Romania in talks with Moldova on jointly developing counter-drone systems
Romanian Prime Minister Luca Nicolescu said during a visit to Chisinau that Bucharest is negotiating with Moldova on joint counter-drone programmes. Romania is also close to concluding talks on quickly acquiring such systems for its own defence.
Romania is holding talks with neighbouring Moldova on jointly developing systems to counter unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones. Romanian Prime Minister Luca Nicolescu announced this during a visit to Moldova's capital, Chisinau. His remarks were quoted by the Moldovan outlet Logos-Press and relayed by the Ukrainian news site European Pravda.
Procurement and domestic production
According to the prime minister, the government in Bucharest is close to completing negotiations on acquiring such systems as soon as possible for its own defence needs. Developing a drone programme is one of the government's priorities. At first Romania will obtain systems already familiar to Moldova, and later ones that it plans to produce domestically. In parallel, it is discussing with Moldovan partners the possibility of working together on counter-drone programmes.
Security threats and the SAFE programme
Nicolescu stressed that protecting citizens and strengthening defence cooperation are gaining particular importance amid Russian attacks and the related security threats in the region. He called the Russian attacks unacceptable and said protection must be ensured for all citizens, in both Moldova and Romania.
The prime minister also mentioned SAFE (Security Action For Europe), a European Union financial instrument that, in his words, will strengthen Romania's defence industry. He said the cooperation would also bring shared benefits to both countries. Nicolescu additionally described Romania's cooperation with Ukraine in the drone sector, drawing on experience of using such devices in real combat conditions.
Earlier steps
At the start of October, the defence ministries of Romania and Poland signed a letter of intent on cooperation under SAFE. In May, Romania's Ministry of National Defence signed a new contract for the supply of drones intended for surveillance and reconnaissance missions, also under this EU programme.
