US Is Concerned About Property Restitution The U.S. Ambassador to Bucharest is concerned that the Romanian government wants to pay former owners a fraction of the full value of property confiscated years ago by the Communists. Mark H. Gitenstein suggested Wednesday that Romania should comply with the European Court of Human Rights, which has ruled against the country several times in property restitution cases. Last week the government proposed paying 15 percent of the property's value over a 10- to 12-year period. Parliament will vote on the proposal. "We do have concerns with the current proposal ... this is not the right solution," said Gitenstein. He will discuss the issue with the government. Romania has an estimated 40,000 former owners who are owed compensation.