Biden, in Romania, Urges Eastern Europe to Aid Democracy. Vice President of US Joe Biden talks about Georgia from Romania at this time. He calls the Western European countries to be more involved in fight for stability of Georgia, Ukraine and Moldova. The New York Times reported today.
BUCHAREST, Romania - Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. used a visit to Romania on Thursday to hail Eastern Europe on all that has been accomplished in the 20 years since the Iron Curtain fell and to challenge the countries of the region to serve as models for other emerging democracies. Joseph R. Biden Jr. In a speech at the restored Central University Library, where a raging fire set during Romania's 1989 revolution destroyed 500,000 books, Mr. Biden paid tribute to "freedom's young defenders" who were killed and called the liberation of the old Eastern bloc "one of the greatest achievements in modern history." "Twenty years ago, the world watched in awe and admiration as the men and women throughout this region broke the shackles of repression and emerged a free people," Mr. Biden said in the auditorium of the rebuilt library. Now, he said, Romania and its neighbors must help countries like Armenia and Azerbaijan develop their own democracies. "You've delivered on the promise of your revolution," he said. "You are now in a position to help others do the same." Mr. Biden's stop here came in the middle of a three-day swing through the region aimed mainly at reassuring Eastern European allies that the Obama administration stood behind them despite efforts to "reset" relations with Russia. As he did in Warsaw, Mr. Biden denied that the decision to cancel former President George W. Bush's missile defense system in Eastern Europe was made to appease Moscow. Romanian leaders expressed relief at Mr. Biden's repeated security guarantees, but no move was made to site elements of President Obama's reformulated missile defense system here as is being done in Poland. After finishing his meetings in Bucharest, Mr. Biden plans to fly to the Czech Republic, which, like Poland, was to host the Bush system and was shaken by Mr. Obama's decision last month. While Mr. Biden praised Romania's "thriving democracy," he made no mention of the fact that its government fell just last week after a vote of no confidence in Parliament. When the vice president sat down in Victoria Palace with Prime Minister Emil Boc, he was speaking with a caretaker leader amid disputes over
who should take over. Mr. Biden picked Romania as the venue for his signature speech in part because his longtime adviser, Mark Gitenstein, is now ambassador here. Mr. Biden stayed at the ambassador's residence on Wednesday night. The vice president's advisers said he wanted to use the trip to mark the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall and the cascading revolutions that freed Warsaw Pact nations in 1989, but also to make the point that the relationship has changed from one of dependence to one of partners. All three of the nations on his itinerary this week are now members of NATO.
"You were present at the creation of a new Europe, a new security, a new era of peace because you were bold enough to seize that moment," Mr. Biden told an audience of over 200 university students at the Bucharest library. "Be like those in '89. Be bold. Exercise your leadership. You have a history and you have a tradition. You can make a gigantic difference, and we'll stand with you."