Solidarity and unity in Europe are celebrated this year again on the 9th of May

Europe must grow stronger, more vocal, more capable and better prepared, the president of Romania Klaus Iohannis said in a message on Europe Day, celebrated every year on the 9th of May. According to the Romanian head of state, after the challenge of the Covid-19 pandemic, these days we are experiencing the tragedy of the war on the borders of the EU, which triggered the most severe humanitarian crisis in Europe since World War II. In his message, Klaus Iohannis points out that this ongoing war goes against all the principles and values on which the European Union was built and which keep it united-democracy, the rule of law and fundamental human rights.

These are unprecedented times in the history of the Union, which test our very capacity to safeguard our fundamental values, based on the concept on which the European project was built: peace,” Mr. Iohannis says in his message. According to him, preserving peace has been a constant endeavour for Europe for the past decades, a guarantee of stability which has enabled us to reach unprecedented levels of prosperity. Klaus Iohannis also mentions that this year Romania celebrates 15 years since joining the European Union, a choice made and supported by the entire Romanian society.

The head of state also believes that „the benefits of this choice are evident today for the long-term progress of our nation, with the EU membership providing the framework for an irreversible democratic progress, for economic and social development, for solidarity and active engagement in the European project.”

The Romanian president also emphasizes that, one and a half decades since its accession, Romania is a member state able to contribute solutions and to put its strengths at the service of Europe.

In turn, the PM Nicolae Ciucă, in his message on Europe Day, voiced his hope that reason and peace return to the European continent as soon as possible. The lessons of World War II must keep us from tolerating a war of conquest against another independent state, as Russia does today in Ukraine, the PM argues. According to him, WWII, whose end in Europe we celebrate on the 9th of May, must remind all of us about the fate of tyrants and of those who dream about occupying other countries and controlling the world.

The president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, describes the 9th of May as „the day when our peaceful, prosperous and united Europe was born.” „Seventy-two years later, Europe is stronger and more united than ever.We stand united in supporting our Ukrainian friends. A people desperately struggling to determine its own future,” the European Commission president pointed out.

Daniela Budu, Radio Romania International