The Minister of National Defence, Gabriel Les, and the chief of General Staff, General Nicolae Ciuca, received Italian Chief of Defence, General Claudio Graziano, at the defence ministry, on Friday, February 17.

The officials discussed about ways of intensifying military cooperation between Romania and Italy as well as within NATO and the EU.

Minister Les stressed the importance of the decisions made at the Defence Ministerial in Brussels this week on enhancing the allied presence in the Black Sea region which, according to the Romanian official, has a key role for the security and stability of the entire Alliance.

The defence minister also pointed out that Romania supports the initiative of creating a regional hub in the South; at that point, the Italian Chief of Defence said a coherent response is needed to threats of any kind coming from the South of the Alliance.

General Ciuca assured his Italian counterpart of the Romanian support in addressing security challenges and mentioned the future participation of a Romanian frigate in Sea Guardian Operation in the Mediterranean Sea. The chief of the General Staff shared the view according to which the balance of the current security environment can be maintained only through cooperation and mutual support. Romanian and Italian soldiers have fought shoulder to shoulder in Iraq, Kosovo, Bosnia and currently within the Resolute Support Operation in Afghanistan. The security environment is constantly changing, with different challenges and threats that are difficult to predict and solutions difficult to foresee.

Everything we accomplish at present helps demonstrate the fact that the Alliance's centre of gravity lies in its cohesion and its determination to continue to identify different paths and opportunities that can contribute to strengthening the joint action force. The Romanian military will do their best to fulfill all commitments taken in the allied bilateral relations, added General Ciuca.

General Graziano thanked for the invitation to visit Romania, emphasizing the major role played by the historical and cultural relations of the two countries, as well as the shared values of freedom and cohesion. During the talks with the Romanian officials, the Italian guest reiterated the support of the Italian Armed Forces of Romanian and NATO's initiatives to strengthen the eastern flank of the Alliance and the extended Black Sea region.

Press Department