Nicușor Dan, received at NATO headquarters by Mark Rutte. The relationship with the USA, on the agenda for discussions / Trump criticized the alliance
President Nicușor Dan will be received today, from 10:00 a.m., at the NATO headquarters in Brussels by the alliance's general secretary Mark Rutte. The two have scheduled a joint press conference around 10:30 am.
The visit will take place before the president attends the European Council meeting in Brussels, which starts at 11:00.
According to a press release issued by the Presidential Administration, the discussion agenda will include security developments in the international environment and those on the Eastern Flank, with an emphasis on the Black Sea region, a context in which measures to strengthen deterrence and collective defense will be addressed, as well as to increase Romania's security through and with the support of NATO.
The relationship with the US will be addressed
The meeting between the two comes a week after Romania approved US President Donald Trump's request to receive soldiers and military equipment in two bases on Romanian territory.
Most NATO states have refused Trump's requests to support the US in the operation in Iran, which has drawn criticism from the American leader.
“The President of Romania will highlight the importance of the transatlantic relationship, reconfirming the role of our country as an ally strongly involved in regional stability and security”, states the Presidential Administration in the press release regarding the meeting between Nicușor Dan and Mark Rutte.
Rutte: NATO is looking for solutions to reopen the Strait of Hormuz
In an interview with the Financial Times, Donald Trump declared that NATO will have a “very bad future” if the allies do not help the US in Iran. One of the US president's requests was to receive support to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow sea channel between Iran and Oman through which about a fifth of the world's oil and gas traffic passes.
In a statement on Wednesday, Secretary General Mark Rutte said the alliance was looking at the best way to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
“We all agree, of course, that trade must be resumed and the strait must be reopened. And what I know is that the allies are working together, discussing how to do this, the best way to do this. They are working on this collectively to find a way forward,” Mark Rutte said on a trip to Norway, according to Reuters.
What other topics are on the agenda?
President Nicușor Dan “will emphasize that Romania respects the commitments made at the NATO Summit in The Hague regarding the increase in defense spending and will highlight the multidimensional assistance for Ukraine”.
“At the same time, it will remind the need to strengthen NATO's support for partners, especially the Republic of Moldova, targeted by Russia's hybrid actions”, according to the Presidential Administration.
The previous meeting between Nicușor Dan and Mark Rutte
The two had another bilateral meeting at the beginning of November 2025 when the Secretary General of NATO came to Bucharest. He was then received at the Cotroceni Palace by Nicușor Dan.
“We will intensify measures to strengthen our defense and deterrence position,” President Dan said at the time, in a message published on his account on the X social network.
