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Romania will grant a new contribution of 750,000 US dollars to the Voluntary Fund for Strengthening the Defense Capacity of the Republic of Moldova, in addition to the contribution of 600,000 dollars granted last year, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bogdan Aurescu, said on Wednesday. at the session of the North Atlantic Council (NAC).
According to a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs sent to AGERPRES, this amount joins a new contribution of 830,000 dollars for the Voluntary Fund regarding the Comprehensive Assistance Package for Ukraine (NATO - Ukraine Comprehensive Assistance Package Trust Fund), announced on the first day of the meeting of NATO Foreign Ministers.
The NAC session in an allied format, in which Sweden also participated, as a guest, was dedicated to the preparation of the Vilnius Summit.
The discussions focused on the implementation of the decisions of the Madrid Summit, the support for Ukraine and the strengthening of cooperation with the other partner states, the NATO policy of "Open Doors" and the allied commitment to fair sharing of responsibilities, MAE shows.
In this context, Minister Bogdan Aurescu highlighted five strategic priorities that Romania will focus on at the Vilnius Summit.
Aurescu emphasized the need for the rapid and full implementation of the decisions of the Madrid Summit and showed that the progress in strengthening the defense and deterrence posture on the entire Eastern Flank, to ensure a coherent and united forward defense, as well as the allied presence on the Eastern Flank, especially in the Black Sea region, are essential in this regard.
The head of the Romanian diplomacy called for the continuation of measures at the operational level, including regarding the Battle Groups on the Eastern Flank, of which the one in Romania is a part. He indicated that, in the implementation of the decisions of the Madrid Summit, prepositioning of equipment and the clear allocation of reinforcement troops, adequate access to resources, increased capacities for monitoring and maritime and air surveillance are necessary, among other things.
Secondly, Minister Bogdan Aurescu requested the development of a common approach at allied level for the Black Sea, in accordance with the strategic importance of this region for Euro-Atlantic security and complementary to NATO's vision for the Southern Neighborhood.
Also, the Minister of Foreign Affairs referred to defense investments (Defence Investment Pledge-DIP) as a priority theme of the Vilnius Summit and reiterated Romania's firm commitment to fulfilling all responsibilities in the field of security and defense consolidation, mentioning the allocation, starting with this year, 2.5% of GDP for Defense, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs specifies.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs also pointed out the need to maintain political and practical commitment to Ukraine and sustained commitment to the Republic of Moldova, the most vulnerable state, after Ukraine, to hostile actions and Russian provocations. Thus, Bogdan Aurescu reiterated Romania's support for an in-depth political consultation mechanism between NATO and Ukraine and the transformation of the NATO-Ukraine Commission into a NATO-Ukraine Council, with increased powers compared to the current commission, which would support the necessary reforms in Ukraine and increase interoperability with NATO, as well as facilitate Ukraine's path towards accession.
At the same time, he pointed out that the allied attention must also be maintained on Georgia, where Romania, together with the United Kingdom, secure the mandate of NATO Contact Point Embassies. In this context, he highlighted that Georgian society supports Georgia's European and Euro-Atlantic path and must be supported in this regard.
According to the MAE, the head of diplomacy from Bucharest asked the allies that the relationship with Russia and China be approached strategically at the Vilnius Summit, starting from the parameters set by the New Strategic Concept of NATO adopted in Madrid. Aurescu emphasized that, "under no circumstances can Russia influence the European security architecture and once again condemned Russia's nuclear rhetoric, especially in the context of the announcement regarding the positioning of tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus".
