In an interview with the BBC, Romania's independent presidential candidate Calin Georgescu denied that his surprise success in the first round of the presidential election was the result of a Russian-backed influence operation and said he was not interested in “lies” of the Romanian intelligence services.
Giorgescu told the BBC that he was not “a man of Moscow” and questioned the war in Ukraine.
Regarding the information presented by the Romanian secret services about the presence of Russian hybrid attacks during the elections in Romania, Georgescu commented: “They cannot accept that the Romanian people have finally said: “we want life you are back, our country, our dignity“.
He presented himself as a fighter against the system, praised Donald Trump and Hungarian President Viktor Orbán, and about Russian President Vladimir Putin he said he was “a patriot and a leader”, but clarified that he was “not a fan”.< /p>
When asked about the war in Ukraine, Georgescu first responded with a question: “Are you sure about that?”, notes BBC journalist Sarah Rainsford and adds that Georgescu seems to deny the very existence of a war in Ukraine. The journalist defines the interview with Georgescu as "irritating" at times.
The presidential candidate said that Romania is only interested in having peace along its border. He declined to comment on whether this should be done on Kyiv's terms.
When asked if he agreed to support Ukraine, as the EU puts it, “for as long as necessary”, Georgescu replied: “No”.
„I only agree that I have to take care of my people. I don't want to involve my people”, he replied, specifying that Romania – a member of the EU and NATO, will no longer provide military or political support to its neighbor.
„Zero. Everything stops. I have only my people to look after. We ourselves have a lot of problems,”, Georgescu pointed out in the BBC interview.
This would be a dramatic change in Bucharest's position, which would be “music to Russian ears”, notes the British media.
The president in Romania has considerable power, including influence in areas such as foreign policy. He is also the commander-in-chief of the armed forces and appoints the prime minister.
Romania shares a long border with Ukraine and is a staunch supporter of Kiev after a full-scale invasion in 2022. Bucharest has provided the Patriot missile defense system, financial support to Kiev and has become a key export route for Ukrainian grain.
If Georgescu is elected president, Romania will join Hungary and Slovakia as Russian sympathizers on NATO's eastern flank, the BBC points out. He refused to define Vladimir Putin's Russia as a threat to the security of the West, the media also notes.