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Romania Foreign Policy And Government Guide ... Read more

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Based on primary and secondary sources, this study evaluates the diplomatic manoeuvres of the Great Powers related to the Romanian movement for independence during the Russo-Turkish War and the ensuing international tensions. ... Read more

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details on one aspect of the "Eastern Question"
Readers of Tolstoy's "Anna Karenina" and Dostoevsky's "A Writer's Diary", as well as students of 19th century European history, will be interested in this ground-level story of the plight of Romania,caught in the middle as the dispute between Russia and the Ottoman Empireled to war in the late 1870's.Romanians were happy to use the dispute, inconjunction with the weakening of the Ottoman Empire, as a device forgaining full independence from the Empire and international diplomaticrecognition, but they were appalled and helpless as Russia used the peacenegotiations to insist on recovering the portions of Bessarabia that shehad lost to Romania in the Treaty of Paris of 1856.This excellent andreadable treatment is marred only by the tone of the discussion of the"Jewish Question", where the author's none-too-subtle personalopinions come to the fore in considering the issue of full citizenshiprights for Romania's Jews; both the Jews' preference for money-lending over"fields of endeavor which would strengthen the economy" and theirsusceptibility to "directives from abroad" are cited in arguingfor the "insurmountable difficulties" that granting them fullcitizenship would create.Otherwise, a first-rate book. ... Read more

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Ilie Serbanescu, a distinguished economist, launches a comprehensive study of the contemporary Romanian economy and its problems. He critically evaluates Romanian transition and the main issues facing the stability of the Romanian economy, and then proposes solutions to be undertaken by the Romanian government.

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Purifying the Nation is a provocative exploration of the Holocaust in World War II Romania. Vladimir Solonari argues that the persecution of Jews and Roma by the Romanian government was not a response to pressure from the country's ally, Nazi Germany, but rather stemmed from the vision of an ethnically pure Romania. Through a rigorous, archive-based analysis of the country's interwar political and intellectual climate and policies and practices during its alliance with the Nazis, Solonari sheds valuable new light on the genocidal activities of one of Hitler's European satellites.

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Un torchon, as the French would say
Soviet-style historiography at its worst. Definitely not worth your time or money. Hardly worth the paper it was printed on. ... Read more

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I am deeply impressed
I did not have the chance to learn at school the true history of the country I was born in. The communist regime twisted the events giving them a totally different meaning in order to boost and justify their political agenda. Eventually, the events of december 1989 gave romanian people at least the chance to read and understand what really happened after the soviet occupation started in 1944. I was deeply impressed about how brutal the regime eliminated the elite of the country, ousted the Monarchy and transformed Romania into a soviet puppet-state for decades to come. I can now explain what happened to us. Thanks, Mr. Deletant!

The Nearly Forgotten Stalinist
Very little has been written about this brutal Romanian communist tyrant who, with Soviet "counselors" sitting at his side, thoroughly embraced the Stalinist style of repression and implemented massive gulag-type projects to keep the people too busy and tired to criticize his regime. Even after Stalin's death, when Khrushchev was promoting de-Stalinization, Dej held tenaciously to Stalin's techniques, including show trials and the execution of political opponents. His successor, another tyrant (Ceausescu), wanted to portray himself as a more "humane" dictator and was partially responsible for burying Dej's story. But Dennis Deletant brings Dej back on stage and places his pattern of communist terror in the spotlight.

MARCO'S ANALYSIS OF BOOK
An excellent summary of the Communist reign of terror in Romania during the Gheorghiu-Dej era!This book is a detailed and comprehensive compendium of specific events that enable the reader to understand themagnitude of Communist repression and human rights violations in post-WorldWar II Romania.The footnotes are numerous and at times lengthy, but theynevertheless provide valuable background information to the issuesdiscussed. ... Read more

