Romanian diplomat Teodor Melescanu (in picture) was recently appointed as the new head of the Foreign Intelligence Service (SIE) by the Romanian Parliament, with 238 votes for and only one vote against. Romanian President Traian Basescu proposed him for the position. After being nominated for the position, Melescanu resigned from the National Liberal Party (PNL), one of opposition parties in Romania.  From the total of 463 MPs, only 242 were presented at the meeting, while 239 voted. The members of the opposition didn’t attend the meeting.

Teodor Melescanu is a Romanian diplomat and politician, former member of the National Liberal Party (PNL). Between 1992 and 1996 he was Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Minister of Defense from April 2007 to December 2008. He was also a Senator between 1996 and 2000, as well as from 2004 to 2008.

In June 1997 he founded the Alliance for Romania Party (ApR), and was party president. In 2002, he became vice-president of PNL. See his entire CV here.

Mihai Razvan Ungureanu was the former head of SIE, but he gave up this position after being named Romania’s new Prime Minister, earlier this month.

Irina Popescu, irina.popescu@romania-insider.com

(photo source: Gov.ro)