The Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs rejects President Putin’s allegations that Romania would have territorial claims in Ukraine.
The Romanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MAE) last week rejected the assertions of Russian president Vladimir Putin, which according to an MAE communiqué, „falsely induce the idea that Romania would have territorial claims in Ukraine”.
The Kremlin leader took advantage of the Unity Day to again lash out at the West and Ukraine but to also justify the war he is waging in a country that is neighbouring Romania. In Putin’s opinion, the West would have intentionally distorted the truth about WWII and the role of the Soviet Union in the victory against the Nazi Germany.
Putin has allegedly said that they know about the ideas of Polish politicians to make a country from sea to sea…even before World War Two. And there was a lot of talk about this at that time, a fixed idea; a country from the Baltic to the Black Sea. According to Putin, officials in the two countries are now friends, but this idea is very much alive and so is the idea of taking Ukraine back. They are also talking about the return of these territories which were taken from Poland. Putin admitted that it was Stalin who took large territories from Romania and Hungary in the wake of WWII.
But not only has Bucharest rejected all these assertions over its alleged territorial claims in Ukraine but through its Foreign Ministry, it has reiterated the fact that the aggression Russia commenced on February 24 represents a severe and brutal violation of the international law, including of Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty. In the same communiqué, Bucharest, like in all previous occasions, has reiterated its staunch support for the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine within its present internationally-recognized borders. In Bucharest’s view, constantly repeated since the beginning of the conflict, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is illegal and has multiple regional and global consequences. We recall that since the very onset of the conflict Bucharest has constantly been an active part of the multilateral initiative of condemning the Russian aggression and has been pleading for bringing the culprits to justice. Furthermore, Bucharest has provided humanitarian support for the millions of Ukrainian refugees who crossed Romania’s borders.
The Romanian government has constantly answered Ukraine’s requests and provided among other things fuel, medicine, food and ambulances. Through the international humanitarian hub set up in Suceava, in the country’s north-east, Romania has facilitated the access of scores of humanitarian convoys from other countries. And last but not least, Romania has got extensively involved in easing the transport and transit of Ukrainian grain to international markets.
(Roxana Vasile, Radio Romania International)
