On Wednesday, February 13, defence minister Gabriel Les had a bilateral meeting with his Canadian counterpart, Harjit Singh Sajjan, as part of the NATO Defence Ministerial which takes place in Brussels.

The Romanian official expressed his appreciation for the solid and constant contribution of Canada to the implementation of the consolidation measures of the Allied Eastern flank, by having participated in the enhanced air-policing missions organized on our territory, over the last two years. Also, minister Les thanked his counterpart for the commitments assumed by Canada this year with a view of participating in this kind of missions.

At the same time, minister Les emphasized the special importance of the trans-Atlantic relation for European security, taking into consideration the current challenges posed to the Black Sea region security.

With respect to the cooperation within the UN, the two officials approached the subject referring to Romania's contribution MINUSMA Mission from Mali, starting this October. Thus, considering the fact that Romania will follow Canada in the mission accomplishment, the two ministers discussed general aspects generated by such operational contribution as well as the support the Canadian partner can offer, due to its expertise, in the preparation of our country's participation in this mission.

On the first day of the reunion, the minister of national defence met with his Georgian counterpart, Levan Izoria, and debated topics of mutual interest regarding the military bilateral cooperation, the recent evolutions of the security situation in the Black Sea region, as well as NATO-Georgia cooperation.

Gabriel Les emphasized the fact that our country will continue to actively support the Georgian armed forces' reform and modernization process with a view of consolidating the defence system and increasing interoperability with the Allied states.

Likewise, the Romanian minister appreciated Georgia's solid operational participation in the Alliance's efforts to consolidate regional and international security and stability, especially Resolute Support Mission from Afghanistan.

The Press Office