The US Embassy to Bucharest said in a press release on Friday that it was concerned about a Romania Constitutional Court decision last week to declare most judicial and control tools of the Romanian National Integrity Agency (ANI) - the key body checking the wealth of public officials - as unconstitutional.

The US Embassy said it noted in the past the positive contribution of ANI over Romanian reforms and its crucial role in meeting the objectives over check and cooperation mechanisms set by the European Commission.

THe press release says the Embassy welcomed the announcement made by the Romanian Government that it would take measures to re-establish the full mandate of ANI.

The US reaction follows that of EC President Jose Manuel Barroso who shared the concern of Brussels officials over a possible weaker role for ANI in Romanian efforts of judicial reform.