NATO to Deploy US Missile Interceptors at Base in Romania by Year-End

Romanian Defense Minister Mircea Dusa said that elements of NATO missile shield in Europe will be deployed at a military base in Deveselu, Romania by the end of 2015.

CHISINAU (Sputnik) — Elements of NATO missile shield in Europe will be deployed at a military base in Deveselu, Romania by the end of 2015, Romanian Defense Minister Mircea Dusa said Tuesday.

The announcement follows his meeting with US Navy Admiral Mark Ferguson, Commander of the Allied Joint Force Command (JFC) in Naples, Italy, held in Romania earlier in the day.

“We both emphasized the need for the solidarity of the Alliance in terms of security in the region. I pointed out that Romania is an oasis of stability,” Dusa was quoted as saying by Romanian media.

He also specified that NATO’s missile-intercepting facility in Deveselu will carry out only defense functions.

In late October, 2013, Romania and the United States signed a bilateral agreement to deploy SM-3 missile interceptors at the Deveselu Air Base in southern Romania.

The move is viewed in Russia as a threat to its national security and nuclear deterrence capabilities, while the United States and NATO claim their ballistic missile defense system is aimed at intercepting a small number of missiles launched from countries like Iran and is not directed against Moscow.