on the
representation of the republic in international relations. Between
sessions of the assembly the Council of State was empowered to oversee
the activity of the Council of Ministers, appoint and recall members of
the Supreme Court and the commander in chief of the armed forces,
supervise the functioning of the Office of the Prosecutor General, and
convene standing commissions of the assembly.

The council could also issue decrees having the force of law although,
at least technically, these had to be submitted to the next assembly
session for ratification. In the event of circumstances that might
prevent the assembly from convening, the council was authorized to
appoint the Council of Ministers, declare war, order mobilization,
proclaim a state of emergency, approve the budget, and prepare economic
plans. Gheorghe Gheorghiu-Dej, first secretary of the Romanian Workers'
Party, was elected as president of the Council of State. Ion Gheorghe
Maurer--who had been chairman of the assembly Presidium, and thus
titular head of state, since 1958--became prime minister.

Although the draft constitution prepared by the commission appointed in
1961 was never adopted, it was used as the basis for the work of a
second commission named in June 1965. Under the chairmanship of
Ceausescu, the commission prepared a new draft and submitted it to the
party congress and the Council of State. After being approved by these
bodies the Constitution was adopted by the Grand National Assembly on
August 20, 1965.

The Constitution of 1965

After the adoption of the first communist constitution in 1948 the
country had officially borne the title of a people's republic. With the
promulgation of the new Constitution in 1965 the name of the country was
changed to the Socialist Republic of Romania (Republica Socialista
Romania). In adopting this title, the Romanian leadership was asserting
that the country had completed the transition from capitalism and had
become a full-fledged socialist state.

Observers of Eastern European politics considered the emphasis placed on
national sovereignty and independence in the new Constitution to be
significant. Whereas the 1952 Constitution repeatedly stressed the
country's close ties to the Soviet Union and the role of the Soviet army
in the liberation of Romania during World War II, the 1965 Constitution
omits all reference to the Soviet Union. Instead, it refers only to the
policy of maintaining friendl