Romania and the Palestine Liberation Organization, 1972–1974

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article reassesses Nicolae Ceaușescu’s relations with Yasser Arafat and the Palestine Liberation Organization in the first years after their first contact in 1972. Romania pursued an active policy in the Middle East conflict from 1967 onwards, trying to help establish contacts and carry messages between the parties involved, motivated by its anti-hegemonic foreign policy which considered that the conflict was the product of superpower rivalries in the region. In what concerned the Palestinian problem, Romanian decision-makers believed that the establishment of an independent Palestinian state, regardless of its territory, was the key to solving the conflict. In Ceaușescu’s view, both the PLO’s close ties to the USSR and its terrorist activities derived from the absence of statehood and once a Palestinian state was created, its struggle would have moved to a different level, facilitating negotiations and peace arrangements. Ceaușescu strongly advocated in favor of this vision during its contacts with Arabs, Israelis and Americans, trying to convince all sides of the advantages of such a scenario. This way, Romania contributed – as small as that contribution may had been – to the transformation of the PLO from a virtually terrorist organization into a future political actor in the region.