Russia
\nand, for the first time, China, are top of the list of NATO’s concerns,
\nalongside new threats such as cyber-attacks, terrorism and the rise of totalitarian
\nregimes. Monday’s NATO summit in Brussels ended with a communique in which the Allies
\nlay down the new red lines with respect to security. As far as Romania is concerned,
\npresident Klaus Iohannis said he was pleased that the Alliance is consolidating
\nits eastern flank:<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
We
\nhighlighted the need for the process to consolidate the Alliance’s deterrence and
\ndefence posture to focus on the eastern flank as a whole and in a coherent way,
\nwith special attention to the security developments in the Black Sea area. The
\nAlliance must have at its disposal the forces, structures and capabilities
\nnecessary to respond efficiently to the threats we are facing in the region.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
Russia’s
\nrecent massing of troops and military equipment near the border with Ukraine
\nand in the illegally occupied Crimean Peninsula remains a constant concern,
\npresident Klaus Iohannis told allied heads of state and government, who
\nincluded in the final communique a reference to the sovereignty and territorial
\nintegrity of Ukraine, as well as of Georgia and of the majority
\nRomanian-speaking Republic of Moldova. Speaking about NATO’s missile defence
\nshield hosted by Romania, president Iohannis reiterated that it has an
\nexclusively defensive purpose:<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
This
\nshield is often mentioned by Russia, but I think the discussion is welcome for
\nwe can reiterate that this shield is purely defensive, including the part
\nhosted by us at Deveselu. We have no intention of attacking anyone with this
\nshield, but we are very determined to defend our states and that is why we agreed
\nat the time to host components of this shield in Romania.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
The
\nNATO leaders also decided on Monday to launch a process to develop the Alliance’s
\nnext strategic concept. Romania sees this move as a necessary step given that
\nsince the adoption of the current strategic concept in 2010, the security environment
\nand the Alliance itself have seen profound changes. President Iohannis once
\nmore:<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
This
\nwas before Crimea, before the pandemic, before many other crises. The world has
\nchanged in more than ten years. We must change with it. NATO must be ready for
\nany challenge, at any time, it must be a modern alliance and this will be achieved
\nthrough the next concept.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
\n
\n
\n
<\/p>\n
President
\nKlaus Iohannis also said he invited US president Joe Biden to visit Romania. (CM)<\/p><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The decisions of the NATO summit better safeguard the security of Romania and of its citizens, says president Klaus Iohannis.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":109,"featured_media":89266,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[37738],"tags":[29125,13794,29398],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-89265","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-today-in-the-news","tag-iohannis","tag-nato","tag-summit"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n