The Romanian press has offered only superficial commentary on the visit to New York for the UN General Assembly—ranging from the presidential couple’s kiss (viewed by some as a theatrical gesture and by others as entirely inappropriate) to the lackluster agenda of the Romanian delegation (from the President and Foreign Minister down to other officials) and the—in a sense—legitimate lobbying for Dacian Cioloș, who seeks the symbolic leadership of a Francophone organization. These matters may well be important.

However, there are two other highly significant developments in the current context—one involving a potential, indeed probable, deep economic crisis for Romania—that have gone entirely uncommented upon. Nicușor Dan held a meeting with Ronald Lauder—the longtime head of the World Jewish Congress—that received media coverage but no analysis. Lauder is regarded, among other things, as a business magnate, a billionaire, and—unofficially, of course—a sort of guardian of Romania. He has held this informal role for over thirty years. Let me explain how. Immediately after 1990, he developed a media business—Central Media Enterprises (CME)—through which he established media groups and television stations across the former Warsaw Pact nations, post-communist countries, Ukraine, and two states from the former Yugoslavia; these outlets have wielded immense media influence over the last three decades, starting right in the 1990s. The prime example of a market leader in Romania is, of course, ProTV. Thus, across all these post-communist states, Ronald Lauder’s media entities dominated the landscape of public opinion and culturally and civilizationally shaped these post-communist societies—societies that were so heavily disparaged by the “Collective West” at the time. Today, it is owned by CME; formally, it no longer belongs to him but to a Czech group—specifically, the late owner Kellner (and I say “late” because he died under suspicious circumstances in the US a few years ago; his wife is now at the helm of this conglomerate, which operates television stations in Romania, Bulgaria, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Ukraine, and—naturally—two countries from the former Yugoslavia, including Slovenia). Informally, however, it is believed that Kellner’s wife follows the decisions of Ronald Lauder.

Every single one of Romania’s leaders—starting with Ion Iliescu—met with him at crucial moments. More recently—and you might recall this from media coverage—he undertook lobbying efforts with the Austrian government to secure Romania’s entry into the Schengen Area. You may remember that. However, I learned about the influence of Lauder—whom I have never met personally—from his minority partner at Central Media Enterprises (CME), Mark Palmer, the former head of Freedom House. He explained it to me around 2006, when we met at his home in New York. There were others present, and we talked and had some wine, but he explained—specifically during a one-on-one meeting the following day—who Lauder was and what role he played. If you are wondering how I knew Palmer: I had known him since 1997, when I was the recipient of a U.S. government scholarship administered by Freedom House; naturally, in my capacity as a scholarship fellow there, I had several discussions with him. Thirty years have passed since then.

It is worth noting that Mark Palmer was one of Viktor Orbán’s mentors; he served as the United States Ambassador to Hungary in the years immediately preceding and following 1989—the very period when Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz party was developing and rising to power.

Well, after all the Romanian presidents and leaders who have met with Lauder over the years, it was finally Nicușor Dan’s turn. Is this a good thing? It could have been a very good thing. Why do I say it could have been very good? Because of the J.P. Morgan matter: while the Presidential Administration’s official statement merely mentioned that a meeting was scheduled to take place, we learned serious details from ‘The Diplomatic Affairs’—an extremely influential Swiss publication owned and run by the Romanian Ovidiu Stănică. He provided us with exclusive, exceptionally important information—which was also picked up by *Solid News* yesterday—revealing that during the meeting with J.P. Morgan—where Nicușor Dan and his delegation sought a loan or financial support from the conglomerate, a market leader in Romania—we were turned down.

Three independent sources in the United States confirm this to ‘The Diplomatic Affairs’. Knowing the situation, I can state with certainty that ‘The Diplomatic Affairs’ maintains these privileged connections within the Trump administration and among other analysts and commentators there, including those in the financial sector.

