A number of high ranking officials, such as heads of state, prime ministers, ministers, European commissioners and NATO leaders have paid visits to Romania since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Romania is neighbouring Ukraine and, starting February 24, has received hundreds of thousand of Ukrainian refugees on its territory. Romania is also a NATO member and is located on the eastern flank of the alliance, which is the most exposed to current security challenges. Talks about the security situation are also held at bilateral level, such as the ones on Thursday between Romanian President Klaus Iohannis and his Estonian counterpart Alar Karis, which focused on boosting NATO defence actions.
The two officials have agreed military capacities in the region needed to be adjusted, and that NATO must have military capacities to prevent Russia from advancing on the eastern flank. Klaus Iohannis: “We urgently need a substantial and balanced consolidation of the entire eastern flank, (…) a unitary and consolidated presence. That is why Romania wants an enhanced NATO presence on its territory. “
Iohannis has also announced that Romania will resume, as of next year, its participation in the NATO Air Police mission in the Baltic area, an approach aimed to strengthen collective allied defence. In his turn, the Estonian President, Alar Karis, talked about the need to reduce dependency on Russian energy. The topic was also approached during the talks which the Romanian President had on Thursday with the Spanish PM, Pedro Sanchez. Ensuring the energy security of the EU has, in the context of the war in Ukraine, an increased strategic importance, said Klaus Iohannis: “Romania is ready to offer its own energy infrastructure to diversify natural gas supplies from multiple sources. “
We had barely overcome the crisis triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic that we entered another crisis, PM Sanchez said, emphasising the need for a decision at EU level as regards the evolution of electricity and natural gas prices. The Spanish PM also discussed in Bucharest, with his counterpart Nicolae Ciuca, about the multidimensional impact of the crisis in Ukraine, with a focus on stability, refugees and energy. The two officials voiced their interest in holding a first joint meeting of the Romanian and Spanish governments. (Roxana Vasile, Radio Romania International)
