President Traian Basescu wants to control the secret services, and to that end will change not the heads, but the deputy-heads of the intelligence services with people of his liking. They, in fact, will hold the reigns of the intelligence community.
For this kind of move Basescu does not need any Parliament approval.
The same sources, however, say Basescu is unwilling to give the liberals what they want. Harnagea, the liberalsâ choice for the top position in the espionage service, held the job before: between 1997 and 2000, during the presidency of Emil Constantinescu. And before that he had been a presidential adviser to Constantinescu.
PM Calin Popescu Tariceanu sand leader of the National Liberal Partyt approved of Harnageaâs nomination.
But Harnagea is being investigated by prosecutors in the Rompetrol case. He is also a close friend of the companyâs president, Dinu Patriciu, and of Tariceanuâs.
This would be a first, since the military intelligence was out of the political game so far.
Citește pe Antena3.ro
Translated by ANCA PADURARU