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Since 1989 Romania has gone from communist isolation under the megalomaniac Nicolae Ceauescu to being a key player in America's war against terrorism. Because of this strategic location it has become a front-line state for nervous Western governments keen to secure oil routes from the Middle East. It joined NATO in 2004 and is due to enter the European Union in 2007-08 despite its economy being unprepared to meet the competition challenges from established members. Tom Gallagher analyses how the country is seeking to recover from a disastrous period in its history while many of the key legacies of dictatorship remain. Having lynched the discredited Ceauescu in 1989, former acolytes have spent the past fifteen years trying to retain a monopoly of control behind the facade of a Western-style democracy. They combined their political ambitions with acquiring the control of vast amounts of private property denied to them by Ceauescu. Political institutions were given a facelift, as in the case of the intelligence services which became a crucial power-base for the ruling Social Democratic Party (PSD). The state continued to be used to serve narrow private interests.Replacing the communist dynasty of the Ceauescus, there is now an oligarchy drawn from the PSD and its satellites in the bureaucracy, major industries, and the intelligence world which grew wealthy through insider privatisation and the looting of the country's banks. Romania is now at a crucial turning-point. In 2004 the mobilisation of civil society contributed to the narrow victory of Traian B sescu in presidential elections. It is unclear whether he can win control over the key levers of state necessary to stem the corruption and abuse of power which have blighted Romania's hopes of breaking free from its communist-era legacy. The PSD is now led by Mircea Geoana, the son of a general in Ceauescu's Securitate. He has recruited a string of Western politicians to block pressure for meaningful change from Brussels and to ensure that accession to the EU occurs without serious reform. ... Read more

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this book looks like communist propagand
This book has the quality of allying itself with the correct view of the time, namely, an uniform, undifferentiated, black and white propaganda about the WW2 strikingly similar in fact with the Communist propaganda about that period.
In fact Marshal Ion Antonescu is a Romanian hero, who fought for Eastern Romanian territories Basarabia and Bucovina stolen by the Bolshevik power in agreement withNazis. His engagement in WW2 was very particular, very complex pertaining to the conditions of the time, when Romania was basically threaten to disappear from the map by Nazis to the West and the Bolsheviks to the East.Ardealul, a Romanian land was also stolen by the Horty through Viena Dictat in the conditions of a coward, irresponsible rulling of King Carol who was overthrown by Marshal Antonescu. With these Romanian territories ripped off from the country and the internal tensions caused by an irresponsible monarchy, Marshal Antonescu fought for Romania's independence. He DID NOT allow the country to be governed by Nazi political extremist views. Although an official dictatorship, the Romanian regimen was open to the opinions and consultations with the leaders of democratic parties, King Carol was safely escorted overseas ,King Mickael the offspring of the hated King Carol was protected and his throne was symbolically represented in the Romanian configuration of power, ( (although Michael tried to overthrow Antonescu, taking advantage of internal tensions, Antonescu sent him back to take a confortable seat on his flying thorone), and not ultimately Marshal Antonescu protected minorities, Jews for instance, from extremist political measures imposed by the Nazis.It is a well documented fact that over 300 000 Jews were saved fromHitler's final solution by assigning them white passports in white to ensure them a safe refuge to Romania from Hungary or other countries where their extermination was enforced by the Nazi, or the democratic countries at the time where their plead for refuge was rejected by the democratic leaders at the time. There WAS NO HOLOCAUST in Romania during Marshal Antonescu's ruling. There were labor camps in Transnistria with conditions a lot easier than other the labor camps in democratic countries for instance.
In 1944, Marshal Antonescu was betrayed once more by the one who actually protected, King Michael and delivered to Communists who killed him after a mockery trial. King Michael was decorated by Stalin with the Red Star, and left Romania caring the price of his desertion that last him until about the time of the change of regimen in Romania in 1989. Now he is opportunistically back and poses in a WW2 hero. Funny. He actually is a hero, being decorated by both Nazi and Communists, the only one king in the world of this kind.

Historians who earn their living by doing an honest research and are interested in writing the truth, overlooking the propaganda of this time write a different history faraway from what the "good boys and girls" are allowed to say in our very free (from the burden of truth), open societies.

