The annual CORA meeting was held in Washington, DC on November 14^th and 15^th, 2003. In attendance were CORA members and U.S. non-governmental organizations working in Romania. His Eminence, Archbishop Nathaniel attended.

Many knowledgeable persons made presentations. In summary, one point became very clear – Romania’s number one focus is qualifying for membership in the European Union. U.S. foreign assistance to Romania continues to reduce, while relations between the two countries have not been better for decades. This was confirmed at the CORA meeting by the special assistant to President Bush who accompanied Mr. Bush to Romania and attended the meeting in the White House with President Iliescu.

Enthusiastic endorsements emphasize the importance of Vladimir Tismăneanu’s path-breaking new book Stalinism for all Seasons: A Political History of Romanian Communism. This book came out in September 2003 from the University of California Press and can be purchased from Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble, Borders and most fine bookstores. Price: $45.00. The book is however on sale 20% if purchased on line at www.barnesandnoble.com.

For more info please see the press release section of this website.

150 Members of Congress Sign Letter to President Bush urging robust increases in foreign assistance for the next fiscal year. Less than 1% of the U.S. budget is spent on foreign aid. This 1% includes support of U.S. Embassies.

CORA is a member of the "Campaign for U.S. Global Leadership", an organization that lobbied for this increase. We encourage you to visit our website and read the letter sent to the President, review the list of those who signed it, and write to thank them. A sample letter of thanks is provided on the website should you wish to write to any of the Congressional members.

The following is taken from a release by Jay Katzen, President and CEO of the Victims of Communism Foundation.

This memorial will commemorate "the tragedy and the terror of communism, which took the lives of 100 million innocent and brave men and women – one hundred million people, whose lives were destroyed simply because they sought the same liberties others too often take for granted – one hundred million lives, snuffed out by the scourge of communism.

It seems incomprehensible, but the courage of those 100 million lives now risks being forgotten. We have high school seniors… who think that Lenin was a Beatle! Tell that to the families of those 100 million who perished at his and Stalin's hands, and who still languish in the prison camps of Castro, and in China and in North Korea. We are very concerned that America's young and not-so-young are aware of communism's atrocities and that the tragedy of that tyranny could well be forgotten by future generations.

Our Foundation... has been formed to build a Victims of Communism Memorial Monument in Washington, DC. Commissioned by an Act of Congress, signed by the President, the Memorial Monument will commemorate those who suffered and perished, will honor those who successfully resisted communist tyranny, will educate current and future generations about the winning of the Cold War, and will document communism's crimes against humanity.

We have decided to proceed with an online virtual museum, rather than a bricks-and-mortar facility at this time. We already have input for the online museum from museums in Berlin, Riga, and Budapest, which will augment our own "exhibits," which will feature the testimony of survivors of communism, documentation of communism's crimes against humanity, and tributes to those who helped win the Cold War.

The National Park Service is in the process of assigning land for our Monument, and we are well along in producing an online virtual museum. In order to dedicate our Monument in October 2004, we need to raise $225,000" ($25,000 from the Romanian-American community). "We have good reason to believe that a single donor will match that amount, dollar-for-dollar. We are receiving significant help from foundations and private donors, from corporation and from governments."

"…all can help assure that the memory of communism’s 100 million dead is not erased. Will we really have won the Cold War if its victims are forgotten? No, those who suffered, whose lives and liberty were extinguished will be remembered” through the monument.

The Foundation is looking for a $25,000 contribution from the Romanian-American community. The total required is $225,000, a figure that will be matched. Therefore our $25,000 would be doubled by others, non-ethnics primarily, for whom the Memorial is important.

Jay Katzen, President of the Foundation, has contacted the following Romanian-American leaders who embrace the concept and who will attempt to raise this money:

• Bishop Michael Botean, Byzantine Catholic Diocese - OH
• Rev. Pastor D. Brangei, Baptist Church – CA
• Rev. Pastor T. Cocian, Baptist Church – GA
• Octavian Cojan, Romanian American Committee of Illinois
• Simon Drăgan, Romanian Orthodox Archdiocese
• Rev. Pastor Lazăr Gog, Pentecostal Church – CA
• David Kahan, Romanian American Jewish Community
• John Lazău, Honorary Consul of Romania – GA
• Mark Meyer, Esq., Romanian American Chamber of Commerce
• Archbishop Nathaniel Popp, Romanian Orthodox Episcopate of America
• Lia Roberts, President, Doina Society – NV
• Armand Scala, Congress of Romanian Americans

This is an impressive, broad based, representation of the community. Please contact the group above, with which you most identify, so that your contribution can be channeled through the group of your choice.

