Senate President Mircea Abrudean attended the European Conference of Presidents of Parliament in Rome on Thursday and Friday, where he highlighted the challenges facing European security and the need to strengthen democratic states' capacity to respond to hybrid threats.

The conference brought together the presidents of the parliaments of the 46 member states of the Council of Europe, representatives of parliaments holding partner for democracy status with the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), as well as presidents of international parliamentary organisations.

Mircea Abrudean delivered a speech during the thematic session Resilient Democracies - United Against Hybrid Threats, in which he pointed out that, for Romania, situated on Europe's eastern flank and sharing a border with a country at war, hybrid threats are tangible everyday realities.

'While an unprovoked war is wreaking havoc in neighbouring Ukraine, Europe is facing a fundamental shift in the way its security is being challenged. We are learning that defending our continent requires much more than protection against traditional threats such as missiles and conventional weapons. Today, we must also defend ourselves against disinformation that sows division, distorts reality and triggers dangerous chain reactions in our societies,' Mircea Abrudean said.

He reaffirmed Romania's firm commitment to a united, secure and free Europe, stressing that through sound legislation, democratic oversight, public engagement and, not least, international cooperation, European democracies can strengthen their resilience and remain strong in the face of current threats.

According to a Senate press release, on the sidelines of the conference Mircea Abrudean had a bilateral meeting with his Israeli counterpart, Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana.

'The discussions highlighted the excellent state of Romanian-Israeli bilateral relations and the shared commitment to deepening cooperation between the two countries, including in the context of the visit to Bucharest in June 2026 by Israeli President Isaac Herzog. Mircea Abrudean underscored the significant potential for expanding business opportunities across various economic sectors in both Romania and Israel and reaffirmed Romania's willingness to identify concrete ways to boost trade and strengthen the bilateral economic partnership,' the release reads.

The two speakers also discussed Romania's strategic objective of joining the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in the near future. Mircea Abrudean highlighted the importance of this process for Romania and thanked the Israeli side for its support in achieving this major foreign policy and economic development objective.

During his participation in the conference in Rome, the Senate President also held a series of informal meetings with Yael Braun-Pivet, President of the French National Assembly; Lorenzo Fontana, President of the Italian Chamber of Deputies; Mihaela Dotsova, President of the Bulgarian National Assembly; and Fabrizio Comba, President of the Friendship Group in the Italian Parliament.

The official visit took place with the support of Romania's Embassy to the Italian Republic, which hosted a meeting with Romanian entrepreneurs from the diaspora and representatives of the diplomatic and consular corps. AGERPRES (RO - writing by: Livia Popescu; EN - writing by: Adina Panaitescu)