MFA has reiterated Romania’s interest that companies in Romania to be involved in setting the Deveselu Base. At the same time, the Defense Minister on Monday discussed with US officials on Mihail Kogalniceanu base, anti-missile capability in Deveselu and on the security situation in Eastern flank.
State Secretary for Strategic Affairs within the Foreign Affairs Minister (MFA) Bogdan Aurescu has reiterated on Tuesday the Romanian interest for companies in our country to be involved in the setting of Deveselu Base, on the occasion of the Multinational Conference on Defense Against Ballistic Missiles organized by the US Agency for Defense Against Ballistic Missiles and hosted by Romania. The Romanian official has had a meeting with the Director of the US Agency for Anti-Missile Defense, Vice Admiral James D. Syring, reads a Romanian MFA press release.
In the discussions there have been analyzed the progress of the US anti-missile defense system in Romania regarding the application of the Agreement between Romania and the USA on placing the defense system against ballistic missiles of the United States in Romania since 2011.
State Secretary Bogdan Aurescu has saluted the successful conduct, during 2014, of the tests involving elements of the Aegis Ashore anti-missile defense system, including the SM3 Block I B interceptors, that will be installed also at Deveselu Base, which confirmed the functionality of Aegis Ashore system as well as the running in optimal parameters of the Adaptive Approach in Steps regarding the Defense against Ballistic Missiles in Europe (European Phased Adaptive Approach / EPAA).
The two officials have agreed to continue the close dialogue on the development of the US anti-missile defense system in Romania and to regularly analyze its implementation and have expressed their satisfaction for the completion, in late July 2014, of the legal framework for implementing the 2011 bilateral agreement, reads the press release.
In this context, Vice Admiral James D. Syring has reaffirmed the US strong commitment for the Anti-Missile Facility within Deveselu Military Base to become operational in 2015, which will be an essential contribution to NATO defense system against ballistic missiles.
On Monday, the Romanian Defense Minister Mircea Du?a met Rose Gottemoeller, the US Undersecretary for Arms Control and International Security, and other senior officials with the US State and Defense Departments. “The bilateral military exercises, the presence of US military ships in the port of Constanta and of the US militaries at Mihail Kogalniceanu, as well as the support offered by the US within NATO are actions which demonstrate that the Romanian-American partnership is valuable, functional and important for Romania,” told Minister Mircea Dusa the US officials, according to a release issued by the Romanian Defense Minister.
Referring to the Deveselu anti-missile capability, Dusa said that Romania and the US have so far respected the “deadlines for accomplishing the agreed tasks to make it operational, and next year there will be continued the activities that aim at providing the necessary infrastructure and communication systems,” reads the statement.
Romania, US conduct joint “Mast Stepping” ceremony for Deveselu
Officials from Romania, the United States, Poland, NATO, and Turkey have conducted a joint Mast Stepping ceremony on Monday for the Aegis Ashore missile defense site now under construction at Deveselu, according to a release of the US Embassy to Bucharest. In naval tradition, when a mast is stepped (process of raising a ship’s mast and setting it into a notch or step in the keel at the end of the building process), those onboard the ship have the opportunity to contribute coins or other memorabilia to be placed under the mast for good luck.
In anticipation of the successful completion of the Deveselu Missile Defense Site in 2015, Romanian, US, Poland, Turkey, and NATO officials put items such as command or organizational coins, newspaper articles relating to the project and other memorabilia items into a box that will then be placed under the mast that will be put up at Deveselu.
The Aegis Ashore site at Deveselu is scheduled to begin operations by the end of 2015.