March 13, Wednesday
07:30 pm - Early arrival reception and dinner

March 14, Thursday
10:00 am - 04:30 pm^* - Lobby Day - Appointments with members of House and Senate and staff
07:30 pm - Dinner "How the Government of Romania is Constituted"

March 15, Friday
09:00 am - Welcome: Armand Scala, Archbishop Nathaniel Popp, Mark Meyer, Esq.
10:30 am - Panel: Economic and Political Environment in Romania - Charles King, Ph.D.; Vladimir Tismaneanu, Ph.D.^**
11:30 pm - Panel: Agency for International Development Director and NGO's - "Helping Romania"
12:30 pm - Lunch - Guest Speaker, Paul Goble, Sr. Advisor to the Director of Voice of America
02:00 pm - Panel - NATO - Bruce Jackson, Chairman, US Committee on NATO Enlargement (other members to be announced)
03:00 pm - White House Representative, Walter Andrusyszyn, Director for European and Eurasian Affairs - National Security Council
04:00 pm - Panel: "Business Successes in Romania" - areas: Information Technology, Manufacturing, Engineering, Import/Export
07:00 pm - Dinner with Ambassadors Sorin Ducaru, James Rosapepe, Al Moses, John Davis, Roger Kirk^**

March 16, Saturday
09:00 am - "NATO - What you can do to help in your State/Community"
10:15 am - CORA Business Meeting

* Your reservation for the conference is required before March 1^st in order for CORA to make your appointments with legislators and their staff.
** Awaiting confirmation of participation

Most of the meetings and the dinner on Friday night will be held at the facilities of the St. Luke Orthodox Church, 6801 Georgetown Pike, McLean, VA. The church is located approximately 7 minutes from the Staybridge Suites Hotel, also in McLean, VA. McLean is approximately 20-25 minutes from Ronald Reagan National Airport, Dulles International Airport and downtown Washington. The Baltimore-Washington International Airport is a 50 minute ride from McLean. Just across the Potomac River from McLean are Rockville/Bethesda areas of the state of Maryland. Vienna, VA is 20 minutes from McLean; Arlington 20-40 minutes; Falls Church, 20 minutes; Fairfax 20-44 minutes and Alexandria, 30 minutes. The closest subway station, West Falls Church Metro Stop is located just 15 minutes by car. The Staybridge Suites Hotel is brand new, opening its doors in September of 2001. It is in the center of McLean, and conveniently located in the business/shopping area of the town. Studio rooms for CORA participants are $99.00 per night and can accommodate four persons (although two are recommended). The one bedroom suite is also available at the CORA rate of $99.00 per night and will accommodate up to 6 people (3 are recommended if you do not wish to share beds). The two bedroom CORA rate is $159.00 per night with tight accommodations for eight people (again sharing beds), thus we recommend no more then five people. This suite provides two full bathrooms. All suites include kitchens. All room rates include breakfast.

Although CORA rates are guaranteed, there is no guarantee on the availability of rooms, so you must reserve early. Rooms will be available on a first come, first serve basis.

Other hotels may include:

Hilton Hotel: (703) 874-5000
Holiday Inn: (800) 465-4329
Embassy Suites: (703) 883-0707
Ritz Carlton: (703) 506-4300
Courtyard by Marriott: (800) 321-2211

Eight minutes from the hotel is Tyson's Corner, once the largest shopping mall in the US. Now two malls across the street from each other comprise this large shopping area.

The metropolitan Washington area is not noted for its public transportation. Although we will try to provide some shuttle service from Staybridge to the meetings and back, you may wish to rent a car.

No further extensions will be granted for those seeking return of property taken by the communists. The process is not uncomplicated and there are no guarantees. In most cases, the likelihood of property return is dim.

The Romanian Embassy in Washington has prepared a form to help ease the process. To obtain the form and directions for application, go to the Embassy web page at: www.roembus.org. On the first page, click on the icon of a house (top right corner) and follow directions to "annex 1". The notification has to be registered with the local court executor, at the place where the property is located (Embassy of Romania, Press Release dated 11/14/01).

