Peace in Europe is not a given but a commitment that must be renewed every day, and Romania and France are upholding that commitment together, interim Foreign Affairs Minister Oana Toiu said on Wednesday at an event marking the centenary of the Treaty of Friendship between the two countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MAE) said.

The MAE is marking the 100th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Friendship between Romania and France (Traite d'amitie entre la France et la Roumanie), signed in Paris on June 10, 1926.

According to the ministry, the treaty represented the first major Franco-Romanian agreement on friendship, non-aggression and consultation on European security, becoming one of the most important bilateral political instruments in the history of ties between the two countries.

The treaty was signed by Constantin Diamandy, Romania's Minister Plenipotentiary to France from 1924 to 1930, and Aristide Briand, France's Minister of Foreign Affairs. Initially concluded for a period of 10 years, the document enshrined the two states' shared vision in support of peace, stability and European cooperation.

'The treaty signed by Briand and Diamandy a century ago was concluded for ten years. The friendship it enshrined endures to this day. At the time, the two states offered each other, and I quote from the treaty, 'new guarantees of peace, understanding and friendship', convinced of 'the duty of modern governments to prevent the return of war'. A century later, these words remain highly relevant. Peace in Europe is not a given, but a commitment that must be renewed every day. Romania and France are doing this together - within the European Union, on NATO's eastern flank, where French troops are deployed on Romanian territory, and through our Strategic Partnership. Briand and Diamandy signed for a decade. Today, we are writing the second century of this friendship,' Toiu said, according to the MAE.

A century after its signing, the treaty remains a symbol of the depth and continuity of relations between Romania and France - a political, cultural and human bond built by generations of statesmen and diplomats from both countries, to whom the anniversary pays tribute, the ministry said.

On the occasion of the anniversary, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is reaffirming the importance of the Strategic Partnership between Romania and France and the two countries' commitment to deepening bilateral cooperation for the benefit of their citizens and in support of a united, prosperous and secure Europe. AGERPRES (RO - writing by: Oana Ghita; EN - writing by: Simona Iacob)