Romania is backing "immediate" cessation of Russian military aggression in Ukraine to give a chance to resume diplomatic efforts, Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca said on Thursday at the Government House.
"Today, I attended a meeting of the Supreme Council for National Defence, convened by the President of Romania, Mr Klaus Iohannis, following the illegal Russian military aggression and the massive armed violence against Ukraine. We are dealing with an unprovoked aggression against a sovereign and independent member of the United Nations. The Russian Federation has chosen the armed forces to pursue revisionist political goals. Romania is strongly condemning the attack by the Russian army that has already claimed countless lives and endangered the safety and lives of innocent people," said Ciuca.
He pointed out that Romania is in constant dialogue with its NATO allies and European partners.
"Romania is backing the immediate cessation of military aggression, which will give a chance to resume diplomatic endeavours," said Ciuca.
He mentioned the convening on Thursday of a task force for the management of the aftermath of the Russian military aggression in Ukraine, Agerpres.ro informs.
"The main responsibilities of the task force are related to monitoring the situation and coordinating measures at governmental level to ensure the functioning of all public services. The relevant government bodies are also prepared to provide the necessary measures to take in refugee flows as needed. We are standing in solidarity with the Ukrainian people and are ready to provide humanitarian aid to those in need. We are monitoring the situation of Romanian citizens in Ukraine to whom we are prepared to offer consular assistance and support through the interinstitutional task force at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs," he added.
He said that Romania benefits from the strongest security guarantees in its history.
"At this difficult time, together with our NATO allies, especially through the strategic partnership with the United States, as well as with our partners in the European Union, we are part of the strongest protection umbrella generated by the world's democracies. The security and safety of the Romanian citizens are not affected in any way," Ciuca said.
He added that the authorities have ensured that Romania has sufficient natural gas stockpiles in storage for the management of the cold season.
"We are constantly monitoring and evaluating natural gas inflows and outflows on all routes in the country in order to be able to take the necessary measures to ensure continuity in natural gas supply," Ciuca said.