Minister Aurescu talks with OECD Secretary General about Romania's efforts to join the organization

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bogdan Aurescu, had a meeting on Wednesday with the Secretary General of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Mathias Cormann, during which he reiterated the "solid" profile of the candidacy of Romania, the involvement of our country as a partner with similar visions in activities and projects of common interest with the OECD, as well as the added value of the Romanian expertise within the organization, informed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MAE) through a press release sent to AGERPRES.The meeting took place on the occasion of the participation in the meeting of the OECD Ministerial Council, held at the headquarters of the organization in Paris.The head of Romanian Diplomacy thanked the Secretary-General of the OECD for his support in advancing the process of expanding the organization and, in particular, for Romania's candidacy, including in the light of the recent dialogue.Minister Bogdan Aurescu reaffirmed Romania's commitment and "broad" support from Romanian political forces and society to the strategic goal of Romania's accession to the OECD as soon as possible."In this regard, the Minister highlighted the ways in which Romania participates in the structures and working groups within the OECD and the projects envisaged to increase this level of commitment in the near future," the statement said.Aurescu underlined the recent efforts regarding Romania's accession to the OECD, through steps such as the resumption of assistance projects from the organization, such as those related to the Codes of liberalization of capital movements and the governance of state-owned enterprises; involvement, as a like-minded partner, in OECD projects carried out in regions and areas of interest for Romania, such as supporting the digital transformation of SMEs in Eastern Partnership (EAP) countries, respectively stimulating investment for development in the Economic Community of African States (ECOWAS), participation in the OECD's International Program for Action on Climate (IPAC) and contribution to the financing of OECD reports such as the Eurasia Competitiveness Program or Strengthening Co-ordination and Strategic direction with Sub-Saharan Africa."For his part, Mathias Cormann reiterated "positive signals" about the possibility of advancing the decision-making process in favor of opening accession negotiations.According to the MAE, the meeting of Minister Bogdan Aurescu with the Secretary General of the OECD continues the series of efforts of the Romanian Minister regarding the promotion of Romania's candidacy and the opening of the accession negotiations to the organization for our country, as a strategic objective.