This
paper discusses the diplomatic tug-of-war that followed the January 2000 cyanide spill that began in Romania and entered
the Tisza River in Hungary through the greater Danube River system. The
paper shows that throughout the affair, both Romania and Hungary emphasized the need for clear, defined international legal agreements that would govern responsibility in the case of a transboundary environmental catastrophe. It also shows how, Romania used the absence of such an agreement to defend its position that it was free of liability in the matter.