(This story has been republished to remove an incorrect image, with no changes to text)
By Luiza Ilie
BUCHAREST (Reuters) -NATO allies Romania, Bulgaria and Turkey should expand a joint task force that clears mines floating in the Black Sea to include patrols to protect energy facilities and trade routes from potential Russian attack, Romania’s defence minister said.
The Black Sea – especially Ukrainian waters – has been a crucial theatre of war since Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, and drifting sea mines have posed a threat to shipments of grain and oil, with several commercial ships being hit.
Romania, Bulgaria and Turkey, which share the Black Sea with Ukraine, Russia and Georgia, formed the de-mining task force last year.
“This project will have to be expanded to a patrol project in coming years. We will discuss it in the near future with our allies,” Ionut Mosteanu told Reuters in an interview.
“The Black Sea … will continue to be a battleground for Russia. We must discourage (Russia) and protect our interests, which are energy infrastructure, maritime trade and freedom of navigation. These are our objectives and they will be protected.”
Romania shares a 650-kilometre (400-mile) land border with Ukraine and has had Russian drone fragments repeatedly fall on its territory during the war. In the Black Sea, Mosteanu cited “nearly daily” attempts to jam GPS signals, saying Russia was likely behind them. Russia regularly rejects such accusations.
Romania will become the European Union’s largest gas producer and a net exporter from 2027 once a large offshore Black Sea gas project is completed.
The country has bought a light, ready-made warship from Turkey, but the defence ministry expects plans to purchase more small warships, or corvettes, to take years.
UKRAINE
Mosteanu also said Romania – which is currently trying to lower the highest budget deficit in the EU to avert a ratings downgrade and unblock funds from Brussels – would probably not contribute to NATO’s new “Priority Ukraine Requirements List” (PURL) financing mechanism.
Romania has donated a Patriot air defence battery to Ukraine. It is also training Ukrainian fighter pilots and has enabled the export of some 30 million metric tons of grain through its Black Sea port of Constanta.
Asked about a planned summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska on Friday that will focus on a possible peace deal for Ukraine, Mosteanu said he hoped it would result in a ceasefire.
“Everyone is waiting for a ceasefire and then for a just, lasting peace to be negotiated, with security guarantees for Ukraine,” he said.
(Reporting by Luiza Ilie; Editing by Gareth Jones)
