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Maior: Instability in the area is not threatening but we will be affected economically
Romania will not be threatened military or in point of territory by the conflict in the area, but will be affected economically, said the SRI director George Maior in an interview for Mediafax. He pointed out that institutions in the strategic field must be politically supported by the political class to cope with these phenomena.
Asked whether Romania will be threatened by Russia, Maior declared: “We will always be affected by these military, geopolitical developments and instability in the area. We will not be threatened in point of territorial and military points of view but we will be affected from the economic, commercial, IT and geopolitical points of view by a phenomenon of instability at the border. We must deal with this matter very seriously, we must be prepared to understand the phenomenon and deal with it properly.”
Maior pointed out that there is a chance of the existence of powerful institutions in the strategic field which can offer the political class a strategic outlook, expertise and action capacities to cope with these phenomena.
“The political class has to respect these institutions and ensure the autonomy strategic evaluation of this evolution and lay at their disposal resources so that they could fulfill their mission,” Maior added.
Asked how he considers the evolution of the political class since Romania’s accession to NATO, Maior answered: “At least it had better understand these challenges of states and community we are part of, in front of strategic evolution.”
2015 likely to begin without data storage law
Romanian Intelligence Service (SRI) Director George Maior expects Romania to enter the year 2015 without a new law on data storage, as the context is a rather intense presidential election.
Referring to the so-called Big Brother Law declared unconstitutional by the Constitutional Court of Romania (CCR), Maior said on Thursday night at TVR1, the state TV station: 'We are waiting for a new law. As the [Constitutional] Court said, it should be drafted within 45 days, but I rhetorically ask myself whether - on a background of an already rather intense election campaign - the Parliament will address national security issues. So let's be serious - it won't. We will probably enter 2015 without this law. The government might consider an emergency ordinance - but I also doubt that - regulating the issue at least in these national security matters. This compels us to use other, more expensive and less efficient means of fulfilling our important mission for national security.'
The intelligence chief pointed out that CCR's ruling on the data storage law has created 'a major vulnerability' owing to 'a complete judiciary void' as regards national security, as Romania is already 'one of the most vulnerable states in the European Union' in terms of legal means.
Maior also claimed that there is no contradiction between individual rights and individual or national security.
'On the contrary, I think the most important human right is the right to life. I am bewildered by people who worked in the law enforcement field, like Mr. [Daniel] Morar [the former chief prosecutor of the National Anticorruption Directorate], now in the Constitutional Court (...) are unable to consider things from this perspective, too,' the SRI Director said.