Certification Ceremony of the Turkish Air Force Detachment

On Tuesday, December 5, State Secretary of for Defence Policy, Planning and International Relations, Simona Cojocaru, and the Chief of the Defence Staff, General Gheorghițã Vlad, participated in the certification ceremony of the Turkish Air Force Detachment deployed to Romania in order to conduct enhanced Air Policing Missions at the 86th Air Base "Lieutenant Aviator Gheorghe Mociornițã".

The activity was attended by the Ambassador of the Republic of Turkey to Bucharest, Özgür Kıvanç Altan, the Commander of the Combined Air Operations Center Torrejon, Lieutenant General Juan Pablo Sánchez De Lara, the Turkish Air Force Deputy Chief of Staff Operations, Major General Kemal Turan, and the Deputy Chief of the Romanian Air Force Staff, Major General Leonard-Gabriel Baraboi.

"This NATO enhanced Air Policing Mission, conducted with the participation -as a first- of the Republic of Turkey’s Air Force, is of vital importance for the deterrence and defence posture, and the protection of the allied airspace as well as of the security and stability of our region. The Republic of Turkey is a strategic partner and ally of Romania. We appreciate Ankara's commitment and contribution to the collective and regional security, within the allied multinational projects run in Romania and beyond," State Secretary Simona Cojocaru stated during the ceremony.

The Chief of the Defence Staff, General Gheorghițã Vlad, recalled that, this year, the allied solidarity for the enhancement of the Air Policing Service of the Romanian Air Force materialized in the participation in the surveillance and air defence missions of several American, French, German, Italian, Spanish and now the Turkish detachments. "Complementary to the essential mission of the airspace protection, an important benefit is the increased interoperability of national air capabilities with the similar NATO ones. I thank the Turkish allies for their contribution in this area as well. In the Black Sea region, the increase of military cooperation between the Romanian and Turkish Armed Forces is, within allied context, an argument of the comon determination for stability and peace", General Gheorghițã Vlad stated.

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The Turkish detachment, consisting of approximately 80 soldiers (pilots and technical staff) and four F-16 aircraft, will conduct, together with Romanian Air Force’s soldiers and aircraft, NATO-led enhanced Air Policing Missions.
The air policing missions conducted jointly contribute to the increase of the reaction and deterrence capacity, as well as to the enhancement of interoperability between the Romanian and the Turkish Air Forces.

The Press Office