President Iohannis says NATO is Romania's most solid security guarantee, for a decade and half

President Klaus Iohannis conveyed a message on Sunday, on the occasion of celebrating the NATO Day in Romania, in which he stated that the North Atlantic Alliance is our country's "most solid security guarantee."

"As part of the most powerful and efficient collective defence Alliance in history, Romania has in NATO, for a decade and a half, its most solid security guarantee. Many happy returns NATO! Many happy returns Romania!," President Iohannis said, according to a release of the Presidential Administration.

Furthermore, the head of the state mentioned that NATO Day represents for Romania a special moment, with a double significance.

"We celebrate 69 years since the signing, on 4 April 1949, of the Washington Treaty, the founding act of the North Atlantic Alliance and, at the same time, 14 years since joining, in March 2004, the most powerful political-military Alliance in history. The pro-Western vocation of our country received, at that time, an unequivocal confirmation. Romania has officially become a full member of the family of nations that guides the present and builds the future on the basis of the values of liberty, democracy and the rule of law, as well as common security and defense interests," Iohannis said.

According to President Iohannis, NATO proved, throughout time, that it has the capacity to adapt and develop, "essential features for an organisation that is currently dealing with multiple threats, that are in a continuous dynamic."

"As a reaction to the changes of the international security environment, in 2014, at the NATO Summit in Wales, measures to strengthen the operational capacity of the Alliance have been taken. Two year later, at the NATO Summit in Warsaw, it was shaped the necessity to continue the Alliance's adaptation, with a central effort to strengthen the deterrence and defence posture. It was then decided to engineer an advanced presence of NATO on the Eastern flank, concentrated in Romania and the Black Sea region, on the southern dimension of the flank, namely in Poland and the Baltic countries, on the northern dimension," Iohannis said.

Moreover, the head of state mentioned that Romania has been and still is an active part of these demarches, "as a responsible and trustworthy ally."

"We set up the South-East Multinational Brigade in Craiova, a NATO structure that proved its efficiency in large multinational exercises and we participate with servicemen in Poland, within the combat group lead by the US. Our country has become a regional stability pillar, and, in order to strengthen this status, the permanent adaptation process needs to continue. We are and still remain committed, alongside our allies in the theaters of war, such as the Afghanistan one, as well as in command structures and the Alliance's training centres, and our contributions are highly appreciated," Iohannis pointed out.

He also said that our country will continue to observe its commitments regarding the allocation of 2 percent of the GDP to the Defence sector.

"Romania will continue to observe its commitments regarding the allocation of 2 percent of the GDP to Defence and development of capabilities, as well as the national contribution to missions, operations and activities, according to the allied goal of fairly sharing responsibilities [Burden sharing]. These commitments and efforts are in the direct interest of Romania, which is thus better defended, but it is also a valuable contribution to strengthening the transatlantic relationship," Iohannis said.

Furthermore, the head of state showed that the NATO Summit, which is to take place this year in Brussels, will be a new important benchmark in the Alliance's adaptation process to the current challenges and security threats.

"After the progresses recorded in implementing the measures agreed in Warsaw on the Eastern flank, the next natural step would be to ensure the coherence of allied measures on this flank, from the Baltic Sea to the Black Sea, within NATO's deterrence and defence posture. On this occasion, Romania will strongly support the role of NATO in fighting terrorism, but also the development of cooperation between NATO and the European Union, in full complementarity. The two organisations' joint efforts in areas of shared interest will undoubtedly lead to the increase of the European and Euro-Atlantic security," President Iohannis added. AGERPRES (RO - author: Madalina Cerban, editor: Georgiana Tanasescu; EN - editor: Rodica State)

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