born Nov. 8, 1901, Bârlad, Rom.
died March 19, 1965, Bucharest
Romanian politician.
He became head of the Communist Party in 1944 and held key government economic posts (1946–52). After purging the party of rivals closely identified with Soviet policies, he became prime minister (1952–55) and gradually adopted economic and foreign policies that served Romania's national interests. As president of the State Council (1961–65), he pursued a program of industrialization, despite the objections of other Soviet-bloc countries that wanted Romania to remain agricultural. He further demonstrated Romania's independence by forming cordial relations with noncommunist nations and with China.