French president Emmanuel Macron praised Romanian president Klaus Iohannis for the way he has steered his country in the right direction and for not letting Romania follow on the footsteps of Poland and Hungary.

Macron, who presented his one-year report in a TV show on Sunday, also addressed the populist and illiberal trends in some EU countries.

“In Europe, the so called illiberal democracies are on the rise,” Macron said, mentioning the attacks on democracy and justice by political leaders in Poland, Hungary and “some in Romania”.

“I salute the work of the Romanian president who doesn’t let his country get out of hand,” Macron said.

Je pense qu'on peut être démocrate et fort. On peut entendre les colères et avoir le courage de mener ses réformes jusqu'au bout. #MediapartLive #MacronBFMTV pic.twitter.com/yInJsNrkDo

— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) April 15, 2018

editor@romania-insider.com