DefMin Vasile Dincu: Romania sending soldiers or equipment to Ukraine is out of the question

Romanian Minister of Defense, Vasile Dincu, said on Wednesday, before the CSAT meeting scheduled for 13.00, that “there is no question of a NATO military intervention in Ukraine”.   At the same time, he stressed that Romania sending soldiers or equipment to Ukraine is out of the question, adding that there was no discussion about activating the reservists.   The Minister of Defense stated that the NATO allies’ wish is to fortify the eastern flank, to bring more troops and equipment, but no deadlines have been set yet. “Even if a NATO military intervention is out of the question, there will certainly be chain consequences on the security of the area and even on Europe, it is about energy supply chains, the banking system.There is a desire of the Allies to fortify this eastern flank, to bring more troops and equipment in case of a conflict, we do not have deadlines, but there are very clear procedures for each. When we finish the CSAT, we will be able to talk about the procedures as well “, declared the Minister of Defense.   Dincu also rejected the possibility of Romania sending troops to Ukraine.“There is no question of sending soldiers or equipment to Ukraine. If you look at NATO rules, NATO can’t do that either. Deploying troops can only be done if a NATO member state is threatened. This is not the case with Ukraine. No activation of reservists was discussed. We are not in this situation.”He explained that every year, by rotation, a check is conducted, an inventory of the reservists and their condition.   Asked if Romania would support possible sanctions against Russia, Vasile Dincu replied: “Romania is part of NATO and assumes its obligations and joint projects. If this is decided, Romania will decide, but for that, the process is a collective one, all the countries are consulted and the exact situation is being studied. Romania will have something to say there as well“.   When questioned what is the biggest threat for Romanians – the pandemic, the war or the huge energy bills, the Minister of Defense replied: “Each of these areas has its own degree of danger. For the population at this moment the biggest threat is energy bills (…) We talked about the threat to the population, not about the threats against Romania. The population is more affected by bills at this moment than the international situation,” Dîncu said.