Addressing a gap in historiography, this project aims to investigate Romania’s position and opposition regarding the CMEA EEC policy, between 1957 (when the EEC was established through the Treaty of Rome) and 1989 (when the socialist system in Romania collapsed). The project focuses, in equal measure, on instances when Romania agreed with the other members of the bloc, as well as on instances of opposition. Why Romania adopted a position or another? What tactics of opposition it used? Did Romania’s EEC position within the CMEA change over time, and if so why and how? How influential was Romania’s position on the overall CMEA EEC policy? Tackling such questions, the project traces the internal and external factors that provided the background for Romania’s position: the Romanian-Soviet relations, EEC enlargement process, the East-West détente, the CMEA reformation, or the perestroika. Theoretically, this project challenges the traditional conceptual framework on Romania’s opposition within the Eastern bloc, contributing to the development of a new theoretical approach. It operates with concepts as threats and perceptions, drawing from S. Walt’s balance of threat theory (according to which states reacted to external threats) and using a perceptual approach (according to which state’s behaviour is explained through the decision makers’ perceptions and views). The hypothesis is that Romania opposed the CMEA EEC policy because it was perceived as threat to Romania’s interests. Methodologically, the project fits into the New Cold War History paradigm, being multiarchival in approach and paying attention to the role of ideology (understood in a broad sense as views, system of beliefs, perceptions). Through its findings, the project contributes to the field of the studies on the CMEA-EEC relations and opens a new research perspective towards a comprehensive view on Romania’s foreign trade policy within the socialist bloc and towards the capitalist world.

Research visits:

- To be developed

Conference and seminar participations:

- To be developed

Publications:

- To be developed

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