Embassy Press Release

Remarks Delivered By Ambassador Mark H. Gitenstein On The Occasion Of His First Press Conference With The Romanian Media

September 10, 2009

Ambassador Mark H. Gitenstein offering his remarks on the occasion of his first press conference with the Romanian Media. Bucharest, September 10, 2009 (Photo: Lucian Crusoveanu / Public Diplomacy Office)

- TRANSLATION -

Românã

Bine v-am gasit!

The journey from my home on Capitol Hill in Washington DC in March when Vice President Biden first asked me to consider being U.S. Ambassador to Romania to August 27 when my wife Libby and I stepped off the plane at Otopeni took much longer than I expected. But I can say without equivocation it has been worth the wait.

Bucharest is beautiful and full of energy. Your people are friendly and engaging and I have inherited a brilliant and resourceful staff here at the U.S. Embassy. How could we ask for more?

And today I finally have the opportunity to meet you the Romanian Press! Thank you for coming out today.

It is a great honor for me to be the first Romanian-American appointed to this post, and I look forward to getting to know my ancestral homeland first-hand. I am personally proud that Romania is such a valued partner of the United States, and it is my mission to strengthen and deepen this alliance even further.

Our two nations have many issues of mutual interest and I think that those issues continue to bring us even closer together:

We are both committed members of NATO, working and fighting side-by-side in Afghanistan. Romania is such a trusted NATO ally that the U.S. has done something it very rarely does, and that is put U.S. troops under the command of a foreign nation. In Zabul, Afghanistan U.S. troops are under the command of a Romanian battalion commander, where we are together planning and executing highly successful missions.

As military partners we also train together numerous times every year throughout Romania to increase the skills, capabilities, and interoperability of our airmen, sailors, soldiers, and marines. I look forward to visiting your military facilities to observe first-hand our troops in action training, flying, and working together.

We are both dealing with the on-going global economic crisis. Romania’s economy has benefited from increased U.S. trade and over $10 billion in direct investment in recent years, and we want this trend to continue. However, in this challenging global environment, Romania's ability to attract and keep foreign investors will require continuous efforts to improve competitiveness and to ensure a stable and predictable business environment. This means increased transparency, regulatory reforms, strengthening and enforcing the rule of law, and greater efforts to consult and to partner with the international business community.

We are working together to enhance Romania’s, and Europe’s, energy security by promoting projects which diversify energy sources and transit routes. We also seek to promote greater energy efficiency in our economies and more use of alternative energies.

So please be patient with me as I learn more about the issues and this wonderful country. Libby and I look forward to the next three years here in Romania.

Thank you.

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