At meeting with President Iohannis, Polish, Turkish ForMins express support for goals of Romanian EU Presidency

President Klaus Iohannis welcomed at the Cotroceni Palace Polish and Turkish Foreign Ministers Jacek Czaputowicz and Mevlut Cavusoglu, as well as their Romanian counterpart Teodor Melescanu, on the occasion of their participation in the Romania - Poland - Turkey informal trilateral meeting organized in Bucharest, the Presidential Administration said in a release.

The talks focused on major ways of cooperation in this format, which was launched at the initiative of Romania in 2012, for the advancement of the regional and international security agenda starting from the main conclusions of the NATO Summit in Brussels this July.

"The Polish and Turkish Foreign Ministers emphasized during the talks the importance of the trilateral format, stressing that Romania is a reliable ally and partner, with whom they share similar security assessments, and expressed full support for the goals of Romania's upcoming term at the Presidency of the Council of the EU. The two ministers also shared their opinions on the outcomes of the NATO Summit this July," the release said.

On this occasion, President Iohannis evoked the Alliance's key role in managing the current challenges and highlighted the importance of the joint contribution of the three states, the largest allies on NATO's Eastern Flank, to achieving the goals of the North Atlantic Alliance. The President of Romania welcomed the progress made in strengthening the allied deterrence and defense posture, including as regards the strengthening of security on the Eastern Flank and in the Black Sea region, emphasized the need to fully implement the decisions taken at top level, and reaffirmed Romania's commitment to making an active contribution to these approaches as well as to assistance programs for partner countries.

With reference to the Eastern partners, President Klaus Iohannis highlighted the need to maintain an intensive dialogue with the Republic of Moldova, Georgia and Ukraine both at bilateral level, and as part of their their relationship with NATO, and encouraged in this context the capitalisation on the mechanisms of institutional cooperation between the North Atlantic Alliance and these partner states, with a view to supporting them strengthen the reform process and enhancing resilience in dealing with the current security threats. President Klaus Iohannis also showed the importance for Romania of the European integration of the Western Balkans and of the Eastern Partnership, respectively.

Klaus Iohannis also reaffirmed our country's commitment to continuing efforts to fight terrorism, including through a closer cooperation between NATO and the EU, highlighting the importance of Syria-related developments from a security point of view , as well as in terms of effects on the issue of migration. As regards the Three Seas Initiative, President Iohannis highlighted the Initiative's potential as an instrument to stimulate a strong transatlantic relationship, by the involvement of the EU and the US in supporting the goals of the summit next week.

Polish Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz voiced support for a strong transatlantic relationship, as well as appreciation for President Klaus Iohannis's personal involvement in stimulating synergies and enhanced cooperation, capable of benefiting security and the development of the region through this trilateral cooperation format, the Three Seas Initiative and the Bucharest Format (B9). At the same time, the Polish top diplomat expressed hope that the future Romanian Presidency of the Council of the European Union will strengthen support for the Eastern Neighborhood and Western Balkans partners.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu expressed appreciation for this trilateral dialogue and consultation format, which has proven its usefulness over time, contributing to a better understanding of the threats to regional security, especially those related to terrorism. The Turkish Foreign Minister also emphasized Turkey's desire to maintain a strong transatlantic relationship, and for a successful EU-NATO relationship. AGERPRES (RO - author: Florentina Peia, editor: Catalina Matei; EN - author: Simona Klodnischi, editor: Adina Panaitescu)