Amb. Adrian Zuckerman(ret): I reject extremism and support Nicusor Dan

Adrian Zuckerman is a Romanian-born American lawyer and former diplomat who served as the United States Ambassador to Romania from 2019 to 2021.

His excellency was born in Bucharest and is still fluent in Romanian. His parents emigrated in USA when he was nine years old, in May 1966. Zuckerman earned a B.S in Life Sciences from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a B.S in Management from the MIT Sloan School of Management and his J.D. from New York Law School in June 1983. Zuckerman act as a lawyer in New York City, before nomination as US ambassador in Romania.

Ambassador Zuckerman focused on a number of issues during this mandate, including fighting corruption, combating human trafficking, strengthening the rule of law and increasing reforms of state-owned businesses. During Zuckerman's tenure in Romania, the two countries signed a 10-year “Roadmap for Defense Cooperation”. Another major project during Ambassador Zuckerman's term was the signing of an agreement to finance and refurbish one nuclear reactor and build two more nuclear reactors at Cernavoda. This $8 billion project, which is financed with up to $7 billion by the United States Export Import Bank, is the largest project ever between the two countries.

Here is the text of the letter published by His Excellency Ambassador Adrian Zuckerman (ret):

My Dear Friends,

I write to you regarding the dire circumstances now facing Romania.  I was born in Romania and was fortunate to escape the evils of the communist regime when, as a child, I emigrated to the United States with my family.  I was given the opportunity to grow up and live in a free and democratic country.  My family survived the Nazis and the Second World War, the legionnaires and the horrific Communist regime.  The fall of the Iron Curtain and the revolution of 1989 was a historic liberating moment for Romania which I never thought I would ever see in my lifetime.  

I subsequently returned to Romania in 2019.  It was the honor of a lifetime when I gratefully accepted President Trump’s nomination to serve as the United States Ambassador to Romania—the homeland of my forefathers. Romania holds a sacred place in my heart. I have unwaveringly strived to advance its democracy, freedom, prosperity and its bilateral relationship with the United States.

Sadly, today we are facing another historic moment - the possibility of an extremist candidate winning the upcoming presidential election on May 18th and reversing all of the progress Romania has made in the last thirty five years.

This extremist candidate is a clear and present danger to democracy, freedom and prosperity. He parrots Putin’s playbook seeking to remove Romania from the European Union, NATO and its Euro-Atlantic relationship and transform it into an authoritarian state like Russia - a new Belarus.

This extremist tries to cloak himself in the anti woke, anti DEI and anti globalist isolationist movement. However, this is but a thin veil to hide Putin’s authoritarian playbook designed to take control of Romania without firing a shot. Romania, along with Poland, is a stalwart defender of Europe’s eastern flank against Russian aggression. It is a prime strategic target for Putin’s Russia in its cyber, hybrid and kinetic acts of war against virtually all European countries.

I urge you not to be misled by this extremist.  I urge you to preserve freedom, democracy and prosperity. In the wake of this extremist’s higher than expected first round electoral returns, many of you started having doubts that Romania can be saved. Don’t have these doubts! Romania can be and must be saved from the abyss.  Romania should not again be forced into abject  poverty, humiliation and isolation. We cannot allow this to happen - we need to stand united, respect each other and continue on the path towards a better future.  Too many have sacrificed too much and have given their lives for Romania’s democracy, freedom and prosperity.

Don’t argue amongst yourselves about who is to blame or why they are to blame for the extremist’s apparent success. None of you is to blame - the extremist is to blame, the Russians are to blame. The extremist will not succeed if we all unite with a single purpose - to save Romania’s freedom and democracy.

The divisive issues that separated the various political candidates from each other are now over.  There is only one candidate now, Nicusor Dan, that needs your support to defeat the extremist. He needs all of your unequivocal and undivided support.  We must unite behind him.

I commend those political parties that have already publicly stated their undivided and unequivocal support for Nicusor Dan.  I urge those remaining non extremist political parties to also unequivocally support Nicusor Dan.  I urge all Romanians, especially its political leaders, to examine their conscience and save Romania’s future. The future of your children, grandchildren and future generations are in your hands.

Do not forget that even today thirty five years after the revolution Romania has still not fully recovered from the damage of fifty years of communist rule. If the extremist is allowed to subjugate Romania to Putin’s authoritarian rule, like Belarus, it will take many generations to get rid of such rule and undo the damage.  Do not pay heed to the extremist and his paid foreign and domestic influencers to steal Romania’s freedom. History will remember you and not judge kindly those Romanians who abandoned democracy in favor of extremism.

I urge you to keep hope alive, keep freedom, democracy and prosperity alive, reject extremism and support Nicusor Dan.

May God bless Romania and each and every one of you.

Amb. Adrian Zuckerman(ret)

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