Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca said on Wednesday that Romania and Bulgaria are considering a program to capitalize on the Danube, a river that, in his opinion, is of strategic importance in the transport of goods and people.
In a TV show, Ciuca said that talks had already taken place with the Bulgarian prime minister, even before the start of the conflict in Ukraine, in order to make the Danube accessible to transport of goods all year round.
"We have looked at the possibility of finding a solution for dredging the Danube, so that there is the possibility of ensuring river traffic throughout the year, 365 days, because in summer, when the level of the Danube decreases, there are those thresholds formed that hinder the traffic of barges. (...) It is the easiest, the cheapest way of transporting goods and it is also the most convenient, because this incompatibility between the railroad from Romania and that from Ukraine and Moldova is avoided, and the Danube, beyond this situation, is a river that, as I said, has a strategic relevance in ensuring the transport of goods and not only, including passengers, tourists," the prime minister said.
He added that the Fast Danube program exists at the level of the European Union and talks have already been held with the European Commissioner for Transport, Adina Valean.
"On Friday, the Bulgarian prime minister will be in Bucharest and we will discuss the details so that we can use European money for this purpose. It will be a project that will not only benefit Romania, but it will be a project through which we can, for example, to go from Galati to Bremerhaven," concluded Nicolae Ciuca.
AGERPRES