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A schedule of bilateral and multinational exercises, including within NATO, planned to take place during the current year and in 2020 on Romania's soil was one of the main topics for discussion at a meeting of the Romanian-American Joint Committee in Bucharest on Wednesday.
"The Department of Defence Policy, Planning and International Affairs of the Ministry of Defence organised a meeting of the Romanian-American Joint Committee on the implementation of the agreement between Romania and the United States of America on the activities of the United States forces stationed in Romania, signed in Bucharest on December 6, 2005, and of the agreement between the United States of America and Romania on the deployment of the United States Ballistic Missile Defense System in Romania, signed in Washington on September 13, 2011," according to a press statement released by the Romanian Defence Ministry (MApN).
Discussions also focused on US and nationally-funded investment projects for agreed facilities and areas, as well as other practical issues in support of the implementation of the provisions of the Romania-US bilateral agreements managed by the Romanian-American Joint Committee.
"The subject of US and nationally-funded investment projects was another important item on the agenda, as an expansion of the air bases at Mihail Kogalniceanu and Campia Turzii is foreseen in the coming years, for which Romania and the US partner will apportion important amounts," the release reads.
The Romanian delegation thanked the strategic partner for the significant contribution in terms of troops and hardware to planned exercises and reiterated the availability of the host nation's logistics support of and the assurance of force protection measures during the exercises.
"On the side-lines of the meeting, the participants also addressed current security challenges in the Black Sea region and military mobility, highlighting, on the one hand, the need to continue strengthening the strategic defence partnership with the US, both in a bilateral way and inside NATO, and on the other hand the need to modernise and adapt the transport infrastructure to meet the requirements of military mobility while facilitating diplomatic and bureaucratic procedures for increasing the capacity of the armed forces in accordance with the commitments taken up by Romania under the EU's Permanent Structural Cooperation (PESCO), " says MApN.
Romania's delegation was led by Secretary of State for Defence Policy, Planning and International Affairs Nicolae Nasta, and comprised experts and guests from MApN and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The US Delegation was led by Director of Plans, Policy, Strategy, and Capabilities, Headquarters United States European Command David Julazadeh and included experts and guests from United States Army Europe (USAREUR), the United States Air Forces in Europe (USAFE), the United States Naval Forces Europe (NAVEUR), and the US Embassy in Bucharest.
