World News: Bucharest, the European Thorn
- Details
- Category: World News - Europe
- Published on Sunday, 11 May 2025 06:03
- Written by Olivier Longhi
The results of the first round of the Romanian presidential election pave the way for the potential arrival of George Simion, a far-right candidate as head of state, which could be extremely injurious to the European Union.
This is dangerous news for the European Union whose position has been shaken up internationally and is being torn at home. Explanations.
World News: A Francophile’s View of the First 100 Days
The probable arrival of George Simion, a far-right candidate, at the head of Romania is not trivial, especially for the European Union. There are several reasons for this. First of all, although far from Brussels, Bucharest remains the capital of a pivotal state within the eastern part of the European Union.
Bordering Ukraine and Moldova, a buffer country between the two territories and oh so sensitive, Romania also borders Hungary, a country also in delicate relations with the European Union. For the time being, of course, nothing has been ratified, but if the results of the first round of the presidential election were to be confirmed by bringing George Simion as head of state, the European Union would be home to two countries with complicated relations with Brussels. If Viktor Orban's Hungary is clearly hostile to European rules, George Simion's lukewarm Europhilia augurs well for a future fraught with tensions.
World News: China Responds to U.S. Tariffs
Government Crisis
However, at a time when global geopolitics is undergoing a major upheaval due to the arrival of Donald Trump in the White House, the Ukrainian conflict in the process of getting bogged down and Vladimir Putin's inaction, the European Union would have done well without a new stone in its shoe that could weaken its unity and influence on an international scale.
All eyes are therefore turned to Bucharest, which is also suffering from a heavy government crisis, which, without threatening its stability, is throwing its European partners into trouble, who are forbidden and questioning the Carpathian country and Transylvania. Because if it was already difficult to deal with Hungary, it is to be feared that it would also be delicate to negotiate with a potential Romanian far-right government, or another for that matter, not to mention the risk of contagion within the Union.
World News: War or Peace – Netanyahu and Putin Show True Colors
The far right, desperate and growing in many countries of the European Union, would see in this election a new legitimisation of its eurosceptic theses, arguing that identity issues have become essential and priority in a supposedly dehumanised European whole, far from the concerns of European citizens.
As for Romania, on the other hand, it would be more a question of a contestation of the distribution of wealth between prosperous cities and neglected rurality which seems to be at the origin of the rise of the far-right candidate. However, the potential arrival of George Simion at the head of Romania, a country of 19 million inhabitants, should not be underestimated, which remains, despite everything, a heavyweight in Eastern Europe that will have to be reckoned with, among other things, in view of the Ukrainian crisis.
Crime: Identifying and Recovering from Common Scams
Bio: Olivier Longhi has extensive experience in European history. A seasoned journalist with fifteen years of experience, he is currently a professor of history and geography in the Toulouse region of France. He has held a variety of publishing positions, including Head of Agency and Chief of Publishing. A journalist and recognized blogger, editor, and editorial project manager, he has trained and managed editorial teams, worked as a journalist for various local radio stations, was a press and publishing consultant, and was a communications consultant.
