As the National Council due next month is approaching, the sides in the PSD (Social-Democrat Party) are taking action. The group loyal to the party president Mircea Geoana is invoking solidarity, whereas those on Ion Iliescu's side have shown clues that they are no longer putting up with the party's diminishing score in opinion polls and no longer willing to do nothing. A small number of party leaders got together the day before yesterday to talk about the party's future and Mircea Geoana tried to see the vice president's opinions in the early 2008. The National Council is a hot issue for the Social-Democrats, which will decide the way the PSD will act this electoral year. The 'praetorian guard" faithful to Ion Iliescu is starting to react against Mircea Geoana's policy, no longer accepting the party's distancing from the traditional electorate. They are trying to impose their point of view, threatening Mircea Geoana that otherwise they will cause significant tensions right before elections. Ion Iliescu himself announced on his birthday that he would be trying to define the role of the left, without hesitating to get into dispute with his party colleagues. As for those Social-Democrats on Mircea Geoana's side, they fear a possible extraordinary congress, which they think useless. One vice president tells us: "Those hopeful that 1, 2 or 5 congresses will give them power over the party are hopeful in vain." The group in Cluj is still recovering from the failure in the Euro-elections and they have announced they will try to impose a project on the specificity of the PSD in Transylvania in the coming National Council. The first informal meeting of Romanian Social-Democrats is due in Iasi in January 22-24, when Romania celebrates the Unification. (D.I.)