You will find an informative article on Romania's restitution process written by CORA's Vice President,. Mark Meyer. For this article, go to the "Herzfeld and Rubin" link on our website.

On January 9, 2002, a panel of two analysts, Jeffrey Simon with the National Defense University (e-mail: simonj@ndu.edu) and Chris Donnelly from NATO Headquarters (Brussels), spoke at the Woodrow Wilson Institute about what has happened since the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland became NATO members. Although some of the points they made can be used to support a position of non-expansion others support CORA's view that NATO should expand this year, and should include Romania in its expansion.

Without specifying the speaker, these points made were:

• Since obtaining membership, the influence over the three countries by other NATO members has significantly decreased.
• The other nine candidates generally are weaker than the three newest members.
• Military considerations blur rapid expansion.
• The door to NATO membership is open, but it is on a rapidly moving train.
• NATO has not been, and is not now, prepared administratively to handle the inclusion of the three new members, but this should not keep NATO from expansion now.
• Political considerations favor a robust enlargement of NATO
• The US is the leader, and has the most influence, in expanding NATO. Germany is a concern with regard to that end.
• If the "Membership Action Plan" (MAP) (the measuring system being applied to determine qualification for membership) results in dividing the nations in that part of the world, it is contrary to NATO objectives.

Since the end of the "cold war", NATO has viewed its future in a free and whole Europe, without dividing lines. According to Simon, if the current "Membership Action Plan" is strictly applied, a line in Europe would be drawn because new members would not qualify. This would defeat NATO's goal of inclusion

Chris Donnelly stated his personal view unofficially, that NATO's purpose has, in fact, changed. NATO, formerly a defense alliance, is moving quickly to become a security alliance. Because of the events of September 11^th, CORA feels the alliance must be expanded this year. Over the years, CORA has maintained that the security issue is a compelling reason for enlarging NATO, voicing concern over the extremists among the Moslem population, as well as possible future problems with China, both posing the greatest threats to US freedom, security and economy. In virtually every forum since 1994, CORA has verbalized this fear in pressing for NATO enlargement.

It appears that the "fast track" new members to NATO might include Estonia (pop.1.5m), Latvia (pop. 2.65m), Lithuania (pop. 3.6m), Slovakia (pop. 5.6m) and Slovenia (pop. 2m). The collective population of these 5 countries is 15.3 million, less than half the population of Poland, one of the newest members. It is CORA's position that if only these 5 countries are invited, the US Administration would be settling for tokenism from its allies. The US must succeed in obtaining the approval of other NATO members to include Bulgaria (pop. 8m) and Romania (pop. 23m).

Apart from the population issue, there are additional solid reasons for the inclusion of Romania in NATO and for the invitation to be extended in November. A recent interview with Ambassador Guest suggests one road Romania must take to qualify. (See report on CORA's meeting with Ambassador Guest).

There is a sense that the US Administration favors NATO enlargement. Convincing the US Senate to support all seven countries is a problem. More to come...

Unlike the situation in most, if not all, advanced democratic countries, US Ambassadors are selected from among the ranks of career Foreign Service officers and others, mostly from outside of government, who are deemed qualified to fulfill such a role. In most Administrations, the mix of Ambassadors is usually somewhere around two-thirds career, one-third non-career. Among the nearly 200 US Embassies and other diplomatic Missions abroad, some are almost always awarded to non-career envoys (e.g., London, Paris, Rome, Tokyo, Copenhagen, etc.). Others, usually the most unsafe and unhealthful, isolated, least developed, etc., almost always go to career diplomats (e.g., most of Africa, some Middle Eastern and Latin American posts). The rest are headed sometimes by career diplomats, sometimes by non-career Ambassadors (e.g., Moscow, Athens, Warsaw, Bucharest, Tel Aviv, etc.). In such cases, it can be assumed that there is dialogue between the State Department and White House on the various candidates, their qualifications, and any special factors in the relationship with the country or at the Embassy that may make it advisable to choose a particular career diplomat or a non-career person for the post.

