Presidential candidate Călin Georgescu has been arrested by Romanian police and charged with making false statements. The nature of these statements is not known.
He is also accused of anti-Semitism. The charges appear to be designed to prevent Georgescu from standing in the presidential election on 4th of May.
Georgescu shocked the entire EU when he won the first round. Before the second round was held, the entire election was cancelled by the Constitutional Court, on very flimsy grounds. Accusations of Russian interference came from several countries, including Moldova, Romania and Georgia. Brussels considers Georgescu to be «far right» or extreme right-wing.
Former EU Commissioner Thierry Breton was foolish enough to hail the cancellation of the election, raising suspicions that forces outside Romania were pulling the strings.
US Vice President JD Vance referred to the cancellation in his speech at the Munich Security Conference.
– If a democracy crumbles because of a few adverts from Russia, it is not a very durable democracy, Vance said, and EU leaders were provoked. Vance had no business commenting on European affairs.
As Document wrote at the time, there was really a simple explanation for Georgescu winning, because he brilliantly focussed on the concerns of ordinary Romanians directly, which is why he got so many votes. He is anti-EU, anti-NATO and something as shocking as a Romanian nationalist. He put it bluntly: I care more about Romania than about the rest of the world.
Calin Georgescu’s “shock triumph” in Romania has a simple explanation
A new presidential election is due to be held on 4th of May, and Georgescu wanted to take part in the campaign, according to BBC. But the Romanian authorities don’t seem to be taking any chances, and he wasn’t the only one visited by the police.
Romanian police said they had carried out raids in several counties around the country, targeting 27 people as part of a criminal case related to the creation of an organisation «with a fascist, racist or xenophobic character».
Two right-wing populist parties said they mobilised their supporters to go to the prosecutor’s office, where Georgescu was taken in for questioning.
According to Romanian TV station Antena 3, the prosecutor’s office is charging him with several serious offences, including being affiliated with a fascist organisation and promoting what it describes as controversial ideology, writes NTB-AP-DPA.
Georgescu denies all the accusations.
Earlier in February, JD Vance accused Romania of cancelling elections before Christmas based on «flimsy suspicions» from Romanian intelligence and pressure from neighbouring countries.
Romania is an important part of NATO’s eastern flank, and the country is also a member of the EU. Romanian Foreign Minister Emil Hurezeanu accused Elon Musk of a «form of interference» in the Romanian election, after the billionaire posted several messages of support for Georgescu.
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