Southeast Europe Special Operations Forces Forum 2025 (SEESOF), the first international exhibition and forum dedicated to special operations forces, kicks off today in Targu Mures, with over 3,000 participants from over 20 countries expected in attendance.

SEESOF 2025 is organised by TNT Productions Romania, the Special Operations Forces Command and the George Emil Palade University of Medicine, Pharmacy, Sciences and Technology (UMFST) with support from Romania's Defence Ministry and takes place over two days.

UMFST is hosting the event that brings together representatives of elite military structures from over 20 countries, over 100 defence companies, security experts, government and academic representatives, as well as foreign SOF military.

SEESOF 2025 includes conferences and a specialised technology exhibition, the largest defence exhibition organised in Romania outside the capital city of Bucharest.

Among the participants, according to organisers, is General Bryan P. Fenton, commander of the United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM), one of the most important military leaders in the world in the field of SOF.

'The SEESOF exhibition will include state-of-the-art equipment, intended for special operations forces, but also other components of the national defence, public order and national security system, presented by leading companies. A key objective of the event is also to connect the local defence industry to global opportunities. Romanian companies will have the opportunity to interact directly with major international manufacturers, discover emerging technologies and establish strategic partnerships. Providers of advanced solutions for communications, mobility, surveillance, logistics, personal protection and cybersecurity will be present, with direct applicability in SOF missions,' the organisers said in a press release.

SEESOF 2025 also enjoys the support of the Murs County Prefecture, the Mures County Council and the Targu Mures City Hall.

'The launch of SEESOF completes the ecosystem of defence events built in the last 18 years by TNT Productions Romania, the organiser of BSDA - Black Sea Defence and Aerospace, the largest defence event in the Black Sea region. While BSDA provides the overview of military technologies in all five operational areas, SEESOF comes to put the spotlight on the extended capabilities of the special operations forces, the military branch with the highest level of mission complexity.'

Chief of Staff of Romania's Special Operations Forces Command Marian Barsan told a recent conference promoting the SEESOF 2025 project that the event will strengthen and coagulate the SOF structures in the Black Sea region.

'It is an event of increased complexity (...). We organise international exercises at the level of command, conferences with foreign partners every year, but we have never organised an event of a cultural, intellectual and economic nature of such magnitude. It is closely linked to our projects in the region. We appreciate that it will strengthen Romania's position as a regional pole in this field, because there are already around 15 allied and partner states that have announced their presence with military delegations in the field of special operations at this event, plus the part of defence companies. What we have set out to do, first of all, and it is not said here gratuitously, is to promote the local community and the excellent relations we have at the inter-institutional level (...). It will facilitate the exchange of ideas in areas of interest to both national security and the local community. The forum will strengthen and coagulate the SOF structures in the Black Sea region around us while providing a platform for defence industry operators to interact with the special operations forces in Romania, and with those in attendance,' said Barsan. AGERPRES (RO - writing by: Dorina Matis; EN - writing by: Corneliu-Aurelian Colceriu)