The Romanian foreign minister Bogdan Aurescu had a bilateral meeting in Sibiu today with his Dutch counterpart, Wopke Bastiaan Hoekstra. The talks focused on Romania’s Schengen accession and the ongoing efforts to further this important goal. Bogdan Aurescu reiterated that Romania’s accession „will help strengthen the security of the EU as a whole and will give credibility to the Union.” In turn, ministrer Hoekstra reiterated the Netherlands’ active support for this process. Wopke Hoekstra also reconfirmed the Netherlands’ commitment to consolidating NATO’s deterrence and defence posture on the eastern flank, in the context of Russia’s aggression in Ukraine, by contributing troops to the NATO Battle Group in Romania. The 2 officials also discussed the Romanian-Dutch bilateral relations. The meeting took place in the context of the Dutch official’s visit to Romania for trilateral political consultations in Bucharest, together with the French diplomacy chief Catherine Colonna. Ahead of the talks, the 3 ministers made a joint visit to the French and Dutch troops stationed at the Cincu military base as part of the NATO Battle Group in Romania. In Bucharest, Catherine Colonna will be received by president Klaus Iohannis and PM Nicolae Ciucă.
Eugen Cojocariu, Radio Romania International
