Defense Minister Les: We must start Navy endowment programs, technical equipment extremely obsolete

Minister of National Defense Gabriel Les told the international 'Black Sea and Balkans Security Forum' taking place in the seaside resort of Mamaia that the Romanian Navy endowment programs must get started, as the current technical equipment of this military branch is "extremely obsolete."

"What we must understand, though, is that we must start the much needed Navy endowment programs; regrettably, their technical equipment is extremely obsolete, and it is very important to effectively start the programs we have at this moment, whether we speak about coast guard, coastal batteries, or about the corvettes and frigates' upgrading that should be started this year," Les said on Friday.

Asked by the journalists when will the result of the corvette building bid be made public, the DefMin replied this will happen in a very short time.

"In a very short time, we are still in the legal process. The procedure is extremely complex, with a lot of requirements. We want this procedure to benefit both Romania and industrial cooperation, and that we are able to use these capabilities for a long time from now," said the Minister of National Defense.

NATO and EU officials, representatives of the institutions with responsibilities in foreign relations and national security, as well as academics participate June 12 - 14 in the 3rd edition of the 'Black Sea and Balkans Security Forum' international conference taking place in Mamaia. The event is organized by the New Strategy Center in partnership with the "Ovidius" University of Constanta and the Constanta Metropolitan Area.