SUMMIT – Romanian president Klaus Iohannis has attended the European Council in Brussels during which the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine have been granted the status of EU-candidate countries. The European leaders have also tackled the ways in which the EU members can avoid a major energy crisis in winter. High on the summit agenda was the situation in Ukraine, the bloc’s relation with the Western Balkans as well as a series of economic issues. Iohannis has reiterated Romania’s consistent support for Kiev and presented the efforts to facilitate the exports of Ukrainian cereals adding that Romania’s ports and transport corridors are functioning at full capacity. During the Euro summit in Brussels, president Iohannis has reiterated his conviction for the European future of the countries in the Western Balkans and the support for the opening as soon as possible of the talks with North Macedonia and Albania and the identification of solutions for the process of bringing Bosnia-Herzegovina closer to the union.
NATO – At the NATO summit in Madrid next week, the Black Sea region will be acknowledged as having a strategic importance in the collective defence and battle groups in Romania and other eastern countries could be given the status of brigades. The alliance’s deputy secretary general, Mircea Geoana said the summit would bring good news for Romania, but also for Ukraine for the transatlantic relation and the alliance per se. ‘From the military and security viewpoints’, Geoana says ‘and because Russia is an unpredictable and aggressive player, Romania will have the same quality in terms of national security as Germany and Belgium. There will be no difference in what NATO has on the eastern flank and in Western Europe. Next week we are going to attend the NATO summit in Madrid and we are expecting historic news for Romania’. The talks in Madrid will also be focusing on the requests from Finland and Sweden to join the alliance, although no decision is expected in this respect because of Turkey’s opposition.
(Radio Romania International)