Mark Meyer, the Chairman of the Romanian-American Chamber of Commerce and a member of the Wall Street law firm of Herzfeld & Rubin, P.C. and who is also a Vice President of CORA, addressed the issue of whether or not Romania has thus far been successful in its transition from communism. Noting that Romania was undergoing at least five transitions simultaneously, he concluded that, despite some serious disappointments, Romania was making real progress. Mr. Meyer said that in its transition from a closed to an open society; from the Warsaw Pact to NATO, from a single party state to a multi-party democracy, from a state economy to a mixed economy and from an economic unit with the Eastern Block to E.U. membership, Romania has progressed at a both reasonable and expected pace.

Asked about restitution for the victims of communist property confiscations, Mr. Meyer expressed his regret that the Romanian government still seemingly fails to grasp its moral and legal duty to rectify past wrongs. He said that Law 10/2001 continues to be administered in a prejudicial manner, and urged the Romanian government to broaden the scope of in-kind restitution.

Go to the H&R Romanian Digest, August 2002, for more on Restitution.

As NATO membership is a reality for Romania, the focus logically has shifted to its membership in the European Union. Economic opportunities for Romania as a result of EU membership are enormous. Even today, foreign assistance provided to Romania by the EU countries is almost 4 times greater than provided by the U.S.

On the occasion of President Ion Iliescu's visit to Washington several months ago, it was clear that E.U. membership had assumed a position of priority. Speakers at CORA's Annual Meeting in November also underscored the importance of E.U. membership for Romania. At a breakfast meeting, held at Blair House with President Iliescu and others, Mr. Scala of CORA, asked whether it was more important (or better) for U.S. businesses to be in Romania before, or after, Romania becomes a part of the E.U.? The opinions of two of the Ministers differed. One Minister responded that "it doesn’t matter". The other responded "Yes, now" – a position that CORA endorses.

CORA advances two new initiatives in this newsletter – enlarging U.S. NGO activities and increasing business opportunities for U.S. companies in Romania. It does so with the hope of helping Romania’s people and U.S. business interests. Romania has been a good and important ally for the U.S. and CORA feels that the greater the U.S. presence in Romania through these two initiatives, the better the relationship can be between the two countries.

Gentlemen:

For 12 years, the U.S. government has tolerated the presence of Russian military bases in Georgia and Moldova against the will of people of these two former Soviet republics. It has laid the basis for creating a Russian satellite on the E.U.'s and NATO's new borders.

The apparent diplomatic success of the western countries in 1999 in Istanbul is melting away.

The promises made by Russia at the OSCE Summit that "unconditional, full and speedy [evacuation of its] troops and arsenals from Moldova's territory," [as of] the end of 2001, are not kept.

The OSCE, Russia and Ukraine are mediators between the central authorities of Moldova and its breakaway region Transnistria. But Russia can hardly be an impartial mediator since it supported militarily the separatists in the incipient face of the conflict in 1992, and now Russian citizens lead this secessionist region. Given Russia's influence and veto power in the OSCE, this negotiating format, dominating, cannot produce any equitable or durable solution of the Transnistria problem.

In November of this year, Russia pressured Moldova to accept a memorandum that would federalize this republic and would legalize the stationing of the Russian troops until 2020. The civil society of Moldova and Western experts view this as an attempt to subjugate Moldova, liquidate its independence and destroy its statehood. Mass demonstrations of about 40,000 people took place on November 30^th, despite the attempts of the Communist-controlled government to block the access of people to the capital where the rally took place. Moldovans said NO to the federalization and demanded the withdrawal of Russian troops.

A Committee to Defend Moldova's Constitution and Independence was formed on November 24^th. This committee is a broadly based coalition consisting of right wing and centrist political parties and civic associations, and NGO's, encompassing the entire spectrum of Moldova's civil society.

It is time for the western governments to get involved. The mediation process should be internationalized by ensuring the participation of the European Union and the U.S. The only solution that would bring peace and stability there is to introduce, in Transnistria, an E.U.-led peace-consolidation mission, with civil and military components.

