Romania's president says his country will focus on strengthening its military capabilities through European equipment purchases rather than relying on American arms.
In an effort to counterbalance a strategic shift by the US towards Asia, Romania's President Nicușor Dan emphasized that his nation remains committed to its transatlantic relations with the United States. However, he stressed that the decision of some US troops being withdrawn from Romanian soil was "just a technical decision" and not something to be overly worried about.
The president acknowledged that while Romania has around 1,000 American soldiers stationed in the country, the presence of these troops is being re-evaluated by both parties. Nonetheless, Dan reassured that the overall partnership between the US and Europe will endure, despite some changes in the global strategic landscape.
Romania's focus on strengthening its own military capabilities through European equipment purchases has been boosted by the EU Commission's SAFE initiative, a €16 billion security action plan aimed at enhancing member states' defense capabilities. As the second-largest beneficiary of this program after Poland, Romania plans to use part of the funding to bolster its response to drone threats.
In an effort to revitalize its stagnant economy and tackle corruption, Dan proposed reforms that will improve administrative efficiency and strengthen anti-corruption measures. However, the president also noted that public trust has been eroded due to widespread disillusionment with traditional party politics, instead calling for a new wave of civic engagement to tackle this issue.
"We need something completely different," said Dan, referring to the 40% of Romanians who support the hard-right Alliance for the Union of Romanians. However, he cautioned that not all of these supporters were pro-Russian or anti-European; rather, they were seeking fresh alternatives to traditional politics.
In an effort to counterbalance a strategic shift by the US towards Asia, Romania's President Nicușor Dan emphasized that his nation remains committed to its transatlantic relations with the United States. However, he stressed that the decision of some US troops being withdrawn from Romanian soil was "just a technical decision" and not something to be overly worried about.
The president acknowledged that while Romania has around 1,000 American soldiers stationed in the country, the presence of these troops is being re-evaluated by both parties. Nonetheless, Dan reassured that the overall partnership between the US and Europe will endure, despite some changes in the global strategic landscape.
Romania's focus on strengthening its own military capabilities through European equipment purchases has been boosted by the EU Commission's SAFE initiative, a €16 billion security action plan aimed at enhancing member states' defense capabilities. As the second-largest beneficiary of this program after Poland, Romania plans to use part of the funding to bolster its response to drone threats.
In an effort to revitalize its stagnant economy and tackle corruption, Dan proposed reforms that will improve administrative efficiency and strengthen anti-corruption measures. However, the president also noted that public trust has been eroded due to widespread disillusionment with traditional party politics, instead calling for a new wave of civic engagement to tackle this issue.
"We need something completely different," said Dan, referring to the 40% of Romanians who support the hard-right Alliance for the Union of Romanians. However, he cautioned that not all of these supporters were pro-Russian or anti-European; rather, they were seeking fresh alternatives to traditional politics.
so yeah i think romania making its own moves with european equipment is a good idea... but is it just gonna be another case of copying what the west already has 
? and dan's all about revamping gov't efficiency, but how's he planning on tackling that 40% of romanians who are literally fed up with politics 
. I mean, having more options in terms of defense isn't a bad thing, right? It shows that Romania wants to be an independent player on the global stage and not just rely on one country's arms 
.
. I know President Dan said it was just a technical decision, but still, it's a big change 
. Hopefully, it won't affect the overall partnership between the US and Europe too much 
.
. It's like they're trying to balance two very different plates here 
. But hey, I'm sure President Dan is doing his best to bring about some real change 
. Fingers crossed that it'll work out in the end 
.
dan's ideas about civic engagement are kinda promising tho 
i feel like we need a major overhaul of our political system to even think about fixing this stuff 
and those eu funding plans for military equipment are super interesting btw 
but then he's also talking about us getting our own military gear from europe? like, which one is it? are we trying to balance out our reliance on american arms or what? 
and btw 40% of romanians supporting the alliance for the union of romaniuns seems pretty big - do they even know that's a hard-right party? 
anyhoo i think its cool that they're tryna strengthen their mil capabilities tho might make them less dependant on usa 
what do u guys think?
and btw that EU commission's SAFE initative is literally the best thing thats happened 2 romanian defence in ages 
and btw that 40% of romanians supportin hard right politics is scary af 
but dan's right not all of them r pro russian or anti european they just want somethin new 
maybe Dan's right that it's just a technical decision though 
Dan's proposal for administrative efficiency and anti-corruption measures is a good start 
hope they can find ways to channel their frustrations into something positive instead of turning to extremist ideologies 
and buys european equipment instead? like what's next, uk and france starting a eu military lol 
but dan's trying to spin it as "just technical stuff" 
... like, who can blame him? We've seen some pretty sketchy stuff go down in Romanian politics lately... and I think it's high time for a new wave of civic engagement to shake things up 
. Maybe this is the wake-up call Romania needs to get back on track?
. Fingers crossed this new initiative brings about real change! 
. Can't say I blame 'em, American military presence can be a drag 
anyway, i'm low-key impressed that he's tryna tackle corruption and get admin efficiency sorted out 
. anyway, romanian president dan seems like he's trying to address some corruption issues in his country which is super important 
. but what if europe starts producing more cool electric cars? that would be awesome 
. Like, I'm not even sure what that means anymore 
. Let's hope they can get Romania's economy back on track and stuff 
what's next? maybe a romanian-led european defense alliance? 