The Black Sea region is a critical component of NATO’s defence, of NATO’s strategy, but it is not an independent element, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told a joint press conference with the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bogdan Aurescu, in Bucharest on Tuesday, Agerpres reports.

Blinken said that „Russia has turned parts of the Black Sea into a war zone.”

„We see missiles [launched – editor’s note] from warships coming into Ukrainian cities and towns, Russian forces are blocking Ukrainian ports causing what it’s been the worst food security crisis in years and, thankfully, because of important efforts by the UN and Turkey, we were able to get the Black Sea corridors going and, of course, Romania has been playing a critical role in the export of grain and other foodstuffs from Ukraine to help feed the world. So, we are not going to be deterred going forward, we are going to reinforce NATO’s presence from the Black Sea to the Baltic Sea. And, in that effort, we are working constantly between each other as well as with NATO, to effectively reform and reinforce the Black Sea strategy. Romania is a vital contributor to that effort and, of course, to the broader effort of making sure that we have the strongest possible defence of the alliance,” Blinken underscored.

Blinken recalled that, currently, more than 3,000 US soldiers are stationed in Romania, and at the same time noted Romania’s contribution of 2.5pct of GDP to Defence, and called Romania a „key contributor to the security of the Black Sea.”

Agerpres