Admiral Rob Bauer visited Bucharest, Romania on 3-4 September 2021. He participated in the fifth edition of the Black Sea and Balkans Security Forum 2021 and visited the Romanian Ministry of Defence where he was welcomed with full military honours.
While attending the forum, the Chair participated in the panel titled “Deterrence and Defence in the Euro-Atlantic Space. A Unitary and Comprehensive Response for the Safety of the Black Sea Region and the Balkans”. The moderator was Major General (ret.) Leonardo Dinu, member of the Scientific Council, New Strategy Center and former Deputy Chief of the Romanian Military Intelligence Directorate, while his fellow panellists were the Chief of Defence of Romania, Lieutenant General Daniel Petrescu, and Rear Admiral Alfonso Delgado Moreno, Assistant Chief of Staff J5, Allied Joint Force Command Naples, Italy.
Delivering his remarks, Admiral Bauer stressed, “Challenges, risks and threats emerge everywhere, from the Alliance’s north, south, east and western flanks. At any one time, we may need more than one regional military response plan in play. And they need to complement each other.” He went onto say, “Overall, the Black Sea and Balkan regions have seen remarkable stabilization, normalization, and reconciliation. The history of this region teaches us a lot about resilience”.
During his discussions with the Romanian Chief of Defence, Lieutenant General Daniel Petrescu, Admiral Bauer welcomed Romania’s steadfast commitment to the Alliance. The Chair stated, “Romania makes important contributions to our shared security. You contribute to the NATO – led Kosovo Force Mission and NATO’s Enhanced Forward Presence battlegroup in Poland. You host the Multinational Division South-East Headquarters as well as the Aegis Ashore at Deveselu, as a contribution to NATO’s Missile Defence system. The Aegis Ashore helps protect Allied nations against missile threats from outside the Euro-Atlantic area.”
Romania joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation on 29 March 2004.