Wildalaska
member
Heres an editorial I dug up from aRumanian newspaper..I for one sent them an email thanking them. Ignore their fractured english I guess...
**** the French
We go with the Americans and the British
by Cornel Nistorescu
Tuesday, 18 February 2003
Once more, perhaps at a decisive moment, Romania has to choose. Which card will it play these days? With the United States or France and Germany? Our political class expressed its standpoint in parliament. If the Americans request it we will send troops to Iraq! But it is our politicians who beat about the bush as well. We are not and we will not be at war! Moreover, last week a communiqué was issued in which they said that "Romania declares itself again a supporter of the role of the European Union, of NATO and United Nations in defending international security". Frightened probably by the disputes in the Security Council, our politicians said it was time to sweeten the pill. That is we support the Americans but without disappointing those who do not agree to a military intervention in Iraq! This is a pacifism which can be considered as satisfying everybody, but also as being a first step to return to the behaviour of a political whore. This means that it is not still clear in our mind what our national interest is. This time (we were not pressed as we were between the two World Wars) we can choose freely. And we did so by the vote of our MPs. Why are we beating about the bush? We can't afford that anymore! We played with Romania's stand on such matters too many times and we lost. The wounds and the weaknesses left by the communism do not allow us to hesitate anymore. We are not France which, apart from the classical dance on its own in international politics (and nobody calls it a "political whore"), took wagons of money out of Iraq. We do not have a few million Muslims to pretend. We are not a country to play three lovers on the fingers! We do not have the status of a lady with pretensions. We did not have a Napoleon to collect treasures from everywhere. We left Iraq empty-handed and having a debt of 1.7 billion lei to Romania. We are not Germany either. The Russians squeezed us out of our riches while Germany was like a kept mistress after the war (but was not addressed offensive words either). We cannot afford playing the part of cavillers at UN when a totalitarian regime is involved. What do we have to do with the populist theatre of Gerhard Schroeder who, in order not to be ousted because of empty electoral promises and the troubled economic situation in his country, is speculating on his fellow countrymen's fear of war. Shall we play Romania's cards counting on the speech of Foreign Minister Joschka Fisher who won 8 percent of the votes of the German electorate? This means to rely on a guy like Basescu! Heaven forbid!
We can ask ourselves what France and Germany did in 50 years of communism for all the countries in the Eastern bloc. The answer is simple: nothing else than business! To us, who were moaning in the prisons of communism, they sent only friendly greetings. The Germans also did something else. They took their fellow nationals, brought them back home, and left us manage on our own. In what judicial or procedural pretext they got stuck over this period? Communism wrung our neck while the honourable democracies issued communiqués. And now they are surprised that all the countries in the former communist bloc do not give a damn about obsolete stratagems of France and Germany. Only they, in their games behind the scene, can make all sorts of mean calculations though many of their citizens were killed in all sorts of attacks. How many others have to die in the USA, in the Paris subway or in other crowded places so that France and Germany react firmly against the countries which supply terrorism? We can no longer afford going into this game of procedures, of diplomatic duplicity only to be the fools and the sacrificed of the region in the end.
Romania needs stringently the support of the most powerful democracy. And it is about to get a firm support. We have to respond to it in the same way. We go with the Americans and we make efforts to be their alternative for the old Europe. It costs us, but we no longer depend on the French illusionism or the German fears. Besides, we have a chance to demonstrate that we got rid of all the doubts of a country ruled with irresolution. We also have the chance to recover our debt from Iraq. Moreover, we have to imagine that a large part of the most brilliant Romanian young people, who emigrated to the USA and Canada, are about to follow Bush. Romania needs to make a clear choice, either USA or France and Germany. When making this choice we have to take one more thing into account. We are not a priority for the two European countries. They already see us as the fifth wheel of the coach, which cost them enormously (not to say that sometimes they see us as thieves, Gypsies or beggars). Instead, we are really important for the Americans. In this dispute we offer them an alternative to go in the long run with a country which needs the know-how of democracy. Not it is the time to go with the Americans all the way, even if they might be wrong. And with the British too. Now it is the time to take into consideration what the leader of the Conservative Party, Ion Lahovary, the father of Martha Bibescu, once said: "A coalition joined by England always gets a victory".
We have had enough failures with France and Germany!
