Speaking on Tuesday in an interview with AGERPRES, Defence Minister Angel Tilvar said that the F-16 pilot training center in Romania has become permanent following Romania and the Netherlands' signing in December 2024, in The Hague, of a Letter of Intent to expand the training facility, and confirming that it will continue to operate and will be open to pilots from other NATO and partner nations as well, including Ukraine. The minister noted that through the training provided to Romanian pilots, the facility benefits Romania too, because the F-16 aircraft that will be delivered to Romania need very well-trained pilots, informs Agerpres.
"The fact that we have this center in Romania allows us to have pilots trained for the F-16 or for those who already operate the F-16 to upgrade their training, and I think it is a very good thing for Romania to host such a center, something that our colleagues also highlight at our ministerial meetings. The F-16 training center, along with the Black Sea Mine Clearance Initiative are two elements Romania's name is closely linked to," Tilvar said, adding that things are working according to the program at the center.
He also spoke of the allied military exercises scheduled for this year in Romania, of which Dacian Spring is the most prominent and which will see the Cincu battle group raised to brigade status. Dacian Spring will have a participation of approximately 4,000 troops, the DefMin said. "In addition to these exercises, you should know that Romania will host military drills the entire year, and we will also deploy troops to other areas in order to take part in military exercises," Tilvar said.
"We estimate that 14 - 15,000 personnel will participate in these exercises, giving us the opportunity to ascertain a specific level of preparation and a level of defense that allows for a normal life in Romania. Actually this would also be our purpose, to ensure a normal life for Romanians," the Defence minister said.
As military exercises are tightly linked to the problem of transport infrastructure, the Defence minister spoke about the mobility corridors, stating that "towards the end of 2024, on the sidelines of a meeting with the other EU and NATO Defence ministers, I had the honor to sign on behalf of Romania for the creation of a mobility corridor that will begin in Greece, cross Bulgaria and end in Romania, for a harmonized mobility option of a corridor coming from Turkey, Bulgaria, Romania and connecting to one coming from Italy, across Slovenia and through Romania, because the seamless mobility of equipment and troops is as important as anything else in the way armies are organized. So from this point of view, too, the Defence Ministry anticipated things and is putting in the necessary efforts to make this happen. All these corridors have civilian use too, they are not only for military use, so this infrastructure will also serve the civilian area of society."
Speaking of infrastructure, Minister Tilvar also mentioned the fact that the Kogalniceanu Air Base will be expanded. "It is a project that will involve 2.5 billion worth of funding. Also, there are things to do at Deveselu and Cincu, where the multinational battle group with France as a lead nation is headquartered, and where certain elements of infrastructure are in our attention and subject to improvement," the Defence minister concluded.
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