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Submarine procurement program is not Romania's current top priority, PM Ciolacu says
Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu doesn't think the submarine procurement program is "what Romania needs" at this moment and considers that the current priorities of the National Defense Ministry are "completely different".
"As a parliamentarian, not necessarily as a prime minister, I don't think that the submarine program is what Romania needs now. (...) I've said it in the government, as prime minister, and I say it as a lawmaker too. (...) I don't flip-flop on this. I told you that at this moment I do not agree with that expenditure. I think that the current urgencies of the National Defense Ministry are completely different," Ciolacu told broadcaster Romania TV.
He made it clear that he supports the allocation of 2.5 percent of GDP for Defense, a share which "must be supported and is agreed upon with the strategic partner. (...) When you sleep carefree thanks to being a NATO and a EU member and you do not have wars, like what is happening in Ukraine or in the Middle East, I think money should not matter," added the prime minister.
On May 18, the joint Bureaus of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate gave the preliminary approval, at the request of the National Defense Ministry, for the initiation of the contracts awarding procedures for certain procurement programs, including the purchase of submarines.
AGERPRES
