The candidates of the extremist party Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR), running in the European and local elections on 9 June, have pledged to “combat globalists and Satanists” while defending Romanian values such as sovereignty, family, and church.

The party’s list for the EU elections is led by MEP Cristian Terheș, a former social democrat candidate in 2019.

George Simion, the party leader, articulated the party’s vision of a united Europe of nations, rejecting the notion of a European federalist agenda while submitting the list of candidates and signatures to the Central Electoral Office on Monday. He said his party amassed 630,000 signatures — well beyond the 200,000 required for candidacy.

Terheș said Romanians had a simple decision on 9 June between “sovereignty or vassalage; freedom or tyranny.”

The unveiling of the candidate list, which occurred in Târgoviște, near the tomb of Vlad Țepeș (Vlad the Impaler), featured the pervasive use of Țepeș’s imagery by the far-right party. Simion claimed the party’s role as defenders of European Christian civilisation, drawing comparisons between Țepeș’s struggles and the party’s mission to combat “globalists” and “Satanists” in Brussels.

The event showcased various themes central to AUR’s campaign, including the assertion of Romania as the “arm of Christendom,” scepticism towards foreigners, and the primacy of the family unit.

Speakers rallied support for defending Romanian values and sovereignty against perceived threats from external forces.

“The Europeans were taking waltz lessons while my grandparents and your grandparents were ploughing the land,” Simion said.

For AUR, an acronym that also spells out the Romanian word for “gold,” the current European Commission is like the Ottoman Empire, which, for many centuries, controlled the historical Romanian provinces.

Claudiu Târziu, a prominent party leader who holds the second spot on the party’s EU list, spoke out against the European Commission, where he said “criminal ideologies are hatched”.

“At least in the last 15 years, the Commission has shown a growing appetite for neo-Marxist ideology,” Târziu said, adding that Brussels prohibits traditions and free thinking.

Later on Monday, Târziu defended himself against accusations that he is anti-European.

“We are not against the European Union, but we oppose the anti-EU policies issued by the current European Commission, which simply torpedo the European project,” he said.

“Our army of crusaders will go to Brussels to fight those who seek to redefine normality, undermine the sanctity of the church, and tarnish the legacy of our ancestors,” Mihail Neamțu, tenth on AUR’s EU elections list, said.

(Catalina Mihai, Sebastian Rotaru | Euractiv.ro)

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