The US Ambassador in any country is the President's representative and senior US official there. In that capacity, he or she has many well-known responsibilities, such as conducting day-to-day diplomatic relations with the host government; promoting US trade and investment; protecting the lives, property and legitimate economic interests of US citizens; advancing human rights and democratic practices (where necessary):; explaining US policies, society, and culture to the host government and local population; etc. Less well known is the Ambassador's responsibility for the Embassy as an institution and for its employees. Embassies are complex organizations comprising numerous US Government agencies and frequently changing American staff. In the case of Bucharest, for example, the Ambassador is responsible for the health, safety and professional welfare of over 400 people (and their families), both Americans and Romanians. Lives and careers are at stake. Although the DCM plays an important role in the management of the Embassy, it is ultimately the Ambassador's responsibility to see that it all works well, and in accordance with US law and regulations.

For the last 6 years, two political appointees served as Ambassador to Romania, All Moses, and recently James Rosapepe. Both of these gentlemen are accomplished and both brought their particular talents to the job of Ambassador to Romania.

Two Romanian Americans were among the candidates seriously considered for the position of US Ambassador to Romania, Lia Roberts of Las Vegas, Nevada and Georgeta Washington, of Cleveland, Ohio.

Lia Roberts has made enormous leadership and other contributions to the Republican party on the local, state and national levels. Georgie Washington is the current National President of the Union & League of Romanian Societies of America, Inc., the oldest and largest fraternal organization of Romanian Americans outside of Romania. We are proud of both of them and applaud their accomplishments.

Ambassador Ducaru was born in Baia-Mare, Romania in 1964. Prior to his appointment as Ambassador, he served as the Permanent Representative of Romania to the United Nations in New York. During the period 1998-2000 he was the Minister Counselor, Deputy Chief of Mission at the Romanian Embassy in Washington, DC. From 1996-97 he was the Head of the Division for NATO, WEU and Strategic Issues. In 1995-96 he served as Director of the Minister's office and Spokesman. He was Counselor to the Minister from 1994-95 and from 1993-94 he was an Expert in the Policy Planning Division on Euro-Atlantic Integration Issues.

Ambassador Ducaru graduated with an MA in International Relations in 1993 from the Amsterdam School of International Relations, University of Amsterdam; graduated from the Romanian National School of Political Science and Public Administration, Department of International Relations; and received a Master in Sciences in Applied Electronics from the Faculty of Electronics, Polytechnic Institute Bucharest in 1988.

If the new Romanian ambassador ever called President Bush a cowboy, he would mean it as a compliment.

Unlike Mr. Bush's European critics who think a cowboy is a reckless, dangerous American, Ambassador Sorin Ducaru remembers when the word reflected a rugged, freedom-loving image - a Frederick Remington figure riding a bucking bronco, a Gene Autry singing on the prairie, a Gary Cooper facing outlaws at high noon.

In the ambassador's residence, Mr. Ducaru proudly displays a photograph of himself as a teen-ager wearing a cowboy hat. The photo was taken when Romanians lived under a brutal communist dictatorship.

That shows how much the American dream meant to a bunch of kids playing cowboy in the Romanian mountains, he told Embassy Row.

Mr. Ducaru also bought an acoustic guitar and played country and western music. Kenny Rogers remains one of his favorite singers. He also loves American jazz.

When the ambassador presented his credentials to Mr. Bush, he referred to what the American West meant to an Eastern European boy.

I represent a country of Europe, blessed by God with natural resources and beauty, as well as the talent and kindness of its people, a nation of Latin identity and culture, which shares the values and ideals of Western democracies, a people with an overwhelming pro-American feeling, inspired by the American dream and success, he said.

As for myself, this moment is a dream come true - a dream from the time of childhood when I was fascinated by my readings about the United States, inspired by the American spirit of frontierless possibilities based on ambition and hard work and was proudly wearing a cowboy hat.

Mr. Bush praised Romania's progress toward a free-market democracy and its peacekeeping role in the Balkans. Despite a tumultuous past and tremendous suffering under communism, Romania has come a long way during the past 10 years, he said.

Mr. Bush called relations with Romania one of the cornerstones of US policy in southeast Europe.

Mr. Ducaru, 37, is the youngest foreign ambassador in Washington. He most recently served as Romania's ambassador to the United Nations.

