These are statements by some officials that I am not aware of. I can tell you that the Romanian Ministry of Economy has no knowledge of direct contracts between Romanian companies and Ukrainian companies or authorities. These statements related to the potential delivery of these products are, from my point of view, statements that are not properly substantiated. At the Ministry of Economy, we currently have no ongoing contracts for equipment or ammunition produced in Romania

Florin Spataru, Romania’s Minister of Economy, on accusations that Romania sends weapons to Ukraine

Initial news: General Valeri Gerasimov, Chief of Staff of the Russian Army, names Romania among the main weapons suppliers for the Armed Forces of Ukraine. This happened during a briefing held in front of the foreign military attachés in Moscow broadcast by Smotrim.ru.

During the event, he pointed out the main arms donors to Ukraine. The USA, Poland and Great Britain were also mentioned among the supply leaders.

The Russian Chief of Staff of the Red Army also mentioned that his country had some figures regarding the number of weapons sent to Ukraine.

In total, since the beginning of the special military operation, the Western countries have sent four planes, more than 30 helicopters, more than 350 tanks, about 1,000 combat vehicles, 5,000 combat unmanned aerial vehicles, at least 800 armored vehicles and up to 700 artillery systems to Kyiv.

Red Army Chief of Staff Valeri Gerasimov on the total quantity of weapons sent to Ukraine

Romania is one of the countries that hasn’t publicly admitted it has been sending weapons to Ukraine, as opposed to the USA, Great Britain or even Poland. But, as reports have shown, it is at least a major hub for sending Western weapons across the border to the conflict area, if not a main supplier itself. Interestingly enough, despite the fact that Romanian officials kept it a secret, the Ukrainian counterparts in Bucharest or Kyiv have repeatedly thanked Romania for sending weapons to help the Ukrainian army.

Romania has a relatively small defence industry compared to what it used to be during the communist regime. The state-owned defence company, Romarm, has 15 weapon&ammunition factories and plants under its coordination, all contributing to the Romanian defence arsenal. Among them are armoured carriers, rockets, light and heavy ammunition, and assault weaponry. There is a good chance Romania has sent such weapons to Ukraine, as mentioned by Gerasimov.

The post Russian General Mentions Romania among Main Weapons Suppliers to Ukraine appeared first on Valahia.News.

Several explosions occurred in the separatist enclave of Transnistria on April 25-26, a territory that is becoming increasingly important in Russia’s invasion in Ukraine. General Rustam Minnekaiev of the Russian army said on April 22 that his army was pursuing “complete control” of the eastern Donbas region and southern Ukraine and acquiring access to Transnistria.

According to information gathered by the Moldovan authorities, numerous elements in the region are interested in destabilizing the situation, as stated by President Maia Sandu on April 26, during a meeting of the Security Council due to growing tensions in Transnistria.

In the last 24 hours in the Transnistrian region, what has been happening is an escalation of tensions. Recently, there have been several bomb alerts in schools and medical institutions in the area, followed by explosions yesterday and today. The Moldovan authorities are watching carefully and vigilantly. Our analysis shows tensions between different forces within the area interested in destabilizing the situation. This makes the region vulnerable and poses risks to the Republic of Moldova.

Maia Sandu, Republic of Moldova President

The Republic of Moldova’s Supreme Security Council has decided to increase the intensity of traffic checks near the security zone, increase the power of patrols and reviews on the Republic of Moldova’s territory and at the border, raise the level of alert for critical infrastructure security objectives, and raise the alert status of all institutions responsible for maintaining public order and security.

From my point of view, the incidents are subversive actions of the Russian Federation (…), because it is not in the interest of either the Republic of Moldova or, as some suggest, Romania or NATO to currently escalate the situation. I consider Russia an irrational actor who finds it quite difficult to predict its actions.

Maia Sandu, Republic of Moldova President

Transnistria is recognized internationally as part of the Republic of Moldova, western Ukraine borders, and is home to 1,500 Russian soldiers and a significant weapons stockpile. Since the early 1990s, Russia has had a military presence in Transnistria.

