Romania President Slates Call to Move Embassy to Jerusalem

Jerusalem Old City. Photo: Abir Sultan/EPA

Romania’s President Klaus Iohannis on Friday condemned the Social Democrat-led government for suggesting that Romania might transfer the country's embassy in Israel to Jerusalem.

Social Democratic Party leader Liviu Dragnea told a talk show on Thursday that the government had begun the formalities to move the embassy to Jerusalem in line with US earlier decision to do so.

“It may seem something not very important,” Dragnea said. “But it has a huge symbolical value ... for a state that has a tremendous influence in the world, a state – Israel – that we’ve had special relations with for many years, a state where we have over 500,000 Romanians, and also [the decision] is highly valued by the US administration,” Dragnea said.

Dragnea insisted that moving the embassy would only be a practical response to the fact that Jerusalem was the de facto seat of the Israeli government, and was a way to show the US that Romania is a reliable ally.

However, Iohannis on Friday complained that he was not consulted about the idea, adding that any such decision must be based on a solid assessment.

“Such a measure cannot be taken without a profound analysis that takes into consideration all the consequences and implications on international politics,” he pointed out.

Iohannis also said that Romania's President is the figure responsible for main foreign policy decisions.

He pointed out that Romania still supports a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict, supports UN Security Council Resolutions on the issue and that its stance remains unchanged.

Romania's Prime Minister Viorica Dancila told journalists on Friday afternoon that the classified document was drafted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and adopted during Wednesday's cabinet meeting.

After the presidency's reaction, however, the Foreign Ministry issued a statement stressing that no plan had been agreed, and it had only launched a process of "assessment and evaluation on the relocation of the embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, which will include consulting all the relevant institutions and actors."

The Israeli newspaper Haaretz said the Israeli Foreign Ministry was awaiting official updates from Bucharest.

The newspaper also said that Romanian Prime Minister Viorica Dancila had submitted the memorandum for cabinet approval.

However, cabinet spokesperson Nelu Barbu told journalists on Wednesday that he hadn’t seen any such document.

Foreign Minister Teodor Melescanu was not in the country to approve the draft, while state secretary George Ciamba, who represented the ministry at the cabinet meeting on Wednesday, told journalists that “he doesn’t want to talk about it.”

A week ago, on April 13, Dancila appointed Herman Berkovits, who has been Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s physician for years, as pro bono adviser. Berkovitz is also Romania’s honorary consul in Israel.

Haaretz said the proposal to relocate the embassy was made following a visit to Bucharest by Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely, who is a member of the centre-right ruling Likud party, where she met Romanian Foreign Minister Teodor Melescanu. Hotovely is also set to visit the Czech Republic.

On Thursday, Netanyahu told a reception for foreign diplomats on Israel's Independence Day that Israel would help the first 10 countries to transfer their embassies to Jerusalem.  

Palestinian Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah urged Romania on Thursday during a meeting with Romanian representative to Palestine Catalin Tirlea not to move its embassy.

Hamdallah’s office stressed that such a move would violate international law and UN resolutions, and undermine the chances of peace and the establishment of a Palestinian state on the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital. 

In December 2017, Palestine's Foreign Ministry summoned Romania's envoy for explanations to clarify statements from Social Democratic Party leader Dragnea in which he supported moving the embassy to Jerusalem.

The European Union, of which Romania is a part, opposes unilateral recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and supports the recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of two states, Israel and Palestine, along the 1967 borders.

Romania abstained during the December 21 vote in the General Assembly on the status of Jerusalem, which overwhelmingly condemned US President Donald Trump for announcing that the US would move its embassy to Jerusalem.

Read more:

Romania Angers Palestinians by Mulling Jerusalem Embassy Move

UN Jerusalem Vote Reveals Split in Balkan States

This article was updated with a statement from of Romania's PM Viorica Dancila and Foreign Ministry's reaction.