I do not wish to lecture you now on the significance of the J.P. Morgan conglomerate. For centuries, it has held paramount importance in the global financial market. An agreement between any state and J.P. Morgan paves the way for everything. It serves as a benchmark for financial rating agencies—entities upon which we are practically critically dependent today. A deal with J.P. Morgan resolves any issue in the financial market, particularly for a country like Romania. J.P. Morgan is also recorded as a major holder of Romania’s sovereign debt. I will not draw a comparison with Ukraine again—you are likely tired of hearing me speak about the Rothschild Group and the entity managing Ukraine’s sovereign debt.

Although the meeting was included in Nicușor Dan’s itinerary, no official statement has been released regarding the outcome of the discussions with J.P. Morgan. This is where an exclusive report from *The Diplomatic Affairs* proves highly useful for analysis; it effectively tells us—and, in the absence of any official rebuttal, we must accept—that Romania suffered a major setback in its talks with J.P. Morgan.

What is the connection to Lauder? Well, it is worth noting—and you can verify this—that his multi-billion-dollar business has been developed and supported for over three decades by the J.P. Morgan group. We can therefore envision a relationship that goes beyond a mere partnership between Lauder and J.P. Morgan—the two entities Nicușor Dan met with, possibly even at Lauder’s suggestion. The most recent instance of J.P. Morgan assisting the Lauder group occurred just a few months ago, when it syndicated a $5 billion loan for Lauder to acquire the operations of the major Spanish group PUIG. Furthermore, the Lauder family holds high-level positions within J.P. Morgan group entities.

What conclusion can we draw?

    Was the meeting with Lauder pointless? If J.P. Morgan’s refusal is officially confirmed, then yes.

    If J.P. Morgan does indeed refuse, rest assured that financial rating agencies will immediately take note of this development regarding Romania.

    You should expect this refusal by J.P. Morgan to carry immense weight in the financial rating agencies’ upcoming assessments of Romania. It is a decisive factor, and consequently, we can all realistically expect Romania’s financial rating to be downgraded to “junk” status.

Ultimately, this confirms what I have repeatedly analyzed throughout this spring and summer. I have stated that Romania is effectively being “tenderized” during the Nicușor Dan administration—inheriting the situation from the Klaus Iohannis era—preparing it for a collapse in terms of international, financial, and macroeconomic value. What does this mean? Beyond the severe crisis and stagnation, we will witness a devaluation—a drastic drop in the worth of all Romania’s strategic assets. These assets will thus become ripe for takeover by favored entities for pennies on the dollar—or perhaps even for free—following the Greek model. You are familiar with my theory regarding international economic hitmen. Look at the Greek example and what happened there, where Germany took the “lion’s share.” That is how the negotiations played out back then, and understanding that will give you a clearer picture.

What I am presenting today is simply a logical analysis based on extensive data, as you can see. However, we can only reach certainty once we hear from the “Cotroceni of Nicușor Dan”—yet that quarter remains silent. Consequently, we are left only with reasonable assumptions and the anticipation of a probable, potential disaster in the autumn of 2026—that is, during this very period.

Ultimately—speculating, of course, yet drawing on past precedents—I would say this: Romania has long been on the table for the “great carve-up” envisioned during the Iohannis terms. While he did not manage to finalize this massive division of the country, he—along with his henchmen and cronies—laid the groundwork for it throughout his administrations. Now, the terms of this carve-up have likely been decided. I imagine the future geoeconomic beneficiaries of the national wealth have also been determined; these could be state entities or private ones—including those operating at the level of international “economic hitmen.” Someone like Ronald Lauder knows this precisely, especially given his long-standing role as an unofficial guardian of Romania. I have a nagging suspicion that Lauder likely feigned a final gesture of assistance to Romania—a move that was swiftly nullified by his associates at J.P. Morgan. Beyond the facts and the logic, I also have—unfortunately—a clear premonition that things are exactly as I describe them.

By Cozmin Gusa

www.solidnews.ro