The Minister of Defense made a very important statement at the last minute regarding the concern of Romania in full war in Ukraine, and this because at the moment there are continuous attacks against the city of Odesa, close to the borders with Romania and the Republic of Moldova.
The Minister of Defense said that Romania is monitoring very carefully what is happening near Odesa, and that it is concerned about the fact that the Black Sea is not open to international traffic, saying that Ukraine must be able to transport its goods by sea.
"Romania held the presidency of this European forum last year, and the Chief of Staff of the Naval Forces, Rear Admiral Mihai Panait, whom I congratulate for organizing this important meeting in Bucharest, will today hand over the management of the structure to his Irish counterpart, Commodore Michael Malone.
I welcomed the presence, in Romania, of the 25 heads of naval forces from European EU or NATO member countries and the representatives of the NATO Allied Maritime Command and the US XNUMXth Fleet deployed in Europe, who have the status of observer. The presence, in Bucharest, of the heads of the naval forces from the mentioned countries is all the more relevant in the context of the fighting in the Black Sea and near the Ukrainian coast, the Russian forces being, in fact, close to the mouths of the Danube, on Snake Island.
Romania is monitoring this situation very carefully, the possible development of the conflict towards Odesa, and remains concerned about the fact that the Black Sea is practically not open for international traffic. In the current security context in the Black Sea region, generated by the Russian Federation's military aggression against a sovereign and independent state, Ukraine, we must continue our joint efforts to strengthen security and defense on the allied eastern flank.
We can only achieve this through unity and consistent commitment. We need to develop a consolidated, coherent and unitary posture on a permanent basis of NATO on the Eastern flank, from the Baltic Sea to the Black Sea, which reflects the transition from deterrence to defense.
We are getting closer to the operationalization of the NATO Battle Group in Romania which, together with those in Bulgaria, Slovakia and Hungary, will lead to the consolidation of this flank of the Alliance. The role of the navies in this complicated geopolitical context is a special one, but I am convinced that the participation in the missions and naval operations of NATO and the European Union have contributed to achieving the interoperability that is so necessary at this time."
