THE IMPOSSIBLE INDEPENDENCE:
ASPECTS OF ROMANIAN FOREIGN POLICY
IN THE COMMUNIST PERIOD

Abstract:

If one takes into account Romania’s communist regime from an internal perspective, he, or she, will not identify substantial elements to singularize it among the other communist regimes. From this point of view, Romanian communism experienced basically the same evolutions and transformations which occurred within the whole “socialist camp”. But when the topic is examined through the prism of its foreign relations and international postures, communist Romania becomes really interesting. The present essay proposes a synoptic analysis of Romania’s foreign policy during 1948 and 1989, pinpointing the major international events that influenced it and the regime’s response towards them.

Keywords:

communism, foreign policy, opportunities, calculated dissidence, pragmatism