CSAT decisions

Members of Romanias Higher Defence Council have reiterated the countrys key - strengthening security and national defence

Corina Cristea, 26.10.2022, 14:00

Summoned by Romanian president Klaus Iohannis and with
Nicolae Ciuca in double capacity, as Prime Minister and the country’s interim
Defence Minister after the resignation of Vasile Dincu, the country’s Higher
Defence Council’s proceedings on Tuesday focused on the war in the neighboring
Ukraine and its implications for Romania.

The consequences of the conflict initiated by the Russian
Federation against a sovereign country are also being felt in the entire Black
Sea area, affecting the countries in the region, as well as the Euroatlantic
and global security per se, says a communiqué issued by the Romanian presidency
at the end of the meeting. Members
of the aforementioned council have tackled the support Romania continues to
give to Ukraine and the proposals to deal with potential threats so that peace may
be kept in the Black Sea region and an expanded conflict be avoided.

The proposals are mainly focused on ways of
implementing the decisions adopted at the NATO summit in Madrid, strengthening
the armed forces, increasing the number of Allied exercises on the Romanian
territory, stepping up dialogue with Turkey, Bulgaria and Georgia over security
as well as capitalizing on opportunities in the field of economy and
interconnectivity in the enlarged Black Sea region.

The CSAT has also
approved the updating of the ‘Armata 2040’ programmes on its main directions: providing
funds to personnel, reconfiguring equipment programmes and streamlining the
country’s defence industry. Participants have also endorsed the proposals
presented by the Ministry of Energy on strengthening the country’s energy resilience
and assuring the continuity of electricity and natural gas supplies at prices
that shouldn’t be a burden for the Romanian citizens.

Also high on the latest CSAT agenda have been ways of
encouraging short and medium term investment in developing the onshore and
offshore production of natural gas, as well as the short-term use of coal
resources in order to overcome the present energy crisis, boosting the capacity
of extracting and storing local resources as well as the dialogue with foreign
partners to get access to alternative gas resources from countries like Azerbaijan,
the United Arab Emirates, the USA and Saudi Arabia. The CSAT members have mentioned the importance
of the medium-term introduction of the fourth-generation of small and medium nuclear
reactors as well as the consolidation of the transport infrastructure for electricity
and natural gas.

(bill)