EUNAVFOR MED Irini / 3 month mission of Romanian Naval Forces in Mediterranean Sea

The minelayer Vice Admiral Constantin Balescu (PM-274), with a detachment of combat divers on board, is departing on Thursday, from the military port of Constanta, to take part in the EUNAVFOR MED Irini operation, in the Mediterranean Sea, between October 1 - December 31. The mission of the Romanian sailors consists of enforcing the UN embargo on arms imposed on Libya and combating the illicit trafficking of oil, drugs and persons, by monitoring maritime traffic and by executing inspections on suspicious vessels in the Mediterranean basin, shows a release of the Romanian Naval Forces sent on Wednesday to AGERPRES. According to the source, the participation of the Romanian Army, with the capacities of the Romanian Naval Forces, in the Irini Operation contributes to fulfilling the commitments Romania assumed towards the European Union, as well as to ensure security in the Mediterranean Sea, through the participation in the joint European effort to cease the conflict in Libya. During the over 100 days of deployment in the Black and Mediterranean Seas, the minelayer will conduct training stops and stops to recover battle capacity in ports in southern Italy and Greece. The Romanian military ship is commanded by Commander Daniel Gheorma, and the 85 members of the crew were vaccinated against COVID-19, tested and quarantined in the Romanian Naval Forces accommodation facilities, before leaving on mission, for the safe conduct of activities. The minelayer Vice Admiral Constantin Balescu is at its first major interest international mission for the Romanian Naval Forces, after ensuring, in the January - June 2020 period, command of the Standing NATO Maritime Counter Measures Group Two (SNMCMG-2) and executed specific missions, together with partners in the Alliance, in the Black Sea and the Mediterranean Sea, the quoted source mentions. AGERPRES (RO - author: Georgiana Tanasescu, editor: Irina Poenaru; EN - author: Razvan-Adrian Pandea, editor: Simona Iacob)