Armand A. Scala
President, Congress of Romanian Americans

February
13 - 15 Association of Romanian Catholics of America, Winter Outing (219) 226-1227
26 - 29 Society For Romanian Studies – Romanian Presentation Panel(s) at American Association of Romanian Studies Conferences

March
11 - 13 / 18 – 20 / 27 Society For Romanian Studies - various locations
25 Iuliu Maniu Society Conference: Meeting of Romanian American Leaders (617) 536-6552

April
11 Easter – Orthodox and Western Churches

May
10 Romania Day - Chicago: Cultural and other activities (773) 509-0010
28 - 31 Association of Romanian Catholics of America - Annual Convention American-Romanian Festival (219) 226-1227

June
4 Association of Romanian Orthodox Ladies Auxiliaries of North America – Congress (330) 448-6939
25 - 27 Union and League of Romanian Societies National Convention (212) 686-0300

July
1 - 4 Romanian Orthodox Archdiocese Congress (847) 674-3900
1 - 4 Romanian Orthodox Episcopate Annual Congress (517) 522-4800
11 - 16 Adoptive American Parents of Romanian Children Retreat www.bonhamfamily.net/rafr2004
15 - 18 Transylvanian Saxons-Heimattag Celebration (440) 842-8442

September
3 - 4 Romanian American Heritage Center – General Assembly (517) 522-8260
3 - 5 American Romanian Orthodox Youth – National Conference (216) 941-5882
3 - 5 American Romanian Catholics of America Convention and Golf Classic (219) 226-1227

October
10 - 17 - Orthodox Brotherhood of the U.S. Conference (248) 288-0331

The Congress of Romanian Americans (CORA) and the Romanian American Chamber of Commerce (RACC) have begun talks with officials and business persons in Constanţa, to have a trade fair there in May or June of 2004.

CORA met with a trade delegation for preliminary talks, while they were in Washington in November of 2003. Grabriel Ivănescu, President of the Washington, DC Chapter of the RACC, visited Romania in December. He met at the U.S. Embassy and went to Constanţa. On both occasions, the topic was the trade fair.

The plan is to have the Romanians identify very specific market manufacturing/service etc. opportunities for medium and small U.S. businesses. The Romanians need to do a through job identifying these prospective projects and/or partnerships. The projects should be defined well enough to attract qualified U.S. business interests to Constanţa. The RACC and CORA would communicate the projects to relevant businesses nationally, in order to attract the U.S. companies to the Constanţa conference.

In the weeks to come, our team will be meeting with the U.S. Department of Commerce, the Overseas Private Investment Corp. and the Trade Development Agency, which has named Romania "The Country of the Year."

Look for information on future developments on the CORA and RACC websites.

U.S. Non-Governmental Organizations have been present at the last three CORA and CORA-sponsored meetings. The work each of these American organizations is doing to help the people in Romania is impressive. Both Romanians and Americans are rewarded by this activity.

Representative of these organizations is "Hospice Romania," an organization that maintains a residential facility in Braşov, and has trained approximately 180 doctors and nurses in care and pain management of the terminally ill. Many other diverse groups participated in the meetings.

CORA will feature each of the NGOs on its website with descriptions of their projects, their locations, the type of volunteers needed, and what the organizations can provide their volunteers. NGOs currently in-country can be of value in identifying additional needs, thus paving the way for "feasibility" visits by new U.S.-NGOs. A goal for CORA would be to quadruple the presence of U.S.-NGOs in Romania.

Romanian Satellite Network is a new network created with the purpose of bringing the best in Romanian television to all the Romanian families living in America. RSN is owned and operated by a group of Romanian-American investors. Its main goal is to objectively present the Romanian tradition and news by broadcasting three distinctive television channels that provide access 24 hours a day to the most popular TV programs from Romania.

RSN broadcasts programming from PRO TV Internaţional, Antena 1, Prima TV, Realitatea TV, and Etno. The channels provide the opportunity to watch a variety of popular programs on PRO TV; News on Antena 1’s award-winning Observator program; Entertainment on Prima TV; Romanian News and Reports on Realitatea TV and Etno - the only channel that offers Romanian folklore. RSN broadcasts via satellite, DTH: Direct To Home system.

The RSN package consists of three channels: Channel 1 - Antena 1 and Prima TV, Channel 2 - Realitatea TV and Etno and Channel 3 - PRO TV International. The monthly subscription is extremely flexible and offers the choice of one channel or two channels. The complete equipment (transceiver, decoder) necessary to receive our broadcast is only $199 (one time payment, plus extra shipping and handling charges). This equipment also allows free receiving of TV România Internaţional at no extra charge. Costs per month: 1 channel $19.99; 2 channels $30.99; 3 channels $36.99.

Romanian Satellite Network 1120 G Street, NW, 2^nd Floor Washington, DC 20005 Tel. (877) 776-8788 Website: www.romsatnet.com