Romania signs deal with Ukraine on joint defence production including drones

BUCHAREST, March 12 (Reuters) – The presidents of Romania and Ukraine signed a statement of intent on Thursday to produce Ukrainian defence systems including drones in Romania, they said after a meeting in Bucharest.

Romania, an EU and NATO member, shares a 650-km (400-mile) border with Ukraine, including along the Danube river where Ukrainian ports on the opposite bank have come under Russian attack and Russian drones have breached Romanian airspace.

After four years of fending off Russia’s assaults, Ukraine says it has developed drone and counter-drone systems that can help protect NATO countries.

A statement signed by the two presidents said they had agreed to “enable the production of Ukrainian defence systems and capabilities in Romania with the purpose of strengthening the defence industries of Ukraine and Romania.”

Last year, Romanian officials said they aimed to partner with Ukraine in building drones under a new EU defence funding mechanism, SAFE.

“We talked about our military cooperation and one of the documents we signed also includes cooperating on drone production,” said Romania’s President Nicusor Dan, a centrist who last year defeated a right-wing candidate sceptical of close ties to Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Ukraine’s expertise lay particularly in integrating drone software into a country’s wider defense system.

He said they also discussed energy, including the prospect of Ukraine importing U.S. liquefied natural gas through pipelines across Romania, and cooperating on energy projects in the Black Sea.

The two presidents also signed a document promoting partnership in areas ranging from defence to minority rights, and a separate document regarding energy cooperation.

Dan said Romania would support any legal means of unblocking EU aid to Ukraine that has been vetoed by Hungary.

(Reporting by Luiza Ilie, Editing by)