Interior Minister Catalin Predoiu met Monday with U.S. Congressman Mike Rogers, Chair of the House Armed Services Committee, where they discussed regional security developments and the strategic importance of the Black Sea.

According to an Interior Ministry statement, the meeting took place during a visit to Romania by a U.S. Congressional delegation led by Rogers.

'The discussions focused on strengthening the Strategic Partnership between Romania and the United States, regional security developments, the strategic importance of the Black Sea, as well as prospects for deepening bilateral cooperation in the field of internal affairs,' the Ministry said.

Video credit: Catalin Predoiu / Facebook

Predoiu highlighted the importance of the United States' consistent commitment to the security of NATO's Eastern Flank and the Black Sea region, and the essential role of the transatlantic relationship in the current security environment. He also underlined Romania's commitment to continue acting as a reliable ally, a security provider and a strategic partner of the United States.

'Particular attention was given to the Black Sea region, whose strategic importance for Euro-Atlantic security has increased significantly in the current geopolitical context. The Romanian Deputy PM stressed that Romania and the United States share the same fundamental objective in the region - ensuring long-term security and stability - and highlighted Romania's role in protecting NATO's Eastern Flank and strengthening security in the wider Black Sea region,' the statement added.

Predoiu also pointed to the direct link between security, stability and prosperity, and the importance of developing the economic pillar of the Romania - U.S. Strategic Partnership.

'A safe, stable and predictable environment creates the necessary conditions for investment and economic development, while strategic investments contribute in turn to strengthening resilience and security. From this perspective, deepening economic cooperation and encouraging American investments in Romania represent an important component of the long-term development of the bilateral relationship,' Predoiu said.

The meeting also addressed the internal-security dimension of current regional challenges, noting that hybrid threats, cross-border organised crime, cyber risks and threats to critical infrastructure require increasingly close cooperation between strategic partners.

A key point of the talks was cooperation between the Interior Ministry and U.S. law-enforcement and homeland-security agencies, especially in combating organised crime, drug and human trafficking, border security, illegal migration, cybercrime and terrorism.

Predoiu praised the dynamic, results-oriented operational cooperation with the FBI and the steady development of ties with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, including collaboration with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Both sides expressed interest in continuing and deepening this cooperation, including through intensified information exchange, joint capability development, sharing best practices and identifying new opportunities for operational collaboration.

The two officials underscored their shared interest in strengthening the security dimension of the Romania-U.S. Strategic Partnership and continuing pragmatic dialogue and cooperation between Romanian and American authorities.

Predoiu also expressed appreciation for the U.S. Congress's constant, bipartisan support for Romania and for the attention given to the security of NATO's Eastern Flank and the Black Sea region.

'For Romania, the relationship with the United States plays a key security role. The SAFE programme is in its early stages, the European defence pillar is under construction and will take years to become fully functional. Therefore, given the regional security context and its outlook, relations with the U.S. and NATO are essential for our country's security. In this situation, the Romanian Government must do more to strengthen the economic relationship with the U.S., once full constitutional capacity is restored - to generate large-scale economic projects, to attract American investments worth tens of billions into projects capable of driving tomorrow's economy and indirectly increasing security,' Predoiu said.

He added that American investments have the particular advantage of raising the security level of the country in which they are made.

'From this point of view, the recent months of political crisis and delays in installing a fully empowered government inevitably meant steps in place and missed opportunities. The installation of a new government with full powers must bring a restart of economic-cooperation projects with the U.S., just as we did during my mandate in internal affairs, public order and safety, combating cross-border crime, illegal migration, drug trafficking, terrorism and cybercrime. A substantially developed economic relationship with the U.S. means more safety and prosperity for Romanian citizens and for Romania, and more security for Europe,' the minister said.

The U.S. Congressional delegation visiting Romania between 28 - 31 August is led by Congressman Mike Rogers and includes Congressman Eric Sorensen (D-IL), also a member of the House Armed Services Committee. U.S. Ambassador Darryl Nirenberg also attended the meeting. The visit includes high-level meetings with Romanian authorities and activities dedicated to strengthening cooperation in security and defence. AGERPRES (RO - writing by: Mihai Stoica; EN - writing by: Simona Klodnischi)