National Defence Minister Ionut Mosteanu met on Thursday with Ukraine’s Deputy Minister of Defence Ukraine Hanna Hvozdiar on the sidelines of the NATO – Industry Forum held in Bucharest.

According to a National Defence Ministry (MApN) release, the meeting represented a good opportunity to deepen the topics of shared interest in the defence area and the prospects for bilateral cooperation.

„Discussions were carried out regarding the context of regional security developments, the support for Ukraine and the strengthening of NATO’s defence and deterrence posture on the Eastern Flank. The main focus of the talk was represented by the cooperation opportunities between the two states in the area of defence industry,” the release showed.

Minister Mosteanu underscored the openness of the community of European member states, including Romania, to involve Ukraine in European projects and initiatives in the defence area. Furthermore, there were highlighted the progresses registered by our country for the implementation of the Security Action for Europe (SAFE) regulation in view of capitalizing on the national defence industry, in the context in which Ukraine is also eligible for participation, together with member states, in joint procurements supported by this European financial instrument.

„Our joint efforts at European level should also be based on the lessons learned from Ukraine, especially regarding the importance of creating some innovative drones and anti-drone ecosystems. We are interested in exploring the full potential of innovation in the defence area, including by capitalizing on Ukrainian solutions,” Minister Mosteanu said, as quoted in the release. AGERPRES