ABSTRACT
This conclusion presents some closing thoughts on the key concepts discussed in the preceding chapters of this book. The book discusses the movement toward a free market democracy and, as a consequence, the potential for explosive developments cannot be excluded. It describes the Communist pasts of its leadership, while noting the inability of opposition movements and parties to develop a credible challenge to the National Salvation Front. The book examines doubts about the ability of a Front-led system to gain new legitimacy, or to regenerate social cohesion. It examines the difficult relations between the Iliescu-Roman government and the West in 1990–1991, and the origins of Romanian ostracism during those years. With all post-communist systems, Romania shares the goals of democracy, market and security—to institutionalize free government, to establish a free market economy, and to find new bases for national security.
