Ilie Văduva (; July 21, 1934 – November 13, 1998) was a

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

communist Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, di ...

politician who served as the

Minister of Foreign Affairs of Romania The Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs () is the ministry responsible for external affairs of the Government of Romania, Romanian Government. The current foreign minister is Emil Hurezeanu. List of ministers of foreign affairs (1862–1989) ...

from 1985 until 1986, Minister of Foreign Trade and International Cooperation from August 26, 1986, until May 1988 and

Presidential Presidential may refer to: * "Presidential" (song), a 2005 song by YoungBloodZ * Presidential Airways (charter), an American charter airline based in Florida * Presidential Airways (scheduled), an American passenger airline active in the 1980s * ...

Counselor from December 1988 until December 1989. He was one of those arrested after the 1989 overthrow of the

Nicolae Ceaușescu Nicolae Ceaușescu ( ; ; – 25 December 1989) was a Romanian politician who was the second and last Communism, communist leader of Socialist Romania, Romania, serving as the general secretary of the Romanian Communist Party from 1965 u ...

regime.

Life and political career

Văduva was born in 1934

Aninoasa Aninoasa ( or ''Aninószabányatelep'') is a town in Hunedoara County in the Transylvania region of Romania. The town is located in the Jiu Valley, which is a coal basin, and many of the towns residents are coal miners. Aninoasa administers one ...

Gorj County Gorj County () is a county () of Romania, in Oltenia, with its capital city at Târgu Jiu. ''Gorj'' comes from the Slavic ''Gornji'' Jiu (“upper Jiu”), in contrast with Dolnji (“lower Jiu”). Demographics At the 2011 census, the count ...

. After completing high school in

Târgu Jiu Târgu Jiu (, is the capital city, capital of Gorj County in the Oltenia region of Romania. It is situated on the Southern Sub-Carpathian Mountains, Carpathians, on the banks of the river Jiu (river), Jiu. Eight localities are administered by the ...

in 1954, he attended the Academy of Economic Studies in

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ) is the capital and largest city of Romania. The metropolis stands on the River Dâmbovița (river), Dâmbovița in south-eastern Romania. Its population is officially estimated at 1.76 million residents within a greater Buc ...

, graduating in 1958. He joined the

Romanian Communist Party The Romanian Communist Party ( ; PCR) was a communist party in Romania. The successor to the pro-Bolshevik wing of the Socialist Party of Romania, it gave an ideological endorsement to a communist revolution that would replace the social system ...

(PCR) in 1961. He was an alternate member of the Central Committee of the PCR since 1979 and became a full member in 1984. From 1968 to 1970 he pursued his studies in Switzerland, and in 1971 he obtained his Ph.D. in Economics. From January 1980 to November 1985, he served as Rector of the Academy of Economic Studies. Văduva, who advised on economic issues and had no knowledge of international relations, was regarded as the

protégé Mentorship is the patronage, influence, guidance, or direction given by a mentor. A mentor is someone who teaches or gives help and advice to a less experienced and often younger person. In an organizational setting, a mentor influences the perso ...

of the First Lady of Romania,

Elena Ceaușescu Elena Ceaușescu (; born Lenuța Petrescu; 7 January 1916 – 25 December 1989) was a Romanian communist politician who was the wife of Nicolae Ceaușescu, General Secretary of the Romanian Communist Party and leader of the Socialist Republic o ...

. In 1985, Elena Ceaușescu selected him for the post of Minister of Foreign Affairs, replacing a more experienced and successful minister,

Ștefan Andrei Ștefan Andrei (; 29 March 1931 – 31 August 2014) was a Romanian communist politician who served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Romania from 1978 to 1985. He was arrested after the 1989 overthrow of the Nicolae Ceaușescu regime. E ...

, previously appointed by Romanian leader and Elena's husband

. Văduva served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs from November 11, 1985, until August 26, 1986, mainly promoting Elena Ceaușescu's international profile. While a minister, he was also caught in the midst of heated

Romania–United States relations Relations between Romania and the United States were formally established in 1880, with the appointment of Eugene Schuyler, a renowned and talented diplomat and historian, as the first American diplomatic representative to Romania. After Romania ...

with increasing pressure from the United States on the Ceaușescu regime for abuse of

human rights Human rights are universally recognized Morality, moral principles or Social norm, norms that establish standards of human behavior and are often protected by both Municipal law, national and international laws. These rights are considered ...

. He was removed for his ineffectiveness in international affairs of Romania and appointed Minister of Foreign Trade and International Cooperation in 1986. He held this post until May 21, 1988, when he was sacked by the Romanian leadership for his role in storing

toxic waste Toxic waste is any unwanted material in all forms that can cause harm (e.g. by being inhaled, swallowed, or absorbed through the skin). Mostly generated by industry, consumer products like televisions, computers, and phones contain toxic chemi ...

in the

Black Sea The Black Sea is a marginal sea, marginal Mediterranean sea (oceanography), mediterranean sea lying between Europe and Asia, east of the Balkans, south of the East European Plain, west of the Caucasus, and north of Anatolia. It is bound ...

port of

Sulina Sulina () is a town and free port in Tulcea County, Northern Dobruja, Romania, at the mouth of the Sulina branch of the Danube. It is the easternmost point of Romania. History During the mid-Byzantine period, Sulina was a small cove, and in th ...

, causing an environmental scandal and outrage. However, a few months later, in December 1988, he was again given a high-ranking position serving as the

Counselor.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vaduva, Ilie 1934 births 1998 deaths People from Gorj County Ministers of foreign affairs of Romania Members of the Great National Assembly Romanian Communist Party politicians Romanian presidential advisors Bucharest Academy of Economic Studies alumni 20th-century Romanian economists Rectors of universities in Romania

Life and political career

See also

References