Radio România Internațional

Tag: regional security

  • Romania and regional security

    Romania and regional security

    The consolidation of cooperation in the field of regional security, with an emphasis on the EUFOR Althea mission, in which Romania assumed a significant role, was included in the agenda of talks occasioned by the bilateral meeting of the Romanian Defense Minister, Angel Tîlvăr, on Wednesday, in Sarajevo, with his counterpart from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Zukan Helez. Against the backdrop of increasingly complex security challenges in the Western Balkans region, Minister Tîlvăr reiterated Bucharest’s firm commitment to actively contributing to efforts to maintain peace and stability in the region. “Romania has always been a firm supporter of security in the Western Balkans and the European path of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the EUFOR Althea mission, to which we are currently contributing with the most important contingent, represents a central pillar in the international efforts on this level. We are proud of our constant contribution, and we are ready to take over the command of EUFOR in 2025, a commitment that reflects our determination in this regard”, said Angel Tîlvăr.

     

    The bilateral defense cooperation agreement, signed in June 2024, was another important topic on the agenda of the two ministers’ discussions. The document establishes the framework for the deepening of military collaboration between the two states, including aspects of joint training, exchange of experience and logistical support. At the same time, Angel Tîlvăr conveyed a message of solidarity to the people affected by the recent floods in Bosnia and Herzegovina and informed that the aid recently sent by the Romanian Government to this country, as humanitarian support, will be supplemented. Previously, Minister Angel Tîlvăr was in Kosovo, where he met with the command team of the NATO peacekeeping operation KFOR, to which Romania has an important contribution, and with the Romanian soldiers on mission in this theater of operations. The North Atlantic Alliance has been conducting the multinational peacekeeping operation KFOR (Kosovo Force) since 1999, when it was decided to create an international security presence in Kosovo. “As a member of NATO and the European Union, Romania is ready to comply with its obligations and support allied efforts to maintain security and promote peace in the Western Balkans region”, the Romanian minister pointed out.

     

    He also met with the Romanian military working in the Camp Film City and Camp Novo Selo military bases in Pristina. The minister highlighted the excellent cooperation between the Romanian forces and those deployed by the allies in the KFOR Operation. “The lesson learned by Romania in the last three decades in which it has contributed to peace enforcement and peacekeeping missions and operations is that security is obtained by countering challenges where they exist, in order not to allow instability to reach home,” Minister Angel Tîlvăr concluded. (LS)

  • Romania supports the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine

    Romania supports the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine

    Seen as a major security, defense and foreign policy event, the Black Sea and the Balkans Security forum in Bucharest served as an opportunity to reaffirm some key objectives of Romanian diplomacy. Romania will continue to support Ukraine with all its might, a country invaded by Russian troops, said Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu on Thursday on the sidelines of the Forum. The Romanian official pointed out that Romania is one of the main energy suppliers of the neighboring country and is making investments in order to become the main logistic hub for Ukrainian goods. “We have started large-scale projects, worth more than 1.5 bln EUR, in the port of Constanța, because Ukrainian grain exports via Constanţa to the whole world thwarted yet another of Russia’s heinous plans”, the Romanian Prime Minister added.

     

     

    This week, the Border Police General Inspectorate announced that, starting February 2022, when the Russian forces invaded Ukraine, and until May 21, 2024 at midnight, over eight million Ukrainian citizens entered Romania at national level. Most of them were in route to Western European countries, but about 84 thousand, accounting for 1% total entries, chose to stay in Romania. Last week, Prime Minister Ciolacu also gave assurances that Romania will maintain its aid for Ukrainian refugees. The victory of Ukraine against the Russian Federation means the victory of all democracies, Ukraine’s Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said on the sidelines of the Forum in Bucharest. “It is important to stop the Russians from destroying even more!”, said the Ukrainian official who, like all Ukrainian political leaders, president Volodymyr Zelenskyy first and foremost, asked his partners, including Romania, for more sophisticated weaponry. In his message, the Prime Minister of the Republic of Moldova, the pro-Western Dorin Recean, said it is essential to combat disinformation and Russian propaganda, which undermine peace and stability in the region. Trustworthy and strong media institutions are needed to inform the public correctly and objectively, the Moldovan Prime Minister also stated.

     

     

    Also on Thursday, the Government of Romania adopted a new support package for the Republic of Moldova, aimed at continuing energy exports, rehabilitating a student dormitory and providing public order and security structures. According to the Government spokesperson, Mihai Constantin, “the law stipulates in cases where the Republic of Moldova cannot ensure its national consumption of electricity through its own production, that electricity producers in Romania can sell energy products to traders or suppliers designated by the Government of the Republic of Moldova”. These electricity deliveries will exclusively cover the needs of end users in the Republic of Moldova, Mihai Constantin explained. (VP)