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Antonescu: I’ll have talks with EPP in June
Crin Antonescu, the resigning president of the National Liberal Party (PNL) declared on Tuesday for Mediafax that talks with European People's Party (EPP) leaders will be held most likely in June in Brussels. The meeting would have an administrative aspect since negotiations had been held before the elections. Antonescu was asked when those talks about PNL’s intention to join EPP were held.
“There was not a specific discussion on a certain day. There are older contacts and talks, a possibility existing within PNL since 2003-2004, but which has accelerated of late. Since 2003 or 2004 we have had a group of party leaders who made a request about that. Those actions reached a deadlock especially during Tariceanu’s time when he was vice-president for international matters, until we found out that Traian Basescu and PD had joined EPP. After that, considering the evolution in Romania, we could not resume actions because of domestic relations. EPP has also become more open lately and discussions resumed. But, practically, they accelerated before, during and after elections,” Antonescu said.
PNL leaders voted the party transfer from ALDE to EPP, said Cristina Pocora, the spokesperson for PNL on Monday.
PNL, available for talks on Right parties merger
Resigning chairman of the National Liberal Party (PNL) Crin Antonescu said Tuesday evening 'there is availability inside PNL for a merger of Right parties.' He believes any merger has its complications, but insists that currently PNL has no appetite for forging a new alliance.
'Alliances, coalitions such as the Justice and Truth (DA), the Democratic Convention of Romania (CDR), the Social Liberal Union (USL) have somehow lost credibility with the Romanian electorate and they are not attractive to the voters. We, at least the PNL, which has just lived out the failure of such alliance, have no big appetite for a new alliance,' said Antonescu.
He also argues that the Right in Romania should be as strong as the Left is.
'The big problem with the Romanian Right is that, while on the left there is a monolith, such monolith has never been in existence on the Right. On the Right there has been only competition, at times even fratricide, but never a party big enough,' added Antonescu.
He voiced hope that the project for the unification of the Right will make 'nice progress in the next 24 hours,' so that the new construction may come into existence in the next two months. He also mentioned the urgency of such an approach, given that the parties will have to brace up for the November presidential election.