New round of Wikileaks cables on Romania: energy sector, political corruption

Several confidential documents concerning Romania have recently appeared on Wikileaks and have made headlines in the Romanian media. According to a Wikileaks cable quoted by news websiteHotnews.ro, EU advisor Onno Simmons “warned that some sources have said that there is an <<understanding>> between <<certain Arab groups>> and the Romanian government: <<Let us do the money landry (in Romania) and we will not attack Romanian targets>>” The telegram is undated but seems to show information from 1996. In another telegram from 2006, also quoted by Hotnews.ro and attributed to Wikileaks, the U.S. Embassy showed that the Romanian energy sector is one of the most manipulated and prone to corruption among the Romanian economy sectors. A Wikileaks telegram quoted by Jurnalul National newspaper shows that Romanian Cernavoda nuclear plant is in trouble, referring to the intervention team consisting in only seven people. Another telegram of the Kiev Embassy from 2007 leaked by Wikileaks say that the Republic of Moldova and Romania may merge in a supra-national structure called Romanova. Most of the wires that were newly published on Wikileaks refer to the corruption within the Romanian political system. A telegram sent by the US Embassy in 2007 refers to the meeting between FBI director Robert Muller and the Romanian President, Traian Basescu. The FBI director is quoted as saying “that sending a few corrupt officials behind bars would improve Romania’s image”. Romanian President Traian Basescu has said that Wikileaks publishing telegrams about Romania would not pose any risks. The U.S. Embassy has said that the US State Department does not comment on materials that might have reached the media, also mentioning they cannot comment on the authenticity of the documents. Wikileaks is an international non-profit organization that publishes secret documents, mostly coming from anonymous sources. Its website, launched in 2006, belongs to The Sunshine Press, founded by Julian Assange. Irina Popescu, irina.popescu@romania-insider.com