Romania’s Antisemitic AUR Party Seeks US Legitimacy

Washington is about to receive a visitor whose presence should set off alarm bells among defenders of truth and human dignity. George Simion, chairman of Romania’s far-right AUR party, has announced a visit to the United States this week. On his agenda: meetings with members of Congress and possible talks with officials in the Trump administration. But make no mistake beneath the rhetoric of patriotism lies a dark record of antisemitism and Holocaust distortion.

The AUR party, a rising force in Romanian politics, has repeatedly opposed efforts to combat antisemitism and educate the public about the Holocaust. Its members in Parliament have blocked or voted against legislation aimed at penalizing hate speech, promoting Holocaust remembrance, and protecting minority communities. In a deeply disturbing incident, AUR lawmakers physically attacked Jewish MP Silviu Vexler in the halls of Parliament, hurling antisemitic slurs and shouting “to the gas” echoes of an era the world vowed never to repeat.

Despite the party's attempts to present itself as a “patriotic alternative,” its leadership has openly denied Romania’s role in the Holocaust. They downplay the murder of over 280,000 Jews by Romanian authorities during World War II, despite overwhelming evidence much of it compiled by the Elie Wiesel Commission, established by the Romanian government itself in 2004.

One AUR figure even falsely accused Elie Wiesel of never having been at Auschwitz, dismissing the Nobel Laureate’s legacy and personal suffering with shocking contempt. This isn’t political debate. It’s historical perversion — and it has no place in the halls of American government.

Romania has come a long way in facing its past. The government has adopted legislation combating Holocaust denial, hosted international conferences on antisemitism, and played a leadership role when the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) adopted its working definition of antisemitism in 2016. These were not mere symbolic gestures they were bold affirmations of truth in a region still haunted by the scars of fascism.

But AUR is working to reverse that progress. The party continues to glorify Romania’s wartime dictator Ion Antonescu responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Jews and has maintained close ties with extremist networks tied to the Iron Guard, Romania’s notorious fascist movement of the 1930s and 1940s.

As Simion knocks on doors in Washington, hoping to dress up his agenda in the language of Western conservatism, Jewish leaders and human rights advocates must stand united in opposition. Any meeting with U.S. lawmakers must come with clear, non-negotiable demands: support for Holocaust education, a public embrace of the IHRA definition of antisemitism, and the removal of unapologetic antisemites from AUR leadership. Anything less is appeasement masquerading as diplomacy.

Silence or ambiguity will be weaponized by Simion and his allies, who will return to Romania boasting of American recognition. That would embolden efforts to revise history, undermine Jewish safety, and breathe new life into dangerous ideologies that Europe worked so hard to bury.

The United States has long been a moral compass in the global fight against antisemitism. That responsibility does not end at its borders. When antisemitic parties come seeking validation, the answer must be simple and unequivocal: not in our name.

To stand with truth and memory is to stand with the Jewish people. Share this message, and subscribe to our newsletter to stay informed.