Romania

Introduction to Romania

Romania (formerly also spelled Rumania or Roumania; Romanian: România /ro.mɨ'ni.a/) is a country in Europe. It is bordered by Ukraine and Moldova in the northeast; Hungary and Serbia and Montenegro in the west and Bulgaria to the south along the Danube River. Romania has a stretch of sea coast on the Black Sea and the eastern and southern Carpathian mountains run through its centre. Romania has been a member of NATO since 2004, and is also an acceding country to the European Union. The EU Accession Treaty was signed in early 2005, and Romania is due to join the Union on January 1, 2007.

The Communist dictatorship ended 22 December 1989 (see Romanian Revolution of 1989). During the 1989 revolution (the term "revolution" is contested by many), power was taken by an ad hoc group called the National Salvation Front (FSN), which grouped a number of dissidents with other personalities and (then-unknown) persons that participated in the uprising. The FSN assumed the missions of restoring civil order, taking immediate democratic measures, and organizing elections for a new legislative body. Given the slow pace of reconstruction of the social and democratic system after 45 years of Communism (as emphasised by events such as the Ethnic clashes of Târgu Mureş in March 1990), the largest part of the FSN also constituted itself as a political party that participated in (and won by a large majority) the elections of summer 1990. The move was highly contested by the other emerging political parties, because the FSN controlled most media and therefore the election process was biased. The subsequent disintegration of the FSN, which did not have a clear political platform, produced several political parties including the Democratic Party (PD), which for a time retained the FSN name), the Social Democratic Party (PSD, formerly known as the Romanian Party for Social Democracy (PDSR) or the Democratic National Salvation Front-FDSN), and the Alliance for Romania (APR). Throughout several elections, coalitions, and governments, parties that emerged from the FSN governed or participated in the government of Romania from 1990 to 1996, and then from 2000 until today.

In 1996, the CDR entered power on a "Contract with Romania" platform which would have required the CDR to resign en masse after 200 days from a mixed coalition government. Some members had signed on to the contract programme, while others had not; once in power, the "Contract" was repudiated. The major CDR parties were electorally eviscerated in 2000, and the Social Democrats returned to power, with Ion Iliescu once again president of Romania and Adrian Năstase, the president of the Social-Democratic Party (PSD), as prime minister.

On December 12, 2004, Traian Băsescu was elected president of Romania. He was supported during elections by a coalition, called Justice and Truth Alliance (DA), formed of his Democratic Party and of the National-Liberal Party. The government was formed by a larger coalition which also included the Romanian Humanist Party (now called Conservative Party) and the ethnic Hungarian party UDMR.

Following the end of the Cold War in 1989, Romania developed closer ties with Western Europe, joined NATO in 2004 and became an acceding country to the European Union, being at an advanced stage to join on January 1, 2007. The Treaty of Accession of Romania has been signed by EU member states' representatives in Luxembourg, Abbaye de Neumünster, on April 25, 2005. Ratification of the Romanian and Bulgarian Accession Treaty is ongoing in the parliaments of all member states.

A large part of Romania's borders with Serbia and Bulgaria is formed by the Danube. The Danube is joined by the Prut River, which forms the border with Moldova. The Danube flows into the Black Sea forming the Danube Delta which is a reservation of the Biosphere.


Because many of Romania's borders are defined by natural, sometimes shifting rivers, and because the Danube Delta is constantly expanding towards the sea, about 2-5 linear metres yearly, Romania's surface area has changed over the past few decades, generally increasing. The number has increased from about 237,500 km² in 1969 to 238,391 km² in 2005.

Map of Romania with cities

Romania's terrain is distributed roughly equally among between mountainous, hilly and lowland territories.

Cultural notes about Romania

The Culture of Romania is rich and varied. Like Romanians themselves, it is fundamentally defined as the meeting point of three regions—Central Europe, Eastern Europe and the Balkans—but cannot be fully included in any of them. The Romanian identity formed on a substratum of mixed Roman and quite possibly Dacian elements (although the latter is more controversial), with many other influences. During late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, the major influences came from the Slavic peoples who migrated and settled in nearby Bulgaria, Serbia, Ukraine and eventually Poland and Russia; from medieval Greeks and the Byzantine Empire; from a long domination by the Ottoman Empire; from the Hungarians; and from the Germans living in Transylvania. Modern Romanian culture emerged and developed over roughly the last 250 years under a strong influence from Western culture, particularly French and German culture.

Official Canadian government advisories for travelling to, in and around Romania

Petty crime, such as pickpocketing, purse snatching, and mugging occurs, especially in Bucharest and other urban centres. Tourists are often targeted. Organized groups of thieves operate in train stations and on public transportation. Canadians should be vigilant at all times. Credit card and ATM card fraud has increased. Users should pay careful attention when their cards are being handled by others during payment processing. Do not show signs of affluence. Theft from hotel rooms is common. Passports and other personal belongings should be kept in a hotel safe. Do not walk alone after dark. Do not travel alone in a taxi to remote areas or after dark.

There are reports of police officers stopping foreign cars and demanding payment of fines in hard currency for bogus offences. Other persons pose as plainclothes police officers and ask to verify foreign currency and passports. If stopped, decline to pay fines or to hand over money or passports. Offer instead to go to the nearest police station. For emergency assistance, call 955 for police, 961 for ambulance, or 981 for fire.