Tuesday, February 18, 2025 - The Trump administration has pressured Romanian authorities to lift travel restrictions on the self-described misogynist influencer Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan Tate.
The Tate brothers, who are dual US and UK nationals, were arrested in
Romania in 2022 and charged with human trafficking, s£xual misconduct and money
laundering, as well as starting an organised crime group. They have denied
wrongdoing.
The Tates’ case was first brought up by US officials in a phone call
with the Romanian government last week and then followed up by Trump’s special
envoy Richard Grenell when he met the Romanian foreign minister at the Munich
Security Conference, according to three people familiar with the matter.
A fourth person said a request was made to return the brothers’
passports and allow them to travel while they wait for court proceedings to
conclude.
Romanian foreign minister Emil Hurezeanu declined to comment on his
exchange with Grenell.
His spokesperson said Hurezeanu initiated the meeting and that they had
“known each other for a long time” as they had both served as ambassadors in
Berlin during the first Trump presidency.
The spokesperson did not comment on their specific discussions but said:
“Romanian courts are independent and operate based on the law, there is due
process.”
The Tate brothers have millions of online followers on their online
platforms targeted at young men that promote male superiority and reject
feminism — which played a role in Trump’s re-election.
Tristan Tate boasted on X in November about the brothers’ role in the US
election, claiming that “millions of young men in Europe and the USA have a
healthy rightwing approach to politics that they would NOT have if Andrew Tate
had never appeared on their phone screens”.
The UK is also seeking the brothers’ extradition after police in
Bedfordshire obtained an arrest warrant as part of an investigation into
allegations of r@pe and human trafficking.
A Romanian court ruled last year that they can be extradited once there
is a final decision in their case in Romania.
A separate civil lawsuit was filed last week by a woman in Florida,
which alleged that the brothers coerced her into s£x work after having lured
her to Romania and accused them of defaming her after she testified against
them in Bucharest.

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