Guest Lecturer Elena Danescu

This guest lecture presents an insightful foray into a centuries-long shared history by highlighting moments, events and key figures on both sides, as seen in several undisclosed and unpublished archival documents. In spite of their fundamental geopolitical differences and their contrasting trajectories throughout history, the relationship between Romania and Luxembourg began back in the 12th century, when a number of Siebenbürger Sachsen (Transylvanian Saxons) migrated eastwards in order to flee poverty. A second migratory movement occurred in the 18th century, when inhabitants of the then Duchy of Luxembourg set off towards the Danubian Plains, establishing themselves as settlers on land previously conquered by the Habsburgs from the Turks. Bilateral diplomatic relations between Romania and Luxembourg were first established on 8 December 1920, and in 1966, their respective diplomatic representations were elevated to the rank of embassy. After the fall of the communist regime, the democratic government of Romania appointed its first resident ambassador in Luxembourg in 1990. As Romania was gradually integrated into the various Euro-Atlantic structures, the two countries increased their synergies in a bi- and multilateral international framework. On 5 April 2005, Romania signed its EU accession treaty in Luxembourg, under the Luxembourg Presidency of the Council of the European Union.

Elena Danescu holds a PhD in Political Economics (1998) from the National Institute of Economic Research (INCE) of the Romanian Academy. She began her career as a researcher at INCE and a guest lecturer at the Bucharest University of Economic Studies (ASE) before becoming a researcher and diplomat in the Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. She has been involved in multiple international projects and networks. She was previously a researcher in the European Integration Studies Department of the Centre Virtuel de la Connaissance sur l’Europe, where she developed the interdisciplinary “Pierre Werner and Europe” research project (2011-2017). She is now a senior researcher at the Centre for Contemporary and Digital History and Coordinator of the Europe Direct Information Centre at the University of Luxembourg (EDIC). 

The author of this presentation was allowed to use the displayed material for academic purposes by the Carlin Museum, Daniel Plier and the Ambassy of Romania in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. 

CC BY-NC-SA