Over the past
\nfew years, the relationship between Romania and the USA has improved
\nconstantly. Although two major issues are yet unresolved, namely the absence of
\nbig American investors in Romania and the fact that Romanians still need visa
\nto travel to the US, the political and military cooperation between the two
\ncountries has reached an excellent level according to Romanian foreign policy
\nanalysts. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
The latest joint
\naccomplishment was announced on Friday, when the elements of the American
\nmissile defence system installed at the military base in Deveselu, in southern
\nRomania, became operational. The facility in Deveselu, which includes a
\nsophisticated radar system, ballistic missile interceptors and state-of-the-art
\ncommunication equipment, will be a major module of a larger NATO security
\nproject. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
To mark the
\noccasion, the Romanian Foreign Ministry held a special ceremony, which was
\nattended by the Romanian defence and foreign ministers, Mihnea Motoc and Lazar
\nComanescu, respectively, the US Ambassador to Bucharest, Hans Klemm, the
\ndirector of the US Missile Defence Agency, vice-admiral James Syring, and NATO
\nAssistant Secretary General for Defence Investment, Patrick Auroy. Speaking on
\nthis occasion, the Romanian Foreign Minister Lazar Comanescu emphasised the
\nstrictly defensive purpose of the facility, in response to Russia’s claims that
\nthe system in Deveselu is a threat to its security. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
The former
\nforeign minister Bogdan Aurescu, who headed the Romanian delegation in the
\nnegotiations concerning the location of the American anti-missile shield,
\nfurther confirmed this view. Bogdan Aurescu:<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
This location
\nbest suits the need to protect the Allied territories, people and forces in the
\nevent of hostile missiles fired from outside the Euro-Atlantic area,
\nparticularly from the Middle East.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
Strengthening
\nthe Romanian-American Strategic Partnership, the facility in Deveselu is
\nofficially finalised the very year when Bucharest and Washington celebrate 135
\nyears of diplomatic relations. Both the US House of Representatives and the
\nSenate issued resolutions to mark the anniversary. Two weeks ago, the House of Representatives described Romania as a key ally of the US, while the Senate recently expressed
\nits appreciation for Bucharest’s firm partnership with Washington. Romanians
\nthemselves view the United States as their country’s greatest friend and the
\nally that can guarantee their security in a difficult international context. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The military base in Deveselu, southern Romania, forming part of the US missile defence system, has become operational.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":112,"featured_media":47474,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[37738],"tags":[29484,38271],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-66608","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-today-in-the-news","tag-deveselu","tag-us-missile-defence-shield"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n