Published 27 November 2024 at 14.38
Foreign. Nationalist Calin Georgescu's unexpected victory in the first round of Romania's presidential election has sparked concern in the EU and NATO. Now the country's liberals are blaming the election results on Putin.
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Georgescu, who is considered to have a pro-Russian stance and is critical of the EU and NATO, received 22.9 percent of the vote and now moves on to a decisive run-off on December 8.
Liberal Elena Lasconi, who finished second with 19.2 percent, is also moving on, calling on Romanians to try to prevent the country is “falling back under the influence of Russia”.
Other liberals claim that it must be Putin who is behind the success of Calin Georgescu.
– The result is part of Russia's hybrid war against European democracy , said Siegfried Mureșan, a Romanian MEP, according to Politico.
Georgescu, who has a strong presence on Tiktok, has described Vladimir Putin as a “man who loves his country” and expressed skepticism about the US missile defense systems in Romania.
Romania has previously been seen as a reliable EU and NATO ally, particularly in support of Ukraine, with strategic facilities such as the Mihail Kogălniceanu base on the Black Sea. But if Georgescu wins, this could change radically, threatening EU unity and NATO's strategy in the region.
The election results reflect growing frustration among Romanians with corruption and political inefficiency, phenomena that Georgescu has promised to tackle. After his victory in the first round, he has already received the support of right-wing politician George Simion. If Simion's voters switch to Georgescu in the second round, he could reach 36.8 percent, which would give him a real chance to win.