Italy and the De-Satellization of Communist Romania (1964-1975)

This paper analyzes the relations between Italy and Romania during the 1960s and 1970s in light of two fundamental elements: the phase of détente that characterized the international system and the important changes in internal politics in Rome and Bucharest. In Italy, the launch of the centre-left formula brought the Italian Socialist Party to the government in a parliamentary coalition with the Christian Democrats, the Republican Party, and the Social Democratic Party. In Romania, however, the last years of Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej’s power and the succession of Nicolae Ceauşescu were characterized by a progressive autonomy from the Soviet Union, taking the form of real de-satellization from Moscow and the Warsaw Pact.