itics pointed
out that Romania shares lengthy borders with Bulgaria, Hungary, and the
Soviet Union and that improving relations with the other Balkan states
would serve to overcome the country's relative physical isolation.

PCR leaders have also called for all of the Balkan area, including both
the communist and the noncommunist states, to be designated a nuclear
free zone and for the removal of United States military bases from the
area. Observers pointed out that the Ceausescu regime believed that such
actions would serve to reduce the strategic significance of Romania in
the eyes of the Soviet leaders and possibly result in greater tolerance
for Romanian deviation from the Soviet line. Political observers also
attributed the growing willingness of Albania and Yugoslavia to increase
cooperation and give support to Romania's initiatives for the Balkan
area to the growth of Soviet naval power in the Eastern Mediterranean.

The Ceausescu regime successfully cultivated relations with the People's
Republic of China and persisted in the development of these relations
despite tremendous pressures from the Soviet Union and other Warsaw Pact
states. An important byproduct of these relations has been increased
economic exchanges between the two countries; in late 1970 the Communist
Chinese extended Romania a long-term, interest-free credit amounting to
the equivalent of US$244 million.

In June 1971 Ceausescu made a twenty-five day visit to Asia that
included nine days in mainland China, the first such visit by a party
leader of a Warsaw Pact state since the Sino-Soviet dispute became
public. In a joint communique the Communist Chinese and Romanian leaders
emphasized the necessity of sovereign and equal relations among all
communist states and parties. Ceausescu reiterated his government's
support for the admission of the People's Republic of China to the
United Nations and asserted that the rightful sovereignty over Taiwan
belonged to the Peking regime. In August 1971 a Communist Chinese
military delegation attended the twenty-seventh anniversary celebrations
of the liberation of Romania from Nazi occupation.

Maintenance of friendly relations with the People's Republic of China
has also gained the Ceausescu regime support from other communist
parties that have been critical of the Soviet Union in its conflict with
the Communist Chinese, most notably the French and Italian parties. The
PCR has taken special pains to cultiv