NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has recommended Romania to increase the budget spending for defense since the alliance should respond to growing demand for security and defense, adding that NATO is counting on Romania and Romania can count on NATO.
"I recommend Romania to increase its budget spending for defense , therefore to continue the last year's growth for the years to come. This measure is particularly important given that our countries must respond to challenges of defense in a changing world in which we have growing demand for security and defense. Romania wants to contribute to a stronger alliance which is also the best guarantee for security in Europe particularly today when we deal with the biggest security challenges during this generation.
All NATO member countries increase their troops responsiveness capabilities and we strengthen our presence in the eastern part of the alliance, presence that will become increasingly stronger as we prepare for the summit in Warsaw in July, " NATO Secretary general said Tuesday at the end of the meeting he had with Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos in Brussels.
He appreciated Romania’s activity in the theaters of operations, in ensuring security in the Black Sea and in supporting NATO members countries in Eastern Europe, and he stressed that one of the alliance divisions in the south-east has become more active.
"Romania is a very popular member of our alliance actively contributing to NATO missions in Afghanistan and Kosovo and the security of the Black Sea and it provides support for Moldova, Georgia and Ukraine to help them build defense capabilities. Romania is also a host for active equipment such as NATO's Multinational South-East Division who became active in December and thus strengthens our alliance defense. Last year I visited the NATO unit in Bucharest, one of the six small bases that we operate in Central and Eastern Europe.
This base will ensure that NATO troops will deploy e in Romania quickly if needed. Romania is also host to an important part of the missile defense system in Deveselu, "said Jens Stoltenberg.
According to the Secretary General of NATO, a strong alliance is an "essential basis" of a more effective dialogue with Russia.