Foreign Relations of the United States, 1981–1988, Volume X, Eastern Europe

124. Telegram From the Department of State to the Embassy in Romania¹

152611.

Washington, May 24, 1984, 0112Z

SUBJECT

• Letter to President Ceausescu From President Reagan.

1. (C—Entire text.)

2. Embassy requested to deliver text of following letter from President Reagan to President Ceausescu to highest level MFA official immediately available.

3. Begin text:

Dear Mr. President:

— I have found our correspondence over the past few years useful and would like to discuss several matters of interest to both of our countries, including Romania’s participation in the summer Olympic games.

— The state of U.S.-Romanian relations is good. The 1983 visits of Vice President Bush² and Secretary of Commerce Baldrige to Romania, as well as the visits of Foreign Minister Andrei and Minister Negula to the United States this year,³ are recent examples of the frequent and constructive exchanges we enjoy.

— Our bilateral trade relations have also expanded significantly this year, and we expect that expansion to continue. In this connection, I wish to inform you that shortly I will submit to Congress my determination of the extension of Romania’s Most-Favored-Nation tariff status for another year. Moreover, this summer we will again be extending for three years the bilateral commercial agreement which has served the interests of both our countries.

— Our governments have consulted regularly important multilateral issues such as various problems at the United Nations, the CDE conference in Stockholm,⁴ INF, the Middle East, and Southern Africa. We have also kept your able representative in Washington, Ambassador Malitza, informed on our continuing efforts to improve relations with the new leadership of the Soviet Union. We believe it is essential to the maintenance of peace and security that we remain in close contact with the Soviet leadership, and that the important negotiations in which we were engaged, especially on INF and START, be resumed. We welcome Romania’s support for these negotiations and hope that they can be resumed soon and without preconditions.

— Regarding the Olympics we are hosting in Los Angeles this summer, I wish to inform you that Soviet concerns about the safety of their athletes and other participants are groundless.⁵ As you may know, I have personally assured the International Olympic Committee that the U.S. will live up to the Olympic charter. The Los Angeles Olympic Organizing Committee, in close coordination with local, state and federal authorities, is working with the utmost diligence to ensure that all legitimate requirements for the comfort and safety of visiting athletes are fully met. It is our hope that the Romanian Olympic Committee will concur in this and that the Romanian Olympic Team will have the opportunity to participate in the games this summer.⁶

Sincerely,

End text.

4. Embassy should advise MFA that there will be no signed original.

Shultz

1. Source: Reagan Library, Paula J. Dobriansky Files, Romania—Correspondence (7). Confidential; Immediate; Exdis. Drafted from a text received from White House; cleared by Combs, Niles, Dobriansky, McKinley, and Sheldon Krebs (S/S–O); approved by Burt.
2. See Document 120.
3. Andrei visited Washington on February 10. Negula was in the United States from May 11 to 16.
4. January 1984–September 1986.
5. July 28–August 12.
6. Romania participated in the 1984 summer Olympics.