Mircea Geoana: "The Social Democratic Party (SDP), in an evolution crisis"

Mircea Geoana admits that the fight for the party’s function would’ve continued, if the temporary leading board of SDP wasn’t the same until the congress on the 27th of August.

The External Affairs Minister, Mircea Geoana, stated yesterday in an interview for Mediafax that for the present SDP is in an "evolution crisis", which he prefers to the identity one which "seems to be" the word to describe the state of the Truth and Justice Alliance (The National Liberal Party (NLP) - Democratic Party (DP) Alliance). "Probably SDP passed too quickly from a almightiness state - before the local elections, because of some polls that had favorable results for us by far - to the other extreme: ashes in the faces, ceremonial sacrifices and mutual accusations, which is again an amplification", says Geoana.

DECISION. He considers that the Central Executive Bureau’s decision of blocking the discussion about the temporary leading board of the party until the congress from the beginning of 2005 is a healthy decision, because the "internal battle for occupying some important positions in the parties structure until the congress from the 27th of August would’ve continued and it would’ve been profitless".

In the same time Geoana appreciated the restructuring plan proposed by Ioan Rus (the former Minister of Internal Affairs which lost the battle for the City Hall of Cluj), considering that it is not right that "the plano" would judge him. He believes that Rus should’ve presented this plan to the leading board of SDP and not in a press conference "because some of the criticisms would’ve been attenuated".

THE CANDIDATE. As for his experience as candidate for the Bucharest’s City Hall (where he lost to Traian Basescu), Geoana sort of admits he was pushed to run for Mayor. His answer to the question whether he has identified the political "cannibals" inside SDP is: "Each party equally has its survival and cannibalism instincts. From my point of view, as an old saying says, what doesn’t kill you makes you tougher". But he says that he has no kind of malice or blame, though "there are a lot of things that weren’t the way they used to be". Since he has been looked at as apossible SDP candidate for President, Geoana stated that he is "ready to do everything for his team": "If I should be one of the members involved in the electoral team or in the future offer of SDP, I will accept it without hesitating".

INTEGRATION. On the other hand, the Minister Mircea Geoana considers that after the year 2007 (the year in which is supposed that Romania will become a EU member) there will be more euro-skeptics in Romania, though there will be "a majority for the European integration, but the percentages are to be much less than the 85% today". He also said that, after the end of the negotiations, the Ministry of European Integration will disappear, since it will be an atypical formula. In this case the process of integration is to be managed by "a Minister of European Affairs, member of the Government, and a structure at the same level as the Prime Minister, for the inter-ministerial coordination, like in Great Britain, France or Germany".

BELIEF

"I’m absolutely convinced that trying to modernize the party, meaning structure, persons in the leading board changing, shouldn’t something to do only because of the elections in November" - Mircea Geoana

RELATIONS

"I believe that the more complex relations that we have with Chisinau, for the moment, are transient stuff. WE are to get to a geo-political equilibrium in the Eastern part of Romania also and solve the historical problem also" - Mircea Geoana