PES joins with PSD Romania to celebrate proud progressive history

PES Vice President Andrzej Szejna (seventh from left), European Commission Executive Vice-President Frans Timmermans (nineth from left), PSD leader Marcel Ciolacu (eleventh from left), PES Vice President Victor Negrescu (twelfth from left), and PES Executive Secretary General Giacomo Filibeck (thirteenth from left) on stage with conference participants and PSD activists.

PES Vice President Andrzej Szejna (seventh from left), European Commission Executive Vice-President Frans Timmermans (nineth from left), PSD leader Marcel Ciolacu (eleventh from left), PES Vice President Victor Negrescu (twelfth from left), and PES Executive Secretary General Giacomo Filibeck (thirteenth from left) on stage with conference participants and PSD activists.

Members of the leadership of the Party of European Socialists (PES) today joined Partidul Social Democrat (PSD) leader Marcel Ciolacu, MPs, MEPs and activists for the party’s anniversary conference.

PES Executive Secretary General Giacomo Filibeck and PES Vice President Andrzej Szejna joined the event in Bucharest alongside other high-level European social democrats, including European Commission Executive Vice-President Frans Timmermans.

The PES is proud to join with PSD to celebrate the party’s legacy and reaffirm its drive to build a better future, for Romania and Europe.

Executive Secretary General Giacomo Filibeck said:

“Romania is more equal, more just and more sustainable because of PSD. We congratulate Marcel Ciolacu and his team for securing that. The PES family supports your mission and we will keep supporting you from Brussels. This includes continuing to push for Romania to join Schengen.

“I commend the solidarity Romania has shown towards Ukrainian refugees. This was also possible thanks to the dedication and commitment of local PSD structures, mayors and activists.

“With a social democratic prime minister soon to be appointed, and with the European elections in focus, PSD remains an important part of the European social democratic family.”

PSD is a full member party of the PES and one of the largest social democratic parties in Europe, with over 500,000 members. PSD is the largest party in the Romanian parliament and a key member of the ruling coalition government, currently overseeing the finance, transport, labour, health, agriculture, economy, defence, culture, and family ministries. Under the coalition agreement, later this year PSD will select the next prime minister of Romania.

PSD traces its roots back to a unification of left-wing intellectuals in 1893, and since then has grown to become the central political force in Romania, helping create the Romanian constitution and securing the country’s accession to the EU. Most recently, the dedication and commitment of local PSD structures, mayors and activists has been indispensable for supporting Ukraine and Ukrainian refugees who have fled to Romania.