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President Donald Trump explicitly affirms US commitment to Article 5 of NATO
The US President, Donald Trump, showed appreciation, on Friday, at the start of discussions with his Romanian counterpart, Klaus Iohannis, for the relation between Romania and the US, dubbing the Partnership between the two countries as "great"."It is an honor to have you here, a true ally, a wonderful country and a great relationship," said Donald Trump, at the beginning of the meeting with Klaus Iohannis.
In his turn, Klaus Iohannis said it is an honor to be at the White House.
"It is a great pleasure and an honor to be here and I'm looking forward to discussions on our Partnership," said President Iohannis.
In this context, Donald Trump replied: "Yes, a great Partnership".
During the joint press conference , the President of the United States, Donald Trump, has explicitly affirmed, on Friday, the USA's commitment towards Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty, by which member-states stand in solidarity with any member under attack. Trump had not mentioned this commitment in the first NATO summit that he took part in, in May, in Brussels.
At the joint press conference after the meeting at the White House with his Romanian counterpart, Klaus Iohannis, Trump answered a question from a Romanian journalist regarding the threat represented by Russia and a potential American reaction to a military aggression against a NATO member-state: "I am committing the United States and have committed, but I am commiting the United States to Article 5 and certainly, we are there to protect and that is one of the reasons that I want people to make sure we have a very strong force by paying the kind of money necessary to have that force. But yes, absolutely I'd be committed to Article 5."
The question mentioned the concerns of countries on the Eastern Flank of NATO, Romania included, that "see Russia as a threat of the security and peace of the region."
Everybody is concerned with what Russia is doing, also said President Klaus Iohannis, at the White House, during the press conference held with his US counterpart, Donald Trump, adding that dialogue is necessary for a feasible solution."Everybody is concerned, but you see, being concerned should lead you to being prepared, so in my opinion, we have to be very clear, very simple, and very straightforward if we talk about Russia and with Russia. In my opinion, we need dialogue, but on the other hand, we need what we all together decided in NATO, a strong deterrence. So this combination — strong deterrence and dialogue — should lead to a solution which is feasible for every part," said the head of state, responding to a question whether the actions of Russia should cause concern.
President of the United States, Donald Trump, has showed appreciation, on Friday, on the lead taken by Romania in increasing NATO funding by increasing its defence budget from 1.4 pct to over 2 percent of the GDP.At the joint press conference with President Klaus Iohannis, after the high-level meeting at the White House, Trump thanked for his Romanian counterpart for his leadership role in the anticorruption fight.
The President of the USA also recalled the military contribution of Romania in the fight against terrorism, including through the sacrifice of 31 servicemen.
President Klaus Iohannis stated, on Friday, that Romania relies on the Partnership with the USA in what regards the Eastern Flank."Romania is very aware of the fact that we stand on the Eastern Flank and we heavily rely on your Partnership, President Trump, because we cannot stand there without the US, we cannot stand there alone, on the other hand, our partnership has a huge opportunity to step up, not only in security matters, but also in commercial and economic matters, and this is very important. Romania is a member of the European Union and I think it's the best interest of you, Mr. President, to have a strong European Union as a partner", the head of state said at the joint press conference held at the White House together with his US counterpart, Donald Trump.
The Romanian President also emphasized that Romanian-American relations and the transatlantic link are vital.
"The transatlantic link is not about diplomacy, about policy, it's at the basis of our Western civilization. Together we will make it stronger, together we will make it better. NATO and the European Union do not have to compete against each other, they have to work together, they have to work in such a manner as to produce synergetic effects, make NATO stronger, make Europe stronger, make the United States of America stronger," Iohannis specified.
He also showed that strengthening the Strategic Partnership will lead to higher commercial trade.
"This is what we discussed, what we wish, because we are responsible, President Trump and I, not only for the security, we are responsible for the wellbeing of our citizens," the head of state concluded.
The Strategic Partnership between Romania and the USA must become stronger, should define the bilateral relations between the two countries, said President Klaus Iohannis, on Friday, at the press conference held together with his American counterpart, Donald Trump.
The Romanian President mentioned that this year marks the celebration of 20 years of Strategic Partnership, thus being very important for both nations. He continued by adding that the partnership with the US has shaped Romania as it stands today: a solid democracy, with a solid and durable economy, with a strong economic growth, a Romania that stands together with American troops in Afghanistan, in Iraq.
The partnership contributed to all that Romania is and was very important and it must become stronger, must define bilateral relations and must contribute to solving so many problems, the head of state said, in Washington.