Romania can be a key bridgehead, if not the most important one, for the reconstruction of Ukraine, Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure Secretary of State Ionel Scriosteanu said on Wednesday at the conference 'Italy & Romania, building together sustainable infrastructure.'

'Romania's transport infrastructure has advanced significantly over the last five years, especially in the area of road infrastructure, which I have overseen since 2019. We currently have 700 kilometres of motorways and expressways under construction. Major railway corridors are also being rehabilitated. In recent years, we have opened over 500 kilometres of motorways and expressways to traffic, some of which were built by Italian companies. We inaugurated the third-largest bridge in Europe through a partnership with an Italian firm, a true success, in my view. Just a few weeks ago, we signed off on the completion of this project, which has become a new symbol of Romania. We continue to rely on developing this relationship and partnership with Italian firms, and today's theme, sustainability, should become a new pillar of this collaboration. Sustainability and competitiveness. We must enhance competitiveness through our partnership, especially as the reconstruction of Ukraine, hopefully starting soon, will be a new challenge for both Romania and Italy, as I know Italy is becoming a very important factor in the reconstruction of Ukraine. I believe Romania can serve as a major bridgehead, if not the most important one, for the reconstruction of Ukraine,' Scriosteanu said.

He highlighted that, in recent years, infrastructure has been developed as close as possible to the Ukrainian border, with new customs checkpoints opened, existing ones rehabilitated, and railway links between Romania and Ukraine improved.

'The Braila Bridge can also be used for the transit of materials and other elements needed for Ukraine's reconstruction. Romania can be Italy's partner in this reconstruction plan, and I believe this is a direction we should explore in our discussions, including today's, while also considering the issue of sustainability,' he added.

The secretary of state also noted that Romania plans to focus more on developing its railway infrastructure in the near future, aiming to reduce freight traffic on the roads.

'Another direction we want to consolidate in the coming period, after focusing primarily on road infrastructure, is the railway system. In the years to come, we will place greater emphasis on railway development. According to the government programme, we want to reduce freight flows on roads and redirect them to rail. This will be a new chapter for Romania's infrastructure aimed at boosting freight transport competitiveness compared to neighbouring countries,' he said.

The 'Blue Motorway' is another project that could be developed through bilateral cooperation between Romania and Italy.

'Another direction we could develop through bilateral relations is the use of the Danube. We have a very important project concerning this ‘blue motorway' that runs into central Europe, and which currently remains underused. We have a project to regularise a navigable channel on the Danube, to make it predictable for freight transport 365 days a year. Once completed, transport will be much easier between the Port of Constanta via the Danube-Black Sea Canal and onwards along this ‘blue motorway', which offers a more sustainable, eco-friendly and even more competitive alternative to rail transport,' the MTI official added.

Secretary of State Ionel Scriosteanu participated on Wednesday in the event dedicated to Romanian-Italian infrastructure collaboration, 'Italy & Romania, building together sustainable infrastructure,' organised by the Italian Trade Agency (ITA), where AGERPRES National News Agency was one of the media partners. AGERPRES (RO - writing by: Oana Tilica; EN - writing by: Adina Panaitescu)