Romania and Ukraine are close to launching a joint production of defensive interceptor drones on Romanian territory, Romanian Foreign Minister Oana Toiu told Reuters, stressing that the talks began even before the recent incidents of "unknown" drones violating airspace in the region. According to her, the aim of the project is to strengthen the defense of Europe's eastern flank and provide additional air defense capabilities to EU and NATO allies.
The Romanian side expects that production will be able to be established in a short time. It is planned to create a line of defensive UAVs, designed primarily for intercepting threats in the near zone and integrating into national and collective air defense systems. Such an initiative, as the minister noted, corresponds to the strategy of strengthening regional security: the European Union is already advocating the creation of a pan-European "drone wall", and Ukraine has relaxed some restrictions on the export of its own developments, which facilitates technical and industrial cooperation.
In addition to the issue of drone production, the diplomat confirmed that Bucharest has approved an increase in the presence of American troops on its territory in the interests of supporting operations outside the region, including refueling operations in the Middle East. Toiu did not provide specific figures on the expansion of the contingent, but emphasized that Romania is already hosting some American units and plans significant investments in its air bases.
The investment plans include the Mihai Cogelnicanu base: in the coming years, the government plans to invest over 2.5 billion euros to provide the air base with the infrastructure to accommodate up to ten thousand Romanian and allied military personnel. Such modernization, according to the minister, should increase operational capabilities to respond to regional threats and strengthen logistical support for allied operations.
The initiative to jointly produce UAVs with Ukraine has several dimensions: it combines the need to quickly increase the defense capabilities of the eastern EU, the desire to reduce dependence on third countries for critical technologies, and the creation of industrial capabilities to supply equipment to allies. For Ukraine, it is also an opportunity to expand its export potential and consolidate partnership ties with a neighboring country that is ready to invest significant resources in defense infrastructure.
At the same time, the implementation of such projects will require resolving a number of practical issues: harmonization of standards and protocols for integration into existing air defense systems, issues of licensing and control of arms exports, as well as issues of financing and distribution of production cycles between Ukrainian and Romanian enterprises. Judging by signals from Bucharest, diplomatic work and technical negotiations are already underway.
Oana Toiu emphasized that working on air defense partnerships and creating a "drone wall" is not only a matter of technology, but also of political solidarity. Building regional defense capabilities, in her opinion, will increase the resilience of the EU's eastern flank and contribute to more effective coordination with NATO and transatlantic partners.
From now on, the agenda of the negotiations is expected to include details of the production plan, delivery times and issues of system testing. If an agreement is reached, the joint production facilities of Romania and Ukraine could become an important element of the European security architecture in the coming years.