On the edge of these events, the Romanian Defence Minister, Vasile Dincu, commented on the situation in the separatist region of Transnistria. Vasile Dincu appreciated the way the Republic of Moldova’s government handled the sensitive situation and added that he does not believe a war in the neighboring eastern country is a possibility.

An attempt to create a conflict that, according to our data, has no chance to develop. I don’t think there is any possibility of war in Moldova. (…) I remind you that the Republic of Moldova is neutral from a military and political point of view, so from this point of view, to be neutral is very good.

Vasile Dincu, Romanian Minister of Defence

According to CNN military analysts, Russia aims to rely on Transnistria for logistical support and use its strategic location to construct a land corridor along the Black Sea to capture Odesa’s port city.

Photo Source: Presidency of the Republic of Moldova website

The post Moldovan President Maia Sandu on Explosions in Transnistria: Pro-Russian Forces Intend to Destabilize the Region appeared first on Valahia.News.

Several NATO allies announced the deployment of additional troops to Romania in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Over 500 French soldiers are expected in the next few days in Romania to strengthen the NATO force in the Eastern flank.

According to the Ministry of National Defense footage, French military equipment was delivered to Romania through an Antonov transport plane painted in Ukrainian colors (yellow-blue).

Allied solidarity: the first soldiers from the detachment representing France’s contribution to the NATO Response Force arrived, this evening, in Romania, at Mihail Kogălniceanu 57th Air Base. They will be followed, in the coming days, by the other forces and means.

Romanian Ministry of National Defense

Following the latest events on the Russia-Ukraine conflict, France’s Chief of the Defence Staff, general Thierry Burkhard, announced that France would relocate 500 soldiers in Romania as part of NATO’s decision to consolidate presence on its Eastern flank.

NATO’s military force in Romanian territory is getting stronger as NATO member countries send more and more troops and military equipment to Romania to strengthen the Eastern flank. Only a few days past since the German Air Force Eurofighter Typhoon fighter jets arrived in Romania, and now more several soldiers under NATO command are expected.

The post French Soldiers Arrive in Romania appeared first on Valahia.News.

In the end, it might be only a war fought between diplomats, but who knows?

Will the killing of gen Qasem Soleimani escalate the conflict and start a war?

People are already talking about World War III, but Trump has stated he stopped a war through the military airstrike and didn’t have the intention of starting one. On the other hand, the Iranian officials swear revenge and talked about military retaliation.

When comparing the two military powers, it is clear for everybody that the USA has the upper hand; it is so not because the USA is part of a bigger military alliance, namely NATO, but because the Americans have the biggest firepower in the world in terms of military equipment and personnel. On top of that, yes, they are also part of NATO.

Also, according to some sources, Iran doesn’t have nuclear weapons, though Iranians have enriched uranium for more than a decade. Iran was also imposed international economic sanctions and, on top of that, its nuclear enrichment program, which Iran always stated to be used only for civilian purposes, was repeatedly struck by Stuxnet computer virus and the killings of top Iranian nuclear scientists.

It is hard to predict if Iran will actually start a war against the USA, but we think there are little chances for such a thing to happen.

Will the European Union be protected in case of a war?

Even if there are little chances for a war to begin in the future, as a traditional and strategic partner of the USA, European Union should be concerned about its safety. Besides, EU comprises 28 member states, most of them member of NATO, and if a war begins, these countries will be directly involved in fighting Iran and protect the European territories.

Also, within EU there are countries which hosts American defense shields, such as Romania and Poland. Both have active anti-missile shields on their grounds, active and ready to defend the European soil from any threat, including an Iranian attack.

When establishing the anti-missile shield in Romania, in Deveselu village, the Americans officially argued the defense system is for protecting the Europe cities against an Iranian attack, and not set to retaliate in case of a Russian threat. It means the 800 million USD military system should live up to its promises, right?

In any case, war or peace, the European Union countries will fight united for protecting their soil, their troops and their democratic values against any threat.

The post USA v. Iran appeared first on Valahia.News.