Copyright © 1996-2003 Evenimentul Zilei Online.
WildthreecheersforourallyRomania
**** the French
We go with the Americans and the British
by Cornel Nistorescu
Tuesday, 18 February 2003
Once more, perhaps at a decisive moment, Romania has to choose. Which card will it play these days? With the United States or France and Germany? Our political class expressed its standpoint in parliament. If the Americans request it we will send troops to Iraq! But it is our politicians who beat about the bush as well. We are not and we will not be at war! Moreover, last week a communiqué was issued in which they said that "Romania declares itself again a supporter of the role of the European Union, of NATO and United Nations in defending international security". Frightened probably by the disputes in the Security Council, our politicians said it was time to sweeten the pill. That is we support the Americans but without disappointing those who do not agree to a military intervention in Iraq! This is a pacifism which can be considered as satisfying everybody, but also as being a first step to return to the behaviour of a political whore. This means that it is not still clear in our mind what our national interest is. This time (we were not pressed as we were between the two World Wars) we can choose freely. And we did so by the vote of our MPs. Why are we beating about the bush? We can't afford that anymore! We played with Romania's stand on such matters too many times and we lost. The wounds and the weaknesses left by the communism do not allow us to hesitate anymore. We are not France which, apart from the classical dance on its own in international politics (and nobody calls it a "political whore"), took wagons of money out of Iraq. We do not have a few million Muslims to pretend. We are not a country to play three lovers on the fingers! We do not have the status of a lady with pretensions. We did not have a Napoleon to collect treasures from everywhere. We left Iraq empty-handed and having a debt of 1.7 billion lei to Romania. We are not Germany either. The Russians squeezed us out of our riches while Germany was like a kept mistress after the war (but was not addressed offensive words either). We cannot afford playing the part of cavillers at UN when a totalitarian regime is involved. What do we have to do with the populist theatre of Gerhard Schroeder who, in order not to be ousted because of empty electoral promises and the troubled economic situation in his country, is speculating on his fellow countrymen's fear of war. Shall we play Romania's cards counting on the speech of Foreign Minister Joschka Fisher who won 8 percent of the votes of the German electorate? This means to rely on a guy like Basescu! Heaven forbid!
We can ask ourselves what France and Germany did in 50 years of communism for all the countries in the Eastern bloc. The answer is simple: nothing else than business! To us, who were moaning in the prisons of communism, they sent only friendly greetings. The Germans also did something else. They took their fellow nationals, brought them back home, and left us manage on our own. In what judicial or procedural pretext they got stuck over this period? Communism wrung our neck while the honourable democracies issued communiqués. And now they are surprised that all the countries in the former communist bloc do not give a damn about obsolete stratagems of France and Germany. Only they, in their games behind the scene, can make all sorts of mean calculations though many of their citizens were killed in all sorts of attacks. How many others have to die in the USA, in the Paris subway or in other crowded places so that France and Germany react firmly against the countries which supply terrorism? We can no longer afford going into this game of procedures, of diplomatic duplicity only to be the fools and the sacrificed of the region in the end.
Romania needs stringently the support of the most powerful democracy. And it is about to get a firm support. We have to respond to it in the same way. We go with the Americans and we make efforts to be their alternative for the old Europe. It costs us, but we no longer depend on the French illusionism or the German fears. Besides, we have a chance to demonstrate that we got rid of all the doubts of a country ruled with irresolution. We also have the chance to recover our debt from Iraq. Moreover, we have to imagine that a large part of the most brilliant Romanian young people, who emigrated to the USA and Canada, are about to follow Bush. Romania needs to make a clear choice, either USA or France and Germany. When making this choice we have to take one more thing into account. We are not a priority for the two European countries. They already see us as the fifth wheel of the coach, which cost them enormously (not to say that sometimes they see us as thieves, Gypsies or beggars). Instead, we are really important for the Americans. In this dispute we offer them an alternative to go in the long run with a country which needs the know-how of democracy. Not it is the time to go with the Americans all the way, even if they might be wrong. And with the British too. Now it is the time to take into consideration what the leader of the Conservative Party, Ion Lahovary, the father of Martha Bibescu, once said: "A coalition joined by England always gets a victory".
We have had enough failures with France and Germany!
Copyright © 1996-2003 Evenimentul Zilei Online.
WildthreecheersforourallyRomania
