Parliament, Romanians Must Agree To Foreign Loan – President

Thursday evening, head of state told members of the Romanian community in Warsaw, Poland, that he will speak in Parliament about Romania’s possibility to take out a foreign loan to help the country overcome the economic crisis.

"It will be the Parliament’s and Romanians’ choice whether we fasten our seatbelts or we make due with the resources we have. (…) It is in this vein that I will address the Parliament on Monday,” Basescu said.

He said Romania might have to make due with the resources it has if the Parliament and the population decide against a foreign loan.

"We’ll be able to get through the crisis decently if we decide to,” Basescu said.

Also Thursday, Basescu attended an economic forum in Warsaw, where he said Romania is considering taking a foreign loan in case the economy deteriorates more than expected, but added a decision hasn’t yet been made.

He said the economy of European countries where Romania exports might continue to worsen, but said he is optimistic about Romania, which he thinks will post slight economic growth in 2009.

Romanian finance minister Gheorghe Pogea said Wednesday that Romanian authorities are in talks with the European Commission and the International Monetary Fund to establish the structure, value and conditions of a potential loan.