US and Romania sign agreement on direct loan to worth 920 million dollars to modernize the Romanian defense. This happened at a ceremony in the Romanian government building on Victory Square in Bucharest, broadcast live on social networks, BTA quoted.
The signatures under the document were put by the Romanian Finance Minister Marcel Bolosh and the director of the US Security and Defense Agency Michael Miller. The ceremony was attended by Prime Minister Marcel Çolaku and the US Ambassador to Romania, Kathleen Kavalek. They defined the agreement as proof of the strategic partnership between the two countries.
„ Romania's access to such significant funding is a strong argument for confidence, and for the status of our country. This agreement is only the first stage of the future defense-related projects that we will develop together with the United States,” said Marcel Cholaku.
He added that the funds will be used both to improve the country's defense capacity and to develop the local defense industry.
„We will create new jobs and have access to state-of-the-art technology that will allow us to work with the US and our NATO allies to address threats to countries on the Eastern Flank,” he added. the Romanian Prime Minister.
The US ambassador to Romania Kathleen Kavalek informed that the responsible institutions prepared the agreement in a record short time – four months.
„This is not just a financial agreement, but proof of our sustainable bilateral partnership,”, she emphasized. According to Kavalek, it will also improve the economic relations between the USA and Romania.
„In the 20 years since Romania joined NATO, it has proven to be a reliable and capable partner, a factor of stability on the Eastern flank and in the Black Sea region,” added the American ambassador.
She expressed the view that the signing of this agreement is important given the challenges arising from the war in Ukraine and the aggressive behavior of Russia.
„ Romania's response is an example – from the aid to refugees, the wheat corridors he provided, to the training of Ukrainian pilots to fly the F-16“, Kavalek added.
At the end, she assured the Romanian people that the US will always support Romania in matters of defense and the protection of its sovereignty.
As BTA reported, the loan was provided through the US Foreign Military Sales (FMS) mechanism with a 12-year repayment plan. Withdrawals from the loan will be made by the Ministry of National Defense of Romania up to 700 million dollars and by the Ministry of Economy and the Romanian National Company "Romarm" up to $220 million through the account opened by the US government at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
The Ministry of Finance claims that the loan will not affect the state budget.
On August 21, the government approved an emergency regulation creating the legal framework allowing Romania to access funds on favorable financial terms through the Foreign Military Financing (FMF) program offered by the US government and other countries.