Romania to acquire warships to strengthen NATO eastern flank

PHOTO CAPTION: Illustrative photo — Romanian Naval Special Operations Forces (NAVSOF) members prepare to scale a ship during vessel boarding, search and seizure training in Constanta, Romania, May 07, 2022.

BUCHAREST (Reuters) -     Romania's Supreme Defence Council on Friday approved a plan to add new small warships to its fleet, part of wider efforts to strengthen its role in the Black Sea and on NATO's eastern flank. 

The European Union and NATO member - which shares the longest land border with Ukraine - cancelled in 2023 a long-delayed deal to buy four warships from French firm Naval Group after the company and a junior partner failed to meet a deadline to sign a contract.

Naval Group won the contract to build four Gowind navy corvettes for Romania and renovate two existing frigates for 1.2 billion euros but the deal was held up, first by legal challenges and then by it failing to reach an understanding with its junior partner over rising costs.

"Council members analyzed and approved equipping the Romanian Navy with a new warship, a light corvette type able to execute in the shortest time a multitude of missions," the defence council said in a statement, adding it has tasked the defence ministry with starting the acquisition process.

No further details were provided.

Romania's navy is the least modernised of its military branches. The country currently says it plans to raise defence spending to as much as 2.5% of economic output this year from a little over 2.2% in 2024.

Romania's defence spending could reach 3% of GDP in stages in one to two years, interim president Ilie Bolojan said last month.

 (Reporting by Luiza Ilie; Editing by Andrea Ricci)