President Klaus Iohannis - message on War Veterans Day: I assure you of my appreciation and respect

President Klaus Iohannis in a message sent on the War Veterans Day said he appreciated the devotion and abnegation of those who fought under the national flag. "The devotion and abnegation of our troops who served under the national flag, sometimes at the cost of the supreme sacrifice, made it so that Romania is a respected country today, member of the North-Atlantic Alliance and of the European Union. The professionalism, competence and the spirit of comradely of the Romanian troops are known and appreciated both in the country and by our partners and allies. Therefore, we have the duty to honour the memory of the Romanian nation and to make everything in our power to maintain the integrity and freedom of our country," reads the message. The President also mentioned that, as a token of gratitude and moral reward, he decided to advance in rank some of the war veterans and grant them the rank of brigadier general. "I know the difficulties facing the war veterans today and I want to assure them that I am by their side and I will continue to support every effort meant to identify and materialize the best solutions to solve their problems. (...) I also hail the special contributions of the associations of war veterans in educating the younger generation and consequently promoting our national values. Moreover, I want to voice my entire consideration for the war widows of the widows of the war veterans, who made sacrifices and overcame all the hardships in their lives with dignity," read the message of Klaus Iohannis. AGERPRES (RO - author: George Onea, editor: Karina Olteanu; EN - author/editor: Cristina Zaharia)