National Bank seeking institutional support for recovering Romanian treasure held in Moscow
The National Bank of Romania aims to develop a new strategy to regain the Romanian treasury held by Russia with the help of the government after the end of the current political crisis, according to a statement made by longtime BNR governor Mugur Isărescu on Wednesday, April 29.
Between 1916 and 1917, Romania transferred 91.5 tons of fine gold to Russia after the losses sustained in the First World War against the Central Powers. Once the communist government came to power in 1918, Russia confiscated the gold and never returned it.
Isărescu noted that the loss of the gold treasury is one of the greatest in BNR’s history.
“The Board of Directors of the National Bank proceeded to load the boxes with gold coins onto the train in Iași only after the representative of the Russian Government signed the Romanian-Russian protocol in which he guaranteed ‘the integrity of the valuables to be sent to Russia by the National Bank of Romania both during transport by train and during their storage in Moscow.’ As you know, despite the protocols with the value of an international treaty, the Bolsheviks decided to confiscate the entire Romanian treasure in January 1918,” Isărescu stated, according to Digi24.
He explained that the treasure file was handed to him on his very first day in office, in 1990. The document was compiled in 1922 and passed down by each BNR governor to the next “as a kind of oath.” Isărescu went on to present the case of the treasury internally and externally since 1991.
The issue was largely unknown internationally. “At first, it was work of research, documentation, and publication of documents to reconstruct the historical trajectory of this issue and to preserve its memory. Then, we moved on to addressing the actual issue of recovering the treasure,” the governor said.
The sustained effort led to results. In March 2024, the European Parliament adopted a resolution regarding the return of Romania’s national treasure unlawfully appropriated by Russia.
The governor explained that dialogue with the Russian side has been limited, but that there is some progress. Romania met Russian representatives 5 times in 20 years. During those meetings, Russia officially recognized the existence of obligations related to the treasure. He also said that Russia has previously returned historical artefacts to Romania and Hungary, among others.
However, more coordination is needed, according to the central bank head. “To gain more substance, the National Bank of Romania proposes a new type of institutionalization of this dialogue, which should take into account the ongoing international political changes and the foreseeable prospect of Russia’s return to the field of international law. Of course, Russia today represents a source of concern, of danger, but the country also has a positive history of restitutions,” Isărescu stated.
To ensure institutional coherence, BNR will submit a memorandum to other state bodies regarding the treasury in the coming period.
(Photo source: Inquam Photos|Octav Ganea)
