The President of Romania, Nicușor Dan, will attend the meeting of NATO heads of state and government between July 7-8, 2026, which will take place in Ankara, without a delegation with real negotiating power, geopolitical analyst Cătălin Buciumeanu warns, for “Adevărul”. In an internal context marked by instability and entering the third month without a government with full powers, Nicușor Dan will be accompanied to Ankara by the interim Minister of National Defense, Radu Miruță, and by General Gheorghiță Vlad, the Chief of the Defense Staff, who is currently under indictment in a case orchestrated by the DNA.
During the summit, General Vlad is scheduled to present Romania’s priorities for strengthening the defense on the Eastern Flank, with an emphasis on the Black Sea, despite its delicate legal situation. The Ministry of National Defense announced that, in addition to the meeting of heads of state and government, the interim Minister of Defense will also participate in the meeting of defense ministers from NATO member states together with partners from the Indo-Pacific region – Australia, Japan, New Zealand and the Republic of Korea.
Romania will also be represented at the forum by delegates from the Ministry of National Defense, the Ministry of Economy, Digitalization, Entrepreneurship and Tourism, as well as representatives of companies from the national defense industry.
The legitimacy and ability of the delegation to negotiate new strategic commitments for Romania remains, however, an open question, and the success of this summit does not depend only on the president.
Romania’s paradox: more important strategically, but with a reduced negotiation capacity
Cătălin Buciumeanu, a former diplomat with experience in public administration and international relations, explained to “Adevărul” what Romania’s stakes are at this summit, in the conditions of a political representation weakened by internal instability.
According to the analyst, although the president keeps his constitutional authority intact, the ability to turn talks into concrete actions is severely limited by the lack of a government with full powers.
“For Romania, maintaining strategic relevance within NATO is an essential objective, and this is supported by at least five fundamental directions. The first of them is keeping the Black Sea on the Alliance’s agenda, an element that Romania risks losing after four years of war in Ukraine, due to the focus on the Baltic countries and Poland, which is why our country must insist on the European interest in this area. The second direction aims to strengthen the allied military presence in Romania”the analyst detailed.
According to the analyst, the other three essential directions aim “maintaining the privileged relationship with the United States, especially in the context of the recalibration of Washington’s commitments in Europe, Romania’s integration into NATO’s new logistical and industrial corridors, which include the joint production of armaments and military mobility, and the confirmation of Romania’s role as the main hub on the Black Sea, represented especially by the Port of Constanța and the Mihail Kogălniceanu base. In short, if Romania manages to demonstrate that it is not only a beneficiary of NATO security, but also a supplier of security, will only gain”emphasized Buciumeanu.
The question that arises, however, is how Romania can demonstrate this value in the current conditions. The government led by Ilie Bolojan entered the third month of the interim, and the prospects for the investment of a government with full powers are not optimistic.
The big challenge: how is Romania prepared for “NATO 3.0”?
“It must be emphasized that the deposed government cannot adopt major domestic policies, cannot guarantee the implementation of difficult political decisions, and any domestic commitment depends solely on the future executive, so the president cannot make firm promises that a government without full powers could not fulfill. Therefore, the constitutional authority remains intact, but the capacity for political negotiation is reduced, and in diplomacy the difference between mere representation and the ability to deliver concrete results is well known.”explained the analyst.
The objectives for the NATO Summit, approved by the CSAT
According to the Presidential Administration, this meeting is “focused on decisions and initiatives aimed at reconfirming the solidity and unity of the transatlantic relationship and the commitment of the Allies to fulfill their responsibilities, in a security context marked by the continuation of Russian aggression against Ukraine and the emergence of new areas of conflict at the global level”.
The Romanian officials decided that, in Ankara, our country should insist that the aggressions in the Black Sea area, including those caused by the crash of some drones, be treated with a much stronger deterrence posture.
In addition to the diplomatic directions, the council clearly established the human and technical resources that Romania will make available for the theaters of operations in 2027. The assumed commitment implies a massive mobilization on the part of the defense and public order structures.
Thus, the Romanian Army will allocate a total of 5,358 soldiers and civilians, of which 2,786 will be directly active in missions outside the country, 1,801 will remain on standby in the national territory, and 771 are included in the proposed forces for missions that can be assumed later. In parallel, the Ministry of Internal Affairs will contribute with 2,604 personnel, of which 39 will go on foreign missions, and 2,565 will ensure the deployable reserve on the national territory. Therefore, the total number of mobilized forces exceeds 7,900 people, of which 3,700 will be present on the territory of other states or in international missions during the next year.
Another commitment assumed by the Supreme Council of Defense of the Country is to take over the command of the MCM BLACK SEA demining group in 2027. This decision reflects the increasingly active role that Romania plays in the maritime security of the Black Sea region, at a time when threats to the safety of maritime transport and port infrastructure are increasing. Taking command of this group of vessels specialized in demining missions represents an important step in consolidating Romanian naval capabilities and strengthening cooperation with allies on NATO’s eastern flank.