"The Washington Times", "Embassy Row", James Morrison, July 10, 2001

Michael E. Guest has been appointed Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the United States of America to Romania. As a career member of the Senior Foreign Service, he served as the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of Legislative Affairs. From 1996 to 1999, he served as Deputy Chief of Mission in Prague. Guest has held several posts in Washington, including as Deputy Executive Secretary of the Department of State and Political-Military Officer in the Office of European Security and Political Affairs and has completed overseas assignments in Paris, Moscow and Hong Kong.

Originally from South Carolina, Ambassador Guest is a graduate of Furman University and received a Masters degree from the University of Virginia.

On January 10, 2002, CORA Representatives Richard Buta, Catherine Fort, Elena Lazăr, Dr. Peter Nicholson and Armand Scala met with the Ambassador and Romania Country Officer, Don Sheehan, at the Department of State.

Following introductions and cordial remarks by the Ambassador and Mr. Scala, Mr. Scala asked the Ambassador to talk about his experience in Romania and to provide a brief analysis of his first 3-1/2 months in Romania. During the meeting, the Ambassador made the following points:

• His impressions of Romania are more positive than initially expected.
• He feels he has a good strong working relationship with both the President and the Prime Minister.
• He sees the Romanians as having made real progress in the last 6 months of the first year of this administration, acknowledging the first 6 months were necessary for organization and evaluation.
• He feels that the energy sector needs foreign investment now, and US firms are being encouraged to participate.
• He advises US businesses that there are opportunities in Romania, but warns that they must be careful and resourceful.
• With regard to problems in Romania, he includes the following:
  • Corruption
  • Lack of transparency across the board
  • Rule of law reflects inconsistencies and abuse
• He feels that Romania's government must not only regard its natural geographic/strategic location to make it an acceptable candidate for NATO membership, but must achieve a continuous list of accomplishments in overcoming its country's problems.

Going to Romania? - Read ahead or take along Anne Coe Heyniger's 107 page paperback, Parting the Curtain: An American Teacher in Post Communist Romania ($10).

Anne Coe Heyniger's book is described as a personal memoir of her seven years of living and working in postcommunist Romania. She worked as an English teacher at a university in Timişoara and writes about her students, her colleagues, her friends and her travels in Romania. She is a skillful writer, whose insights and observations tell a compelling story. She hopes her book will motivate other Americans to go to Romania, teach and share the American personality with the people there.

Author Frederick Quinn, in an editorial review, writes It is an elegantly written work, a true picture of time and place by a talented writer and sensitive observer. Customer reviews rate her book as a 5 out of 5 stars.

Ms. Heyniger was born and raised in Washington, DC, graduated from Bryn Mawr College (1956), lived in Jordan, Holland, Congo and Tanzania as the wife of a US. Foreign Service Officer and, as a single parent, raised three children while working for several nonprofit organizations in Washington, DC. She also volunteered in inner city ministry.

To order Ms. Heyniger's book, send a check for $10, payable to Anne Coe Heyniger and mail to: Ms. Anne Coe Heyniger, 1720 S Street., NW, Washington, DC 20009. Shipping costs are included in the price of the book.

Why are Americans so united? They don't resemble one another even if you paint them! They speak all the languages of the world and form an astonishing mixture of civilizations. Some of them are nearly extinct, others are incompatible with one another, and in matters of religious beliefs, not even God can count how many they are.

Still, the American tragedy turned three hundred million people into a hand put on the heart. Nobody rushed to accuse the White House, the army, the secret services that they are only a bunch of losers. Nobody rushed to empty their bank accounts. Nobody rushed on the streets nearby to gape about. The Americans volunteered to donate blood and to give a helping hand.

After the first moments of panic, they raised the flag on the smoking ruins, putting on T-shirts, caps and ties in the colors of the national flag. They placed flags on buildings and cars as if in every place and on every car a minister or the president was passing. On every occasion they started singing their traditional song: God Bless America.

