In a show of support for US allies in Europe, US Vice President Joseph Biden arrived in Romania with a special visit, coinciding with the joint US-Romanian military exercise “Carpathian Spring” which started on May 20. In his speech at the Otopeni air base, he also touched upon the situation in Ukraine. In particular, Biden said the following:
“Today aggression in Crimea, less than 250 miles from Romanian territory, from NATO’s borders reminds us why we need NATO and why Romania belongs to NATO. What Russia has done violates not just Ukraine’s sovereignty, but a fundamental principle we fought for in the 20th century and thought we had clearly established. Europe’s borders should never again be changed at the point of a gun, which is why we continue to condemn – condemn – Russia’s illegal occupation of Crimea.
“So long as Russia’s efforts to destabilize Ukraine continue we must remain resolute in imposing greater costs on Russia, imposing those costs together. But our strategy is about more than just imposing cost. It’s fundamentally about investing in a revitalized NATO that emerges from this crisis and works toward a successful summit in Wales, stronger and more united. America and our NATO allies have urgently stepped up our military presence in the air, land and on the sea of NATO’s eastern flank. In just the past weeks we’ve had ships visit. The USS Truxtun, Cook, Taylor, as well as the Dacian Viper F-16 exercise. And in the coming days, new ships – the Vella Gulf will enter the Black Sea to conduct port visits and maritime training.”
