Govt. pushes for good grade from EU

Romania will “aggressively lobby” over the next two weeks to make the European Commission grant Romania a good grade and the market economy status in its country report due out on November 5.

Bucharest will also “determinedly and aggressively” ask the European leaders to have the EU heads of state and government during the European Council in December confirm the closing of the accession negotiations with Romania and Bulgaria in 2004 in the final document. This would allow the Accession Treaty to be signed in 2005 and the accession to become effective in 2007, as specified by Romanian Foreign minister Mircea Geoana.

He said Romania had received “encouraging signals” it would be granted the functional market economy status in the 2003 report, but explained this year’s report was not essential, because it was the final report next year that would decide whether Romania concluded negotiations in 2004 or not.

Functional market economy status is indispensable for any country that wants to conclude accession negotiations. The Copenhagen Criteria (1993) show a market economy to be that economy which is “capable of withstanding competition and market forces within EU.”

If Romania is to join the EU in 2007, it is essential for it to conclude negotiations in 2004, because the current Commission ends its term in late that year and the new commissioners will need some time to become familiar with the issues and the negotiation agenda.

Geoana said the European Commission’s report will mention the good results of the administration as achievements. The results include the privatisations over the last few weeks, BCR’s privatisation closed two days before the report comes out (November 3), the anti-corruption laws drafted this summer and, a very important thing, the completion of the first agreement with the IMF in 20 years.

The Foreign minister added he had “checked” with Washington and got signals that the IMF, which was to analyse the stand-by agreement with Romania today, would disburse the last tranche of the loan, worth $153 million, and “this will weigh heavily in the Commission’s assessments.”

Geoana would not state his point on the negative issues included in the country report, yet admitted to certain things that need to be fixed in terms of corruption fighting, and administration and justice reform. As for the Puwak and Beuran cases, the Foreign minister specified they would not show in the Commission’s report, because cases covered by the press have no bearing on this institution.

“We do not believe the recent discussions about our two colleagues would show in the country report (…) We do not believe they would show in the talks in the media or any other circles,” Geoana said.

The administration will “aggressively lobby” in the over two weeks left until the publication of the European Commission’s assessments, as the text is “in the process of drafting.” iulian.anghel@zf.ro