The NATO Summit from Bucharest will bring some important aspects for the future of the North-Atlantic Alliance, but also for Romania, as a member of the Alliance, and as a state located at NATO’s borders, in a region marked by problems, but also opportunities, declared Ambassador Sorin Ducaru, permanent NATO representative of Romania.
Regarding the new elements brought by the Bucharest Summit, the Romanian Ambassador mentioned that the reunion is the “summit with the largest participation and the most complex agenda” in the Alliance’s history. Also, explained the Ambassador, the Summit brings elements of novelty, “since it is the first time when at a NATO Summit we have the confirmation that, during a reunion connected to the most important operations of the Alliance in Afghanistan, there will be the highest level participation of the Secretary General of ONU, Ban Ki-Moon, and of the President of the European Commission, Jose Manuel Barroso”. “The Bucharest Summit will have an interesting agenda, that will keep us in suspense for the next days till the Summit starts. It is a Summit on whose agenda there are issues such as the enlargement of the Alliance with countries from the same political region as Romania. We are speaking of that “open doors” policy of NATO, that must be continued by upgrading the quality of the relationship with some countries. For instance, there is a petition for an Action Plan to join NATO (AP) from Ukraine and Georgia, and it is also possible for some NATO partner states from the Balkans to join the Intensified Dialogue with the Alliance.”, explained Sorin Ducaru.
On this occasion, the Romanian official reminded the fact that Romania is a country that promoted the idea that the Bucharest NATO Summit should be an event targeted on the Alliance’s partners, a Summit of the Euro- Atlantic Partnership, in view of maintaining the value of the Alliance’s partnerships, especially the value of the Euro-Atlantic Partnership. According to the Romanian Ambassador, “through its complexity, stakes, and the fact that there will be a NATO-Russia Council conducted at the level of heads of states, as well as a reunion of the NATO-Ukraine Commission, the Bucharest Summit will therefore bring important aspects for the future of the Alliance, and also for Romania, as member of the Alliance, as our country lies at NATO borders, in a region marked by problems but also by opportunities”.
For Romania, the importance of this Summit, explained the Ambassador, lies in the fact that our country shares as an ally the Alliance’s view on some major issues, that can be divided into three chapters. One of these chapters is connected to enlargement, open-doors policy, and partnerships, another chapter is connected to the Alliance’s operations in Afghanistan and Kosovo, while the third is connected to the response to the threats targeting the security of the 21st century, such as terrorism, anti-missile defense, energetic security, defense against cybernetic threats.
The Romanian Ambassador also underlined the fact that some topics of the future NATO Summit of Bucharest have a bigger importance for Romania than others. “One of these relevant topics for Romania is enlargement, because it is about the enlargement of the Alliance by including some countries from our area, a fact contributing to the regional stability. Another significant issue is the “open-doors” policy, because Romania would like for NATO to disregard natural borders, to allow the evolution of other states to a status qualifying them for joining NATO, if, of course, those countries are interested in joining the Alliance”, mentioned Sorin Ducaru. Also, for Romania, the new threats, such as those regarding energetic security, cybernetic security and the anti-missile defense prove to be extremely relevant, added the Romanian Ambassador at NATO.
(Source: Rompres)
