Forumul Mării Negre – George C. Marshall Center

Am participat la Forumul Mării Negre, organizat la Palatul Parlamentului de către colegii mei Roberta Anastase și Răzvan Prișcă, în parteneriat cu George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies.

În cadrul panelului despre securitatea energetică am avut o intervenție prin care am subliniat modul în care Federația Rusă a folosit energia ca pârghie pentru presiune politică în războiul hibrid pe care îl duce împotriva Ucrainei. România a fost un factor de stabilitate regional și a ajutat Republica Moldova în a face pași vitali pentru tăierea legăturilor de aprovizionare cu energie din Rusia. Țara noastră are potențialul de a deveni un furnizor de securitate energetică pentru Europa de Sud-Est, iar cu ajutorul Uniunii Europene și al partenerului nostru strategic SUA, România se poate transforma într-un hub regional pentru energie curată.

Trăim într-o lume interconectată unde primordiale sunt parteneriatele noastre care au la bază valorile democratice comune și în domeniul securității energetice este valabil motto-ul pe care îl avem la NATO, și anume ÎMPREUNĂ SUNTEM MAI PUTERNICI!

Discursul integral:

"Distinguished audience,

Before diving into our topic of debate, I would like to extend my gratitude to the organizers for the opportunity to address the critical subject of energy security in this format. In today’s security paradigm, the regional and overarching global context outline the many vulnerabilities of the democratic world and the critical threats we are subject to, among which the
sector of paramount importance we are discussing today.

We all witnessed the Russian Federation using energy as a lever for political pressure, as part of its hybrid warfare arsenal. This was a lever used especially against import-dependent countries, but also on those that have high consumption rates given their industry requirements. Our lessons learned from these unfortunate times are that we need to strengthen our partnerships and secure our energy networks, while safeguarding our more vulnerable partners.

We cannot dissociate the specificity of the Black Sea region from the realities of energy. And here it’s when we should consider Romania’s sustainable energy development and its role in enhancing energy security and stability in the region. Romania has taken great steps in order to export stability, with the invaluable support given to the Republic of Moldova to make vital steps for cutting ties with the Russian supply of energy.

Romania invested over 400 million euros to modernize infrastructure linking the Black Sea resources with the Republic of Moldova, while our national company Transgaz acquired the entire gas transportation pipeline network, thus removing Gazprom grip.

We need to address the various ways the Russian Federation is exerting its malign influence and is trying to deny freedom of navigation and prevent building our critical energy infrastructure. We need our strategic partners from the democratic world to understand the specificity of the Black Sea and the ways they can support Romania to become an energy security provider for South-East Europe.

EU can make a difference in Romania’s plan of exploiting its opportunities and become a regional hub for clean energy. European funding instruments can be concentrated on developing our renewable energy production facilities, as well as further expanding the cross-border networks. I believe it is also vital to cooperate with the US, given the expertise and experience in energy efficiency, innovative technology and energy infrastructure security. And I will stress the US-UK Energy Security and Affordability Partnership can stand as a great example of cooperation, which we can work to adapt in a bilateral or multilateral format to sustain our regional goals of Romania becoming a hub projecting prosperity and security beyond its borders, both in terms of defense and energy.

Nevertheless for providing sustainable energy free from coercion, we need to raise awareness of the textbook the Russian Federation is using to exert a civilian form of A2AD (anti-access area denial) in the Black Sea. From sabotage and intimidation actions to law and information warfare, the Black Sea is a theater for a broad spectrum of hybrid actions. And if we want to further develop our energy resources in the Black Sea to insure national energy independence and become a provider for our region.

As a final note, I will only stress the paramount importance of our partnership based on shared democratic values, as it is the foundation for reaching our common goals for a safe and sustainable future in energy and beyond.

In the end I want to close, on a very NATO fashion, we are STRONGER TOGETHER! Thank you. "

București,

19.03.2024