Ion Antonescu, Hitler and the Holocaust
Hitler's Forgotten Ally, by Dennis Deletant, is a well written and researched book with a copious section of notes, though only one map and no pictures.Its chapters consist of: Prelude to Antonescu's war; Antonescu's Path to power; Antonescu and the National Legionary State; military dictatorship and war; Antonescu and the Jews; Antonescu and the Holocaust; deportation; Transnistria: the fate of the Jews and Romas; suspension of deportation, repatration and emigration of Jews; the coup of 23 August 1944; the trail of Ion Antonescu; conclusion.Deletant did an excellent job of presenting a balanced account of Ion Antonescu's regime while focusing upon two major aspects of Antonescu's reign: his reasons for allying with Hitler and his treatment of Romanian Jews.Hitler's Forgotten Ally is, to a large degree, also a book about Romania's and Antonescu's part in the Holocaust.Though the war, by which Antonescu crusaded to reestablish the state of Greater Romania, consumed his entire reign, Deletant does not address the actual military operations of the Romanian Army, only in the most general terms.Two dry, but thorough books, that can bridge this gap are Reluctant Axis and The Romanian Army of World War 2.More so than these works, however, Hitler's Forgotten Ally, though quite detailed, also manages to be a captivating and enjoyable read (through the use of general outlines, personal anecdotes and descriptive detail), especially if you are interested in political history and the complexity of state policies.One aspect of the book I enjoyed was how Deletant used experts from the council's minutes to voice the actual opinions of Antonescu and his ministers as it related to the topic Deletant was addressing.Deletant does an excellent job of capturing the difficult choices facing any leader of Romania, the personality of Antonescu, his leadership style and Romania's role in the Holocaust.Deletant also examines the various views subsequent generations have taken on Ion Antonescu.Though Romania was the third largest contributor of troops to the Axis power and the fourth for the Allies later in the war, there is a dearth of books on Romania or its leader, so it is a great pleasure to have such a book as Hitler's Forgotten Ally to fill this void. ... Read more

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This up-to-date collection analyzes Romania's experiences of the transition form the harsh realities of the Ceausescu dictatorship to the uncertainties of the efforts to consolidate democracy and introduce a market economy. This volume focuses on Romania's progress in coming to terms with the legacy of its communist past, the realities of pluralism, the introduction of a market economy, and the challenge of European integration.
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In the post-communist era it has become evident that the emerging democracies in Eastern Europe will be determined by many factors, only some of them political.Throughout the region, the Orthodox, Roman Catholic, and Greek Catholic churches have tried to impose their views on democracy through direct political engagement.Moreover, surveys show that the churches (and the army) enjoy more popular confidence than elected political bodies such as parliaments.These results reflect widespread disenchantment with a democratization process that has allowed politicians to advance their own agendas rather than work to solve the urgent socio-economic problems these countries face.In this penetrating study, Lavinia Stan and Lucian Turcescu investigate the interaction of religion and politics in one such country, Romania.Facing internal challenges and external competitions from other religions old and new, the Orthodox Church in Romania has sought to consolidate its position and ensure Romania's version of democracy recognizes its privileged position of "national Church", enforcing the Church's stances on issues such as homosexuality and abortion.The post-communist state and political elite in turn rely on the Church for compliance with educational and cultural policies and to quell the insistent demands of the Hungarian minority for autonomy.
Stan and Turcescu examine the complex relationship between church and state in this new Romania, providing analysis in key areas: church collaboration with communist authorities, post-communist electoral politics, nationalism and ethno-politics, restitution of Greek Catholic property, religious education, and sexual behavior and reproduction.As the first scholars to be given access to confidential materials from the archives of the communist political police, the notorious Securitate, Stan and Turcescu also examine church archives, legislation, news reports, and interviews with politicians and church leaders. This study will move the debate from common analyses of nationalism in isolation to more comprehensive investigations which consider the impact of religious actors on a multitude of other issues relevant to the political and social life of the country. ... Read more

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Great Introduction
As a student of international relations with a specialization in Eastern Europe and the Balkans, I greatly enjoyed this book.Religion is an important factor in much of international relations, especially the Balkans, and this book admits and embraces that fact.

It exists as what I hope is merely an introduction.Each chapter could one day be expanded into larger work on individual topics like religious influence on sexual policies, religious minorities (like Greek Catholics) in Romania, etc.For a country as large as Romania, it often gets ignored for study of Yugoslavia and Kosovo by scholars in the modern era.While both authors are of Romanian background, they take a balanced view, admitting when things are detrimental, but also noting when American scholarship may be biased towards strict separation of church and state that may not be applicable everywhere in the world.

For anybody interested in religion in politics, the Balkans, or Romania in particular, this book is a great introduction to the modern era. ... Read more

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This book addresses the form and nature of the transition Romania has undergone since the fall of the Ceausescu regime in 1989. The reconstruction of Romania has taken place not only within the context of the legacy of state socialism, but within an even greater context of general historical, political social and economic legacies. Some of the problems Romania has encountered during this progression are its system of social stratification, economic development and the struggle to create a solid national identity.