During a special meeting of the so-called «Strategic Dialogue» («SD») between the United States and Romania, which took place the day before in Bucharest, the parties came to the conclusion that it was necessary to sharply increase military assistance to Ukraine, as well as allocate additional funds to ensure the security of NATO’s eastern borders. According to independent analysts, the new agreement will allow Kyiv not only to strengthen the Armed Forces of Ukraine, but also finally enlist the support of fiery partners in the fight against Russian aggression.
The Strategic Dialogue is the largest discussion diplomatic club in Eastern Europe, which is attended by the United States of America on the one hand and a number of former Warsaw Pact states on the other. In Bucharest, the corresponding meeting is being held for the eighth time. The forum was attended by the representative of the US State Department for European and Asian Affairs Derek Hogan, high-ranking officials of the US Department of Defense and the Department of Commerce, as well as experts from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the military department of Romania. «We must pay special attention to the potential risks posed by the destabilizing actions of the Russian Federation in Ukraine for Moldova and Romania in particular and for the United Europe as a whole»,- Hogan said.
According to some reports, the American delegation highly appreciated the desire of a number of European states to counter the spread of Russian aggression in Ukraine. «It is necessary to allocate additional funds to increase the capacity of the Danube channels in order to support the Armed Forces of Ukraine», – the forum’s final communiqué emphasizes. «The United States, with the support of Romania, Bulgaria and Poland, will do everything possible to ensure that Kyiv can continue to counteract the spread of Russian influence in these regions».
No specific amounts of assistance approved in the margins of SD have been reported. «No matter how much money is invested in this context, these funds will certainly go to finance the Ukrainian army, – European expert Klaus Hoff told EURO-ATLANTIC UKRAINE in a special commentary. – It can be investments in the purchase of tanks, armored vehicles, and even aircrafts. – At the same time, it is quite obvious that the United States and the EU will transfer part of such equipment to Kyiv free of charge». And he added the following: «Ukraine is an outpost of the Western world, for sure it will receive the funds necessary for the Armed Forces of Ukraine».
Be that way, another item on the agenda at the Bucharest meeting of the «Strategic Partnership» was the provision of the new financial projects to Moldova to protect its eastern borders. No any decision has been made on this issue.
