Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan met on Tuesday, at the Victoria Palace, with an Australian parliamentary delegation led by Milton Dick, Speaker of the House of Representatives of Australia. Within the talks, the possibility of opening an office to facilitate economic contacts between the two countries was proposed.

According to a Government release, the meeting marked the 55th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Romania and Australia and focused on developing political and economic cooperation.

Prime Minister Bolojan thanked Australia for its support during Romania's accession to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and discussed opportunities to increase bilateral economic exchanges.

'In this context, he mentioned the possibility of opening an office dedicated to facilitating economic contacts between the two countries. The talks also focused on identifying new areas of cooperation such as energy, defence, infrastructure and logistics. In this context, the organisation of an Australian economic mission to Romania in 2025 was discussed in order to facilitate direct contacts between companies,' the release said.

Furthermore, Prime Minister Bolojan also emphasized that the Port of Constanta is an important connection point between Central and Eastern Europe and that Romania is working on developing road infrastructure through motorway projects connecting the country with Ukraine and Hungary.

On the domestic level, Ilie Bolojan underscored that Romania is going through a challenging fiscal and budgetary period, however maintaining political stability remains essential to ensure the continuity of development projects, support the business environment and capitalise on growth opportunities in the coming period.

The Australian delegation praised Romania's efforts in defending democracy amid a complex geopolitical context and expressed interest in the security of the Black Sea region.

'Within the discussions about Ukraine's reconstruction, the strategic potential of the Port of Constanta and the investment opportunities it offers were highlighted,' according to the release.

The meeting was attended on the Australian side by Milton Dick, Sharon Claydon, Deborah O'Neill, Carol Brown, Andrew McLachlan, Claressa Surtees, Shannon Threlfall-Clarke, Jane Thomson, Alison Duncan, Widad Zouiten and Vlasios Ioannis Sakellariou.

On the Romanian side, the meeting was attended by Mihai Jurca, the Head of the Chancellery of the Prime Minister, Radu Gabriel Safta, Romania's Ambassador to Canberra, Dragos Hotea, the Secretary of State, as well as by other representatives of the Prime Minister's Chancellery. AGERPRES(RO - writing by: Daniel Florea; EN - writing by: Rodica State)