{"id":1826,"date":"2026-05-14T02:49:59","date_gmt":"2026-05-14T02:49:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cor.borbolycsaba.ro\/en\/?p=1826"},"modified":"2026-05-14T02:50:10","modified_gmt":"2026-05-14T02:50:10","slug":"cimic-victory-the-badge-palinka-and-the-truth-that-had-to-be-spoken","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cor.borbolycsaba.ro\/en\/cimic-victory-the-badge-palinka-and-the-truth-that-had-to-be-spoken\/","title":{"rendered":"CIMIC VICTORY \u2013 The Badge, P\u00e1linka, and the Truth That Had to Be Spoken"},"content":{"rendered":"

Borboly Csaba, Vice-President of Harghita County Council, member of the European Committee of the Regions<\/strong>
\n13 May 2026<\/strong><\/p>\n

Why is this day important for Harghita County?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Today I received a military badge. Not as a protocol gift, but as a sign of trust.<\/p>\n

Dominic Smith, a Civil Affairs officer of the United States Army, handed me the badge of his unit at the end of a meeting during which I did not say what they may have wanted to hear, but what is true.<\/p>\n

The background of the meeting was the letter sent to Harghita County Council by the CIMIC structure of the Romanian Ministry of National Defence, signed by Lieutenant Colonel Ana-Maria Grandel. The delegation arrived with the aim of strengthening interinstitutional cooperation and improving preparedness for crisis situations.<\/p>\n

I was mandated by the President of the County Council to stand in for him. I also indicated that, unfortunately, for a year and a half the council decision on substitution has been missing, although it would be needed for the legal basis to be fully clear. I hope this will be remedied.<\/p>\n

This is the\u00a0418th Civil Affairs Battalion<\/strong>, whose members are not only taking part in military exercises in Romania, but also in community programmes and institutional meetings, with the aim of understanding and strengthening U.S. security cooperation objectives at local level.<\/p>\n

Within the framework of the\u00a0CIMIC VICTORY<\/strong>\u00a0programme, they work together with the Romanian Army\u2019s 1st CIMIC Battalion \u2014 and today this cooperation continued in Harghita County.<\/p>\n

What had to be said \u2014 and what is rarely said<\/strong><\/p>\n

This was not an ordinary diplomatic meeting.<\/p>\n

Three issues were raised that are rarely discussed in institutional settings.<\/p>\n

The human cost: when poor communication kills<\/strong><\/p>\n

Two years ago, a person paid with his life because the military system, through poor, incomplete and inhumane communication, allowed him to become terrified during the county mobilisation exercise, MOBEX, and to end his life.<\/p>\n

He believed he would be taken to fight in Ukraine.<\/p>\n

This is not a statistic. This is a life lost, for which the system bears responsibility.<\/p>\n

Such tragedies could be prevented if the dialogue between the military and society were institutionalised, humane and regular.<\/p>\n

Fear of being called up<\/strong><\/p>\n

This Easter, there was a person who did not dare to come home from abroad to his family because he was afraid of being called up.<\/p>\n

This fear is not imaginary.<\/p>\n

In Romania, even in 2026, the issue of military mobilisation remains active, and the country is updating its National Defence Strategy for 2026\u20132030, one of whose priorities is strengthening citizens\u2019 trust in institutions.<\/p>\n

If this fear is not addressed through institutional communication, deep wounds will remain \u2014 not only in individuals, but also in the relationship between the community and the system.<\/p>\n

The Uz Valley \u2014 the wound that has not healed<\/strong><\/p>\n

The issue of the cemetery in the Uz Valley has been an open wound since 2019.<\/p>\n

It is a First World War military cemetery where Hungarians and Romanians rest side by side \u2014 yet politics, nationalism and communication manipulation have kept the conflict alive for years.<\/p>\n

The American side heard this today.<\/p>\n

They heard that this is not merely a symbolic dispute. It is a question of the culture of coexistence and of people\u2019s respect for one another.<\/p>\n

What the Americans requested \u2014 and what is unique in Harghita<\/strong><\/p>\n

At the end of the meeting, the U.S. civil-military delegation made a concrete request: to establish an institutionalised working group in Harghita County on society and security, meeting regularly within the framework permitted by Romanian law.<\/p>\n

Its topics would include:<\/p>\n