How Nicușor Dan explains the controversial meeting between Diplomat Lazăr Comănescu and Russian Minister Lavrov

President Nicușor Dan said that Lazăr Comănescu participated in a meeting with Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, as secretary general of a regional organization, not as a representative of the Romanian state.

Lazăr Comănescu participated in a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov Photo: X

Asked in a press conference in The Hague, after the NATO summit, about the recent meeting between Lazăr Comănescu and Serghei Lavrov, President Nicușor Dan explained that it was carried out outside the Romanian official framework: “Yes, his reign is the secretary of a cooperation organization in the Black Sea, as a natural person, not as a representative of the Romanian state. And in this capacity he met with one of the countries, the Russian Federation, which is part of that organization. ”

The reaction came after the journalist emphasized that Lavrov was included in the sanctions list of the European Union and asked if the President of Romania was interested in this meeting.

Comănescu, in an official visit as Secretary General Ocemn

Lazăr Comănescu, former foreign minister, is currently secretary general of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation Organization (OCEMN). In this capacity, he met on June 20, at St. Petersburg, with the head of Russian diplomacy, Sergei Lavrov.

Three days later, Comănescu published on the X platform two photos from the meeting and a short message: “An exchange of constructive opinions on the ocemic role in promoting economic cooperation in the Black Sea region and the ways of strengthening the organization's contribution to this effort ”.

Who is Lazăr Comănescu

Comănescu was Minister of Foreign Affairs of Romania in two mandates: between April 15 and December 22, 2008, in the Tariceanu Government, and later between November 17, 2015 and January 4, 2017, in the Dacian Cioloș Government.

Although he no longer has an official function in the Romanian state, his presence at the meeting with a high -ranking Russian official, under international sanctions, has raised question marks in the sensitive context of current diplomatic relations between Russia and the Member States of the European Union.