Meeting between Defence Minister Angel Tîlvãr and the British Minister of State for Defence Procurement, James Cartlidge

As part of his visit to Great Britain, over November 27-29, Minister of National Defence, Angel Tîlvãr, had a meeting with James Cartlidge, Minister of State for Defence Procurement.

The Chief of the General Directorate for Armaments, Lieutenant General Teodor Incicaº and the Chief of the Naval Forces Staff, Vice Admiral Mihai Panait also attended the meeting.

In the context of the extensive modernization process of the Romanian Armed Forces, the Defence Minister had an exchange of views on the opportunities, but also the challenges the national defence industries are facing, given the security context generated by the war of aggression waged by the Russian Federation in Ukraine.

"I would like to reaffirm our openness to enhancing cooperation with Great Britain in the field of immediate provision of equipment, but also in the future, at interoperable standards. We encourage the British companies to participate in the competitive procurement procedures to equip the Romanian Armed Forces and to collaborate with the domestic defence industry companies for the benefit of both parties", Minister Tîlvãr said.

In this context, the officials emphasized the importance of Romania’s procurement of two Sandown-class minehunters, which will provide the Romanian Naval Forces with a robust, fast, effective solution to counter the threat represented by sea mines drifting in the Black Sea. The first of the two ships, modernized and delivered by the British party, has already entered the service of the Romanian Naval Forces, as "Sublocotenent Ion Ghiculescu" M 270 Minehunter, which is due to shortly arrive in the country.

The Romanian official reminded that this year the Government of Romania allocates 2.5% of the GDP to the defence budget, which ensures the acceleration of the main procurement programs and, at the same time, creates opportunities for the involvement of the national defence industry in equipping the Romanian Armed Force with high-tech equipment and ensuring its maintenance.

The agenda of the delegation headed by the Minister of National Defence also included a trip to the Port of Portsmouth, in the South of the United Kingdom, where he visited the HMS Queen Elisabeth aircraft carrier and where the MoND delegation met with the representatives of the main companies activating in the naval defence industry from Great Britain. During the talks, the naval forces’ specific equipment was presented.

The Press Office