Close to Romania’s
\nborders, Russia’s war in Ukraine shows no signs of ending anytime soon. Russian
\nattacks using suicide drones, more often than not delivered by Iran, are
\ncarried out every night, and fragments from these drones often end up on
\nRomanian territory as well. It is clear to everyone that in the near future
\nMoscow is unlikely to stop its attacks, targeting ports on the Danube in
\nparticular and designed to destroy port infrastructure. The reason is just as
\nsimple to grasp: Russia wants to hamper the export of Ukrainian grain, which is
\nUkraine’s main source of income right now. George Scutaru, the director of New
\nStrategy Center, told us more.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
Russia is turning
\nUkrainian grain into a weapon. Russia wants to create instability in Africa and
\ndisplace a new wave of refugee towards Europe in order to create additional
\npressure, by turning grain into a weapon. Ukraine’s revenues right now are
\nfirst and foremost reliant on grain exports. 85% of Ukrainian grain exports to
\nglobal markets transit Romania. Russia wants to stifle Ukrainian economy and
\nreplace its contribution to global grain markets, thus depriving this country
\nof the necessary resources for the war effort. This is also the reason behind
\nthe daily shelling of port infrastructure, and we can see how aggressive Russia
\ncan be in terms of bombing certain targets, certain Ukrainian ports, such as
\nReni, Izmail or Kiliia, close to Romania’s borders. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
Western support for
\nUkraine has been made clear ever since the start of the Russian aggression, and
\nhas translated into sustained deliveries of weapons and assistance, George
\nScutaru also told Radio Romania.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
This is not a war
\npitting just the Russian Federation against Ukraine. It is basically a war
\nbetween autocracy and democracy. A defeat for Ukraine would spell the defeat of
\nevery country that supports Ukraine. And obviously, such a perspective would
\nencourage countries such as Iran, North Korea and China to become more assertive
\non the global stage. For this reason, it is essential that Romanians understand
\nwhy we have to provide this support to Ukraine. And let me be clear: the
\nalternative would be that Romania cuts its support partly or totally, and as a
\nresult the Russians would control the Danube or, God forbid, the Prut. So,
\nRomania has no choice: despite all the conflicts and differences we’ve had with
\nthe Ukrainians in the last 30 years, it is better for us to have an
\nindependent, democratic country, a country anchored in NATO and the EU as our
\nneighbor instead of the Russians. By supporting Ukraine, it is also important
\nfor us to make sure the Republic of Moldova also preserves its independence.
\nTherefore, here is one direct consequence for Romania. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
We cannot remain passive
\nor neutral. We are siding with a country that has been attacked, and our
\npassivity or neutrality would encourage the aggressor to carry further their
\ndiabolical plan of occupying a free country. Sooner or later, the war will end
\nand we need to know what the region would look like post-conflict, George
\nScutaru went on to say.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
If Russia is condemned
\nby international courts of law, Ukraine might get access to the Russian
\nFederation’s frozen assets in a number of Western states. We’re talking about
\nover 320 billion that might be channeled in the reconstruction of Ukraine,
\nalongside donations from independent countries or sources. This is a big part
\nof the future reconstruction of Ukraine. And I would like to point out the
\nfollowing fact: as Ukraine’s neighbor, Romania should not miss the opportunity
\nof playing an important role in the reconstruction process. We are part of
\nNATO, and global companies with an interest of getting involved in the
\nreconstruction of Ukraine could locate part of their activity in Romania. We
\nare also close to Odesa, Mykolaiv, Kherson, which were all hit hard in the war.
\nAnd starting 2027, Romania could become the EU’s biggest gas producer, as
\nexploitation works will start in the Black Sea, so we will also have the
\nnecessary energy reserves.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
For the time being, we
\nneed to be aware the war will not be over soon. There is no sign any of the
\nbelligerents are willing to end the war in the coming months, and there is
\nstill heavy fighting on the frontline, as Ukraine tries to break past Russia’s
\ndefenses. Putin too wants the war to continue, George Scutaru believes. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
Over the coming period,
\nRussia will try to undermine support for Ukraine. Romania and other states in
\nthe EU, the USA will host elections, and Russia has always tried to interfere
\nwith the election processes. It will try to double its efforts in order to cut
\nback on support for Ukraine. In the end, I am confident that if democratic
\ncountries stick together and continue to deliver military, financial, economic
\nand political assistance to Kyiv, Ukraine will prevail.<\/p>\n
\n
<\/p>\n
The other option is to
\nsee a dictatorship defeating a coalition of democratic states, says George
\nScutaru, the director of New Strategy Center. (VP)<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The director of the New Strategy Center examines how the conflict could affect Romania<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":108,"featured_media":93535,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[43939],"tags":[37161,36572,116742],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-622866","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-future-starts-today","tag-ukrainian-grain-exports","tag-war-in-ukraine","tag-western-support"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n