Romania’s President Klaus Iohannis will be on a two-day working visit to Washington DC, the US, starting today, scheduled to be welcomed by the US President Joseph R. Biden at the White House.

According to a press statement released by the Romanian Presidential Administration, discussed at the meeting will be priority items on the international and bilateral agenda. A special place in the exchange of views of the two heads of state will be held by the situation in Ukraine and the Black Sea area, as well as by strengthening security in the Euro-Atlantic area. The high-level dialogue is said to be a good opportunity to raise the profile of the Strategic Partnership with the United States and reconfirm the privileged bilateral relations between the two countries and multisectoral cooperation.

Iohannis’ visit to the United States will be a good opportunity to reconfirm Romania’s role as a security provider and active player in managing international crises, respected by its NATO partners, says the Presidential Administration.

The official retinue that will accompany the Romanian head of state to Washington DC will include Minister of Foreign Affairs Luminita Odobescu and Minister of Home Affairs Catalin Predoiu.

On Wednesday, May 8, Iohannis will be awarded the Distinguished International Leadership Award for 2024, at the Atlantic Council Distinguished Leadership Awards gala.

The Atlantic Council of the United States has decided to honour Iohannis with the Distinguished International Leadership Award for his remarkable career, exemplary leadership of Romania, and his transatlantic and European leadership role.

According to the same source, Iohannis is the first European head of state so honoured in the 24 years since the award was established.

The Atlantic Council is a prestigious American think tank, founded in 1961, with a rich activity in the field of international affairs.

According to the organization, each year, the Distinguished Leadership Awards convenes a high-level international audience of more than six hundred policy, business, military, artistic, and civil-society leaders to celebrate individuals – including policy leaders, business executives, military brass, and artistic and humanitarian champions – who best represent the pillars of the global relationship.

The Distinguished Leadership Awards is said to be among the most important gatherings of international decision makers in Washington each year, recognized for its style, substance, prominent international guest list, and recognition of some of the world’s most influential changemakers.

Past recipients include US presidents George W. Bush, William J. Clinton, George H.W. Bush, and then-Vice President Joe Biden; European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen; current and former International Monetary Fund managing directors Kristalina Georgieva and Christine Lagarde; World Trade Organization Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala; NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg; and illustrious artists.

AGERPRES