President Klaus Iohannis held the first consultations of this term with parliamentary parties on Monday, reaching a consensus on a 2 percent Defense budget by 2017 and on keeping this level at least for ten years. Iohannis met at Cotroceni Palace all parliamentary parties on Monday, with all of them being willing to sign such an agreement. “I called parties for consultations today in order to propose them, for the first time in 25 years since the Revolution, to sign an agreement on Defense assumed by the entire political,” the Romanian head of state said after the meetings. Moreover, he informed that a consensus was also reached on keeping this agreement in force for at least ten years, during 2017-2027. “Thus, there will be predictability for this vital sector.” The agreement signing ceremony is due on Tuesday morning.
Iohannis said he considered necessary that the first topic to be before debate should be the one related to a political consensus for ensuring a proper financing of the Army.
“Europe and NATO must face the highest security challenge since the Cold war ending. It is for the first time that a state resorted to force in order to reshape the borders. All these serious facts are happening near our border and they cannot be ignored,” the Romania’s President argued.
He said that, even if we are NATO members, “it doesn’t mean that we must stand and wait for the others to ensure our security, paying for us from their own countries’ budgets”. “It is our duty to assess the situation in the region with maturity and to show we are an responsible nation,” Iohannis further stated.
As for the parties, they all agreed to sign for an increased defense budget, while each of them tabled their own proposals regarding other topics. The Democratic Union of the Magyars in Romania (UDMR) asked President Iohannis that another agreement should be signed between the parliamentary majority and the minorities.
The Conservative Party (PC) suggested the head of state to call for a referendum on the government, in the view of Constitution revision.
The Progressive Party (UNPR) proposed that the 2 percent allotment for the Army to be enforced starting next year, while PP-DD advanced idea of a new national union government.