At the beginning of his official visit to France, on Wednesday, March 23, the Romanian defence minister, Mihnea Motoc, had a bilateral meeting with his French counterpart, Jean-Yves le Drian.

The two delegations discussed the need to strengthen bilateral defence cooperation, by developing and making the strategic dialogue permanent, increasing the number of training activities, joint exercises and participating in NATO and EU missions.
Talking of the recent developments of the regional and international security environment, the two ministers emphasized the need to strengthen the defence and security systems, to enhance NATO and EU processes of strategic adaptation and the collaboration of the two organizations to respond efficiently to the new types of threats to European security.

The two dignitaries discussed cooperation in allied framework, especially with a view to preparing NATO Summit in Warsaw. In this context, the Romanian minister stressed the existing possibilities to enhance the allied presence on the Eastern flank and the extended Black Sea region, as specific adaptation elements of NATO strategic posture and the threats present in the area.

The meeting represented a good opportunity to discuss and put in agreement the positions towards the main points of the European security and defence agenda the future EU Global Strategy, as the Union's response to the present terrorist attacks, to the initiatives and trends in the development of military capabilities, with a focus on EU Defence Action Plan.

Press Department