George Simion, leader of Romania's far-right AUR party and frontrunner in the country's presidential race, called on Ukraine to compensate Bucharest for its military and humanitarian aid, Romanian broadcaster Digi24 reported on May 8.
Simion, who won the first round of Romania's presidential election on May 4 with nearly 40% of the vote, reiterated that if elected, he would oppose any further assistance to Ukraine and shift Romania's focus inward.
He framed his foreign policy stance as "neutrality, not escalation and not supplying weapons, but joining the policies of (U.S. President Donald) Trump."
"Ukraine needs us, we don't need Ukraine, so Ukraine must respect the national and religious rights of the half a million Romanians living in Ukraine. And we certainly want compensation for Romania's participation in the war effort so far," Simion said during the Euronews debate.
He added that the form of compensation would be subject to future negotiations.
"But for the Patriot system donated by (former Romanian President) Klaus Iohannis as national treason and other expenses that Romanians made out of their own pockets, we should get something in return," he said.
The U.S.-made Patriot air defense system, recognized for its precision in intercepting aircraft, cruise, and ballistic missiles, has been pivotal in shielding Ukrainian cities from Russian strikes. Ukraine received a Patriot system from Bucharest in October 2024.
The presidential election will advance to a runoff on May 18.
The current election follows the annulment of the initial first round in November 2024, which Romania's Constitutional Court invalidated over evidence of social media manipulation and foreign interference.
That round had been won by populist Calin Georgescu, who openly promoted conspiracy theories and supported Russia, calling Ukraine a "fictional state" and predicting its partition as "inevitable."
Romania, a NATO member bordering Ukraine, has signed a bilateral security agreement with Kyiv, backed sanctions against Russia, and facilitated the export of Ukrainian grain amid Russian threats in the Black Sea.
Chris York
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