe to activate or inactivate as needed. The most recent known activation of the unit was at Ramstein Air Base, Germany i ...
. It was intended to become one of the main operating bases of
United States Army Europe
United States Army Europe and Africa (USAREUR-AF) is an Army Service Component Command (ASCC) /Theater Army responsible for directing United States Army operations throughout the U.S. European Command (EUCOM) and U.S. Africa Command (AFRICO ...
's Joint Task Force East (JTF-E), a rotating task force initially to be provided by the
US 2nd Cavalry Regiment, which was to grow to a brigade-sized force eventually. The JTF-E concept has been reduced to the Army-only
Task Force East, but the base still retains an important role, given added weight by the
2014 Crimean crisis
In February and March 2014, Russia invaded and subsequently annexed the Crimean Peninsula from Ukraine. This event took place in the aftermath of the Revolution of Dignity and is part of the wider Russo-Ukrainian War.
The Revolution of Dign ...
.
During the first three months of the
2003 invasion of Iraq
The 2003 invasion of Iraq was a United States-led invasion of the Republic of Iraq and the first stage of the Iraq War. The invasion phase began on 19 March 2003 (air) and 20 March 2003 (ground) and lasted just over one month, including 26 ...
, the airport was transited by 1,300 cargo and personnel transports towards Iraq, comprising 6,200 personnel and about 11,100 tons of equipment.
High-level mutual visits
See also
*
Foreign relations of Romania
The foreign relations of Romania are conducted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (''Ministerul Afacerilor Externe''; MAE). Romania is a member of NATO and the European Union.
Diplomatic list
List of countries which Romania maintains diplomatic ...
*
Foreign relations of the United States
The United States has formal diplomatic relations with most nations. This includes all UN member and observer states other than Bhutan, Iran, North Korea and Syria, and the UN observer State of Palestine, the last of which the U.S. does not rec ...
*Flaviu Vasile, Rus, ed., "The cultural and diplomatic relations between Romania and the United States of America. 1880-1920", Cluj-Napoca, MEGA Publishing, 2018.
*
List of Romanian ambassadors to the United States
*
Romanian Americans
Romanian Americans are Americans who have Romanian ancestry. According to the 2017 American Community Survey, 478,278 Americans indicated Romanian as their first or second ancestry, however other sources provide higher estimates, which are most ...
*
Romanian Greek Catholic Church
The Romanian Greek Catholic Church or Romanian Church United with Rome, Greek-Catholic ( la, Ecclesia Graeco-Catholica Romaniae; ro, Biserica Română Unită cu Roma, Greco-Catolică), sometimes called, in reference to its Byzantine Rite, the ...
*
Romanian-American organizations
*
Romanian-American University
The Romanian-American University ( ro, Universitatea Româno-Americană) is a private university in Bucharest, Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It b ...
References
External links
History of Romania - US relations
{{DEFAULTSORT:Romania - United States Relations
Bilateral relations of the United States
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...