Editing History of Romania (section)

== NATO and the European Union membership (2004–present) ==
{{Main|Accession of Romania to the European Union|Romanian membership of the European Union|2012 Romanian protests|2017–2019 Romanian protests}}Post–[[Cold War]] Romania developed closer ties with Western Europe, eventually joining [[NATO]] in 2004 and the [[European Union|EU]] in 2007.<ref>{{Citation|title =NATO update: NATO welcomes seven new members|url =http://www.nato.int/docu/update/2004/04-april/e0402a.htm}}</ref><ref>{{Citation |title=BBC News: EU approves Bulgaria and Romania |date=26 September 2006 |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/5380024.stm |access-date=2010-01-05 |publisher=[[BBC News Online]]}}</ref>

General elections took place on in [[2004 Romanian general election|2004]], with the joint PNL-PD candidate [[Traian Băsescu]] winning the second round with 51% of the vote.<ref name="nytimes.com" /><ref>Adrian Năstase</ref><ref name="cortland">{{cite web |title=NeoVox: the International College Student Magazine: The Romanian Elections: to Fraud or Not to Fraud? |url=http://neovox.cortland.edu/archives/2004/12/the_romanian_el.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304074325/http://neovox.cortland.edu/archives/2004/12/the_romanian_el.html |archive-date=2016-03-04 |access-date=2015-08-25 |publisher=neovox.cortland.edu}}</ref>

Then-PNL leader, [[Călin Popescu-Tăriceanu]] was assigned the task of building a coalition government without the PSD. In December 2004, the new coalition government (PD, PNL, PUR —[[Romanian Humanist Party]]—which eventually changed its name to [[Romanian Conservative Party]]/PC and UDMR/RMDSZ—was sworn in under Prime Minister Tăriceanu.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://jurnalul.ro/vechiul-site/old-site/english-version/calin-popescu-tariceanu-gets-the-pm-job-54230.html|title=Calin Popescu Tariceanu Gets the PM Job|website=jurnalul.ro}}</ref>

Following the free travel agreement and politic of the post–Cold War period, as well as hardship of the life in the post 1990s economic depression, Romania has an [[Romanian diaspora|increasingly large diaspora]]. The main emigration targets have been Italy, Germany, Spain, the United Kingdom, the United States and Hungary.<ref>{{Cite book |last=OECD |url=https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/sites/0b2cc7aa-en/index.html?itemId=/content/component/0b2cc7aa-en |title=Talent Abroad: A Review of Romanian Emigrants |date=2019-07-16 |publisher=OECD Publishing |isbn=978-92-64-88012-2 |language=en |chapter=Chapter 1. Numbers and locations of Romanian emigrants}}</ref>

In 2009, President [[Traian Băsescu]] was [[2009 Romanian presidential election|re-elected]] for a second five-year term as the President.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.robert-schuman.eu/en/eem/0960-traian-basescu-is-re-elected-for-a-second-term-in-office-as-leader-of-romania|title=Traian Basescu is re-elected for a second term in office as leader of Romania|access-date=2021-04-11|archive-date=2022-05-17|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220517202002/https://www.robert-schuman.eu/en/eem/0960-traian-basescu-is-re-elected-for-a-second-term-in-office-as-leader-of-romania|url-status=dead}}</ref>

In January 2012, Romania experienced [[2012 Romanian protests|national protests]], which were the first significant popular uprising in the country since 1991. They were triggered by proposed health reforms, and were further motivated by wider disillusionment with austerity and the government.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Besliu |first=Raluca |title=Honour and Solidarity: The 2012 Romanian Protests |url=https://blog.politics.ox.ac.uk/honour-and-solidarity-the-2012-romanian-protests/ |access-date=2022-04-27 |website=OxPol |date=19 February 2012 |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Bran |first=Mirel |date=2012-01-24 |title=Anger threatens to topple Romanian president as austerity measures bite |url=http://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/jan/24/romania-anti-government-austerity-protests |access-date=2022-04-27 |website=the Guardian |language=en}}</ref>[[File:Protest against corruption - Bucharest 2017 - Piata Universitatii - 5.jpg|thumb|Romania has seen its largest waves of protests against judicial reform ordinances of the PSD-ALDE coalition during the [[2017–2019 Romanian protests]]]]