Silent as a rock, I watched the charity concert broadcast on Saturday once, twice, three times, on different TV channels. There were Clint Eastwood, Willie Nelson, Robert de Niro, Julia Roberts, Cassius Clay, Jack Nicholson, Bruce Springsteen, Silvester Stalone, James Wood, and many others whom no film or producers could ever bring together. The American's solidarity spirit turned them into a choir. Actually, choir is not the word.

What you could hear was the heavy artillery of the American soul. What neither George W. Bush, nor Bill Clinton, nor Colin Powell could say without facing the risk of stumbling over words and sounds, was being heard in a great and unmistakable way in this charity concert. I don't know how it happened that all this obsessive singing of America didn't sound croaky, nationalist, or ostentatious! It made you green with envy because you weren't able to sing for your country without running the risk of being considered chauvinist, ridiculous, or suspected of who-know-what mean interests.

I watched the live broadcast and the rerun of its rerun for hours listening to the story of the guy who went down one hundred floors with a woman in a wheelchair without knowing who she was, or of the Californian hockey player, who fought with the terrorists and prevented the plane from hitting a target that would have killed other hundreds or thousands of people. Imperceptibly, with every word and musical note, the memory of some turned into a modern myth of tragic heroes. And with every phone call, millions and millions of dollars were put in a collection aimed at rewarding, not a man or a family, but a spirit which nothing can buy.

What on earth can unite the Americans in such a way! Their land? Their galloping history? Their economic power? Money? I tried for hours to find an answer, humming songs and murmuring phrases which risk sounding like commonplaces. I thought things over, but I reached only one conclusion.

Only freedom can work such miracles!

"Evenimentul Zilei", Cornel Nistorescu, September 12, 2001

On the occasion of their US annual meeting in Washington, DC this year, CORA took the opportunity to introduce itself to the SRS delegates. Our thanks to Dr. Radu R. Florescu, Director of the East European Research Center, Boston College, and CORA Board Member, for providing information about the Society for Romanian Studies.

The Society for Romanian Studies is now over 25 years old. It was founded in the mid seventies to give an opportunity to American specialists and the academic community, interested in furthering their interests and research on Romania, to meet and exchange papers and ideas at, at least, one major conference in the US and Romania or Europe.

The Society elects a President for a three year period (present incumbent, Jim Augerot, Department of Slavic University of Washington); a Secretary/Treasurer who is permanent (Paul Michelson, Huntington College) who is traditionally the editor of our Quarterly Newsletter, and a Committee of five, with the President sitting for one year after the termination of his tenure. Dr. Florescu was the second President of the Society - no one serves more than one term.

The home of the Society is the College or University connected with the President. Funds are drawn from membership dues, donations or other financial support from outside.

Traditionally, major conferences and business meetings are held at the location or University selected by the American Association for the Advancement of Slavic Studies (AAASS), the largest American organization for the promotion of East European Studies. Mini-conferences however, are held at other locations during the course of the year, depending on the decision of the Board and the President. Such was the conference organized at the Romanian Embassy some years ago which focused on business studies, when we had the pleasure of CORA's collaboration.

Two years ago, the members of SRS had the opportunity of joining a broader organization: The South East European Studies Association which included members of the Society for Bulgarian Studies, The Society for Albanian Studies, Croatian, Slovenian, Serbian and Greek Studies, for the purpose of mixed discussion panels for the whole area of SE Europe. SESSA has its own yearly conference which usually coincides with the meeting of AAASS. Its raison d'être was the reluctance of some of our members to accept the word Slavic, which traditionally has been linked to the major organization.

When our conference moves to Washington, DC, we are often hosted and entertained at the Romanian Embassy, as are other organizations. It is indeed customary for the Cultural Attaches of the respective Embassies to attend our conferences as do representatives of the State Department, the CIA and other government representatives. The book exhibit, the Fulbright, IREX, Free Europe, Voice of America, etc., booths are major attractions. Diplomats of the respective countries often participate at our meetings.

It was most gracious on the part of CORA, and its President, Armand A. Scala, to host us at a reception at his home in McLean VA, on the occasion of our last meeting at the Hyatt Hotel.

January 31, 2002, Romanian American Chamber of Commerce Wine Tasting - Romanian Embassy. For Information call (301) 656-9022.