Message of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Romania, on the occasion of

Freedom Day of the Republic of South Africa

The celebration of the Republic of South Africas 22 Years of Freedom (that was marked
earlier this year, on the 27th of April) offers me the pleasant opportunity to recall with
great satisfaction the strength of our bilateral ties, as well as to convey my warmest
greetings and wishes of happiness, peace and prosperity to the South African people.
On the 21st of November this year we also mark the silver jubilee of Romania-Republic
of South Africa relations. I firmly believe that this stock-taking anniversary represents an
excellent opportunity to further strengthen and diversify the traditional relations of
cooperation between our countries.
The friendship and cooperation relations between Romania and the Republic of South
Africa have developed constantly during the past years in various fields: political
dialogue in international arena, which benefitted from our countries membership in the
European Union, and respectively the African Union, trade, education and research,
health, culture, people-to-people contacts. Particularly regarding trade, we are
encouraged by the increasing volume of our bilateral exchanges (South Africa constantly
being our most important trade partner in Sub-Saharan Africa), as well as by the positive
contribution of South African investments to Romanian economy.
We are proud that the Republic of South Africa is currently one of our most important
and reliable partners on the African continent. We are ready to continue our common
efforts in order to identify new opportunities for bringing the entire cooperation potential
of our countries to fruition and we are confident that the good relations of friendship and
cooperation established between Romania and the Republic of South Africa will continue
their upward trend. There is an immense potential of expertise, manpower and capital,
which allows us to successfully bid for common projects in various fields of increased
interest: industry, agriculture, telecommunications, infrastructure, water and energy,
IT&C, scientific, educational and cultural cooperation.
Taking into consideration that this year the Republic of South Africa also marks the 40 th
anniversary of June 16, 1976 uprising (Soweto uprising), I praise the advancement of
South Africa on its way to democracy and underline the role of youth in moving forward
our societies. South Africa is now a modern country, with a promising economy, and rich
social and cultural life. The commitment of South Africa to democracy, as in the case of
Romania, is so closely linked with our joint aspiration for a future of peace and prosperity
for our nations. The struggle of Nelson Mandela proved that it is democracy the solid
foundation on which to build a prosperous future for our peoples. Romania underwent a
long period of transition, thus we understand the challenges and difficulties faced by the
African countries and stay by them, offering help that comes from direct experience.
On this anniversary occasion I reiterate our commitment to bridge the geographical
distances by forging our friendship and by further consolidating and modernizing the
traditionally good relations between our peoples and countries.