„We will continue our efforts to ensure the prompt, determined and robust response of the North Atlantic Alliance to any possible challenge or threat”, Romanian President Klaus Iohannis said on Wednesday, also thanking all NATO allies for their presence in Romania. The head of state visited the Mihail Kogălniceanu Air Base 57, together with the Romanian Prime Minister Nicolae Ciucă and the Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo. NATO is the strongest and most concrete security guarantee for member states, Nicolae Ciucă said. The Romanian Prime Minister also said that an effective deterrence and defense posture must be developed on the eastern flank of the Alliance. In turn, Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said NATO is a defensive alliance, and its member states are ready to defend their territory in case of an attack, adding that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine represents a brutal assault on basic EU and NATO values – freedom, democracy and human rights. A Belgian military unit is currently deployed to Romania as part of NATO’s Response Force.
