Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu said on Wednesday that there are prospects that the Romanian defence industry will soon bring in impressive contracts and run billions of euros into the economy.
Attending the Black Sea Defence and Aerospace International Exhibition, Ciolacu said it is the largest event of its kind dedicated to the defense industry in the Black Sea region. The presence of 400 companies from 31 countries proves the „importance” of this event, Ciolacu added.
„We have today the prospect that the Romanian defence industry will bring in a short time impressive contracts and run into the economy billions of euros, developing dozens and hundreds of other supply companies on the horizontal, and the best example is that today, at this event, commercial agreements will be signed with important international partners. The Cugir Mechanical Plant will produce weapons and armament (…) together with a German company. Romarm and the American concern General Dynamics are developing a partnership for the modernization and development of new capacities for the production of large calibre ammunition to NATO standards, and Romaero, about which many believed would enter bankruptcy, returns as a major provider of maintenance and repair services for Boeing and Airbus aircraft. It will sign a memorandum with a long-standing partner in Hungary,” Ciolacu said.
He also referred to other „big projects” already signed with the USA, Germany, South Korea, France and other countries.
„We will make major investments in Romania to develop new and modern units, and the fact that we have obtained a first ever financing of 50 million euros from the European Commission for the powder plant developed together with Rheinmetall shows that we are working at a new pace in this area. I know that Minister Radu Oprea is preparing another ambitious Romanian drone project. I would sincerely like to see a stand dedicated to this project at next year’s edition. It would be a clear and strong signal that our defence industry has started to fly, not figuratively, but literally,” said Marcel Ciolacu.
The PM mentioned that, at present, „most of the defense industry units are working in three shifts, making unprecedented commitments and carrying out refurbishment projects,” some of which are financed with European money. One of the explanations is „the close partnership between the ministers of Defence and Economy,” Ciolacu added. In this regard, he congratulated National Defence Minister Angel Tilvar and Economy Minister Radu Oprea, for the fact that they understood that „only by working together, the national defence industry can have a solid future.”
„In the context of the bloody conflict in Ukraine, the revitalisation of the national defence industry has become a priority of the Government I am leading. In fact, there is no European state that does not make major efforts to invest massively in this strategic sector. Romania cannot afford to make the mistakes of the past, when armament plants were closed down and the remaining ones were threatened with bankruptcy. At least in the last year, me and my colleagues in the Government have been in a race against the clock, overcoming situations that seemed impossible, all in order to secure the necessary budget funding, external partnerships and a new legal framework for Romanian plants to resume full activity,” Ciolacu said.
AGERPRES