[[Klaus Iohannis]] was elected president in [[2014 Romanian presidential election|2014]],<ref>{{Cite web |date=16 November 2014 |title=Klaus Iohannis wins Romanian presidential election |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/nov/16/romania-klaus-iohannis-president |website=[[TheGuardian.com]]}}</ref> being re-elected in [[2019 Romanian presidential election|2019]],<ref>{{Cite web |date=24 November 2019 |title=Romanian centrist president re-elected by a landslide |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/nov/24/romania-centrist-president-re-elected-by-a-landslide-klaus-iohannis |website=[[TheGuardian.com]]}}</ref> and serving until his resignation in 2025 in the aftermath of the annulment of the [[2024 Romanian presidential election|2024 presidential election]] in which he did not stand.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Romanian President Klaus Iohannis resigns ahead of election re-run |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c3w805xjg1xo |access-date=10 February 2025 |website=BBC|date=10 February 2025 }}</ref>

The [[2020 Romanian parliamentary election|2020 parliamentary election]], which took place during the [[COVID-19 pandemic in Romania|COVID-19 pandemic]], resulted in PNL senator [[Florin Cîțu]] forming [[Cîțu Cabinet|a center-right coalition]] consisting of two other parties.<ref>{{Cite web |date=19 December 2020 |title=Liberal Florin Cîțu put forward to be Romania's next prime minister |url=https://www.politico.eu/article/florin-citu-romania-national-liberal-party-government-prime-minister/}}</ref> Following the [[2021 Romanian political crisis|2021 political crisis]], a [[National Coalition for Romania|grant coalition]] was agreed upon between the PNL and PSD in which they would rule Romania together for or the next seven years. Thus, it was agreed that the [[prime minister of Romania]] and several other important ministries would rotate every year and a half. [[Nicolae Ciucă]] of PNL consequently succeeded Cîțu in November 2021,<ref name=":22">{{Cite web |date=November 25, 2021 |title=Guvernul PSD-PNL-UDMR a fost învestit de Parlament cu 318 voturi 'pentru' / Ciucă: Ne aflăm într-un moment mult așteptat de toți românii / Ciolacu: Nu voi minți niciodată că am învins pandemia / Barna: De ce nu l-ați chemat direct pe Dragnea să îi predați Ministerul Justiției? |url=https://www.g4media.ro/guvernul-psd-pnl-udmr-a-fost-investit-de-parlament-cu-318-voturi-pentru-ciuca-ne-aflam-intr-un-moment-mult-asteptat-de-toti-romanii-ciolacu-nu-voi-minti-niciodata-ca-am-invins-pandemia-bar.html |website=G4Media}}</ref> himself being succeeded by PSD leader [[Marcel Ciolacu]] in June 2023.<ref>{{cite web |date=13 June 2023 |title=Klaus Iohannis: Marcel Ciolacu este noul premier desemnat al României &#124; VIDEO |url=https://www.europafm.ro/klaus-iohannis-marcel-ciolacu-este-noul-premier-al-romaniei/}}</ref>

In the [[2024 Romanian presidential election|2024 presidential election]], Independent candidate [[Călin Georgescu]] achieved a surprise win in the first round. However, the [[Constitutional Court of Romania|Constitutional Court]] annulled the election results, citing [[Accusations of Russian interference in the 2024 Romanian presidential election|alleged Russian meddling]]. The cansellation led to [[2024–2025 Romanian election annulment protests|widespread protests]], [[2025 JD Vance speech at the Munich Security Conference|criticism]] by the United States, and [[Ilie Bolojan]] becoming acting president in February 2025 as Iohannis resigned to political pressure.<ref name="Chao-Fong">{{Cite news |last1=Chao-Fong |first1=Léonie |last2=Krupa |first2=Jakub |last3=Chao-Fong |first3=Léonie |last4=Krupa |first4=Jakub |date=February 14, 2025 |title=Zelenskyy demands 'real security guarantees' before peace talks; Vance accused of 'trying to pick a fight' with EU – as it happened |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2025/feb/14/russia-ukraine-war-peace-vladimir-putin-volodymyr-zelenskyy-donald-trump-munich-security-conference-europe-news?page=with:block-67af4b688f08101b5631d57f&filterKeyEvents=false#liveblog-navigation |access-date=February 15, 2025 |work=[[The Guardian]] |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref>

On 1 January 2025, Romania along with Bulgaria joined the [[Schengen Area]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Schengen: Council decides to lift land border controls with Bulgaria and Romania |url=https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2024/12/12/schengen-council-decides-to-lift-land-border-controls-with-bulgaria-and-romania/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241212125630/https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2024/12/12/schengen-council-decides-to-lift-land-border-controls-with-bulgaria-and-romania/ |archive-date=12 December 2024 |access-date=12 December 2024 |website=Consilium |language=en}}</ref>