BUCHAREST, Romania (Press Release) — An American Jewish Committee (AJC) delegation just completed a two-day trip to Romania.
The group, led by AJC Chief Executive Officer David Harris, had in-depth meetings with President Klaus Iohannis, Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos, Foreign Minister Lazar Comănescu, and the U.S. and Israeli Ambassadors.
The delegation also visited the foreign and domestic intelligence services in Bucharest, and was hosted by Ministry of Foreign Affairs State Secretary Daniela Gîtman for a private dinner with several senior officials.
Among the principal topics of discussion were: (i) the increasingly strong bilateral links between Romania and the U.S.; (ii) the deepening strategic partnership between Bucharest and Jerusalem; (iii) Romania’s laudable chairmanship, which began in March, of the 31-nation International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA); and (iv) Bucharest’s regional security concerns.
“We visited Romania to express our admiration for the ever-deepening links between Bucharest and Washington, as well as Bucharest and Jerusalem,” said Harris. “AJC has long believed that Romania has a key role to play in NATO, the European Union, and in its bilateral links, in defending democratic values and maintaining regional and global security. Moreover, we voiced our admiration for Romania’s chairmanship of IHRA, in which the country is seeking to blaze new trails in strategies for combating anti-Semitism and promoting Holocaust education and research.”
During the visit, the delegation was hosted for a festive Shabbat dinner at the Choral Synagogue in Bucharest by the Federation of Jewish Communities of Romania. The group’s president, Dr. Aurel Vainer, a longtime AJC partner and member of the Romanian Parliament, accompanied the AJC delegation in their meetings.
The mission also included a meeting with the leadership of The Elie Wiesel National Institute for Studying the Holocaust in Romania.
AJC maintains regular contact with Romanian officials in New York; Washington, D.C.; and across Europe and in Israel.
The delegation also included: Rabbi Andrew Baker, AJC Director of International Jewish Affairs, who has visited Bucharest many times, and works closely with the Jewish community and Romanian authorities on issues related to Jewish concerns; Avital Leibovich, Director of AJC Jerusalem, who has been invited twice by Romanian authorities to brief key government officials on Middle East and other matters; and Simone Rodan, Director of AJC Europe, who was born to Romanian parents and speaks Romanian.
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