Romanian president Nicușor Dan held his first press conference at the Cotroceni Palace on Wednesday, June 4, outlining key priorities for his mandate, including upcoming fiscal measures, government formation talks, and the foreign policy agenda for June. 

He announced that the first draft of the future governing program is expected by Monday, June 9, with negotiations on the political agreement to begin immediately. While confirming that all parties have shown openness to joining the government, he clarified that no names have been proposed for the position of prime minister, only scenarios, Euronews Romania reported. 

Dan also said the fiscal deficit is being addressed by a dedicated working group, which will present an initial proposal to political leaders on Thursday. He emphasized a commitment to budget discipline and reassured the business community that the government is approaching economic issues seriously.

On taxation, the president avoided confirming specific measures such as a potential VAT increase but admitted all discussions currently start from that possibility.

Responding to a question about last year’s budget analogy using a pizza, Dan said Romania has long paid for a medium pizza while consuming a large one - a gap that must now be covered. While revenue collection has improved from 26% to around 30% of GDP, public spending has risen even faster, he warned. 

On fiscal evasion, one of Romania’s most pressing issues, Nicușor Dan confirmed it remains a national security issue under the country’s current strategy, with intelligence services mandated to gather information and pass it to tax authorities and prosecutors.

“The intelligence services, since tax evasion is classified as a national security issue in the official state document, must gather information on this problem, and their role should stop at providing that information to the tax authority (ANAF) and prosecutors. A civilian director of the Romanian Intelligence Service (SRI) has this as a primary mission,” the president stated.

Turning to foreign affairs, Nicușor Dan laid out a busy schedule this month, including a visit by the King of Spain on June 10, a trip to Chișinău the same day, participation in a summit in Ukraine shortly after, followed by the NATO summit in The Hague on June 25, and the European Council summit later in the month.

Further on, asked whether Romania could take on part of the cost of US troops stationed in the country, Dan said such discussions have not been formally raised. He acknowledged that a shift in US strategic focus from Europe to Asia is being monitored but ruled out immediate troop relocations.

On ties with Washington, president Dan admitted a moment of mistrust followed the cancellation of Romania’s elections last year, though he believes the episode has been overcome.

“I believe there was a moment of mistrust after the annulment of the elections. A mistrust that was not officially expressed through statements from members of the administration. I think we have moved past that moment. We have several levels of dialogue, with a very important one in the military field. On each level, technical discussions are needed before a high-level visit can take place,” he stated.

Nicușor Dan had a phone call with US president Donald Trump on the evening of May 27, and the main topics of discussion were reportedly regional security, energy, and the situation in Ukraine. Also, during the conversation, Trump invited Dan to the United States, and Dan, in turn, invited the American leader to Romania.

irina.marica@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Inquam Photos / George Călin)