Romania-USA Strategic Partnership

Bucharest hosted the 6th annual Strategic Partnership Dialogue.

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Ştefan Stoica, 20.06.2018, 13:23

The strategic partnership with Washington is one of the core lines of Bucharests foreign policy. The importance of a sound trans-Atlantic connection, able to guarantee the security and prosperity of both states, was reaffirmed at the 6th annual Strategic Partnership Dialogue. Chairing the plenary meeting were Romanias deputy PM for strategic partnerships Ana Birchall and the US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Wess Mitchell.

According to a joint statement posted on the website of the US Embassy in Bucharest, the bilateral partnership is based on the shared commitment to the values and interests on which the West has been built. “Robust security cooperation is a vital part of the U.S.-Romania Strategic Partnership. We will work together in NATO in support of Allied solidarity, deterrence and defence, and burden sharing in keeping with the decisions taken by the Alliance at successive NATO Summits, reads the statement.

The American party praises Romanias substantial investment in developing the capabilities of its armed forces, which resulted in an increased contribution to the Allied security, and acknowledges Romanias influence in the region and the fact that this autumn it will host the Three Seas Initiative Summit.

The US also expresses its willingness to continue to work with the Romanian Government for the common priorities in the region, with a focus on facilitating investments in energy, the establishment of a single European energy market, on diversifying energy routes and resources, on enhancing competitiveness and transparency and on advancing the interconnectivity in the energy, infrastructure and digital fields.

The parties committed to carry on their close cooperation to widen the scope and depth of the economic and trade dimension of the Strategic Partnership. Bucharest and Washington acknowledged the importance of strengthening operational cooperation to prevent and eradicate human trafficking.

The Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Wess Mitchell also expressed hope that Romania will further its progress towards strengthening democracy and the rule of law. Romania, the US official added, has chosen to grow without corruption, and over the past few years it has taken steps of historic importance to this end. Romanias progress in fighting corruption is impressive, Wess Mitchell said, and added that the United States “applauds and encourages the work of Romania’s anti-corruption prosecutors “because this is how you remove vulnerabilities that hostile powers would use to undermine a nation.

A timely piece of advice, given the intense political, institutional and constitutional clashes in Romania, which, observers say, will ultimately seal the fate of the countrys judicial system independence.

(translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)