Defence Minister’s message on the occasion of NATO Day celebration in Romania

Joining NATO, 18 years ago, brought Romania the most solid proof of security guarantee from its history. Today, we are members of the most powerful political-military alliance in the world, which is of utmost importance, considering the current security context.
Being a community based on values such as freedom, democracy and state of law, NATO generated complex transformations within the Romanian society. Thus, April 2, 2004 remains in the history of our country as the moment the Romanian flag was hoisted at the NATO Headquarters, for the first time, when the Romanians understood the significance of the collective defence concept, written in the Alliance founding treaty: All for one, one for all! This expression carries within so many meanings in this period when we witness, every day, the effects of a merciless war which has been taking place nearby the Romanian borders.
The NATO membership brought along important changes within the military structures. Today, we have a professional and experienced armed force, which exerted its capacities in the missions conducted in the theatres of operations. Moreover, the Romanian soldiers operate, today, according to certain modern procedures and concepts employed to conduct military actions; these procedures and concepts have a high interoperability level due to numerous exercises organized at allied level.
Since the Russian Federation invaded Crimea, in 2014, Romania supported the geostrategic importance of the Black Sea for NATO by making constant proposals for the consolidation of the Eastern flank. The Alliance gave a favorable response each time, so that, today, we benefit from a complex and permanent security architecture, starting with the HQ Multinational Brigade South-East from Craiova and continuing with the HQ Multinational Division South-East and ending with the HQ Multinational Corps South-East from Sibiu. Also, the operational connections with similar elements of the Romanian Armed Force are achieved through the NATO Force Integration Unit (NFIU), with its headquarters in Bucharest. All these defensive military structures have the role to discourage any hostile action from NATO’s Eastern flank and stands for the proof that the Alliance stays united and powerful against all kinds of threats.
Based on solidarity, cohesion and security indivisibility, NATO remains the trans-Atlantic framework for a powerful collective defence and the essential consultation forum on security and decision among allies. The most important responsibility of the Alliance is to protect its territory and populations against any king of external attack, according to Article 5 Treaty from Washington.
Through the missions accomplished professionally by its armed force, Romania is recognized as a serious and credible partner within the international allied community. The appreciation gained by our military personnel during the mission accomplishment stands for the proof that the Romanian Armed Forces can make the most of its important resource in the field of security.
Over the last years, significant results have been made on the margins of the implementation of the decisions adopted at the 2014 NATO Wales Summit, the 2016 Warsaw Summit and the 2018 Brussels Summit. Though its initiatives and pro-active contribution, Romania has constantly consolidated its profile in NATO, both by conceptual contributions and on the operational dimension.
Within the NATO Extraordinary Summit of March 24, the allied leaders took historical decisions with a view of consolidating the defence and deterrence posture on the Eastern flank, all the way from the Baltic Sea to the Black Sea. The commitments that have been expressed at the highest level at Paris, Washington and Berlin on providing an augmented presence or consolidating allied operational efforts as well as Romania’s support and the Black Sea Region are important for Romania.
All these materialized though the rapid deployment of 4,000 soldiers and their adjacent equipment to our country. Thus, upon arrival, the NRF elements started conducting ground field exercises together with Romania soldiers. Also, military personnel from Great Britain have been conducting NATO-led enhanced Air Policing missions together with their colleagues from the Romanian and American Air Forces. At the same time, Italy has recently announced the support of the complex activities carried out by the Romanian Naval Forces with two minesweepers in order to contribute to the surveillance of the maritime space (territorial waters, contiguous area, and the exclusive economic area) and the execution of certain rapid intervention missions, with specialized structures, in order to provide for the security of navigation. Thus, the allies’ contribution in the land, air and maritime fields stands for the concrete manifestation of solidarity among allies.
In the context of the reconfiguration of the Alliance military-strategic defence and deterrence posture, Romania needs credible military capabilities, adequate equipment and well-trained soldiers. The recovery of the defence budget and placing it on an ascendent trend is a major priority. Romania has chosen to increase the defence budget from 2% to 2,5% of the GDP, having the duty to rebuild an efficient military system, adapted to the regional security context and interoperable with the NATO structures. This proves, once again, that Romania is a responsible ally of the North-Atlantic Alliance.
NATO’s collective defence on the Eastern flank is a purely defensive one, while its parameters are defined and implemented based on its posture and actions from NATO’s Eastern frontier. In this context, the Alliance is prepared and has implemented the tools required to provide an adequate answer that would provide for the security of its allies, including by consolidating the collective presence in the Black Sea Region.
NATO can continue to rely on Romania in its common efforts of developing its strategic defence. At the same time, NATO represents for Romania the most powerful security guarantee we can rely on the times we, unfortunately, currently live in.

NATO is Romania, Romania is NATO!

The Press Office