U.S. President Joe Biden welcomed Romanian President Klaus Iohannis to the White House on May 7 , praising him for allowing NATO troops to be stationed in his country and for Bucharest's support for Ukraine in that nation's battle against Russia's full-scale invasion.
The meeting, part of Iohannis’s three-day U.S. trip, was timed to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Romania joining the NATO military alliance.
“The United States is committed to standing with you,” Biden told Iohannis in the Oval Office.
As the meeting began, Biden joked that he had pressed for Romania’s NATO membership when he was a senator “180 years ago.” Some Biden critics have said that the 81-year-old president is too old to run for reelection in the November presidential race.
Biden said that the United States and Romanian fought and trained alongside each other during various deployments over the years and he thanked Romania for having “stepped up” efforts to aid Kyiv in its war against Russia's invasion.
Iohannis called the NATO alliance “a cornerstone of our democratic way of life” and said the most important issue of the day was “to find a way to reinstall peace” in Europe and ensure that Russian President Vladimir Putin doesn’t win in his invasion of Ukraine.
Following his talks with Biden, the Romanian leader said he was open to supplying Ukraine with U.S.-made Patriot air-defense missiles.
Germany and Spain have vowed to send additional Patriot systems to Ukraine.
Other NATO nations -- including Romania, Greece, the Netherlands, and Sweden -- also have systems, and Kyiv has appealed for additional weapons to bolster its air defenses.
"There has been a discussion about who can send Patriot systems to Ukraine," Iohannis told reporters. "President Biden mentioned it...in our meeting, and I said I was open to discussion."
"I must discuss it in the Supreme Defense Council to see what we can offer and what we can get in return, because it is unacceptable to leave Romania without air defenses."
Iohannis is also scheduled to receive the Distinguished International Leadership Award for 2024 at the Atlantic Council Distinguished Leadership Award gala.
In March, Iohannis -- whose presidential term ends in December -- expressed his desire to run for the post of NATO secretary-general to succeed Jens Stoltenberg.
Outgoing Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte is considered the favorite to replace Stoltenberg and reportedly has the support of most NATO members, including the United States.
When asked earlier about the NATO post, White House national-security spokesman John Kirby said: “Nothing’s changed about our support for Mr. Rutte to be the next secretary-general.”
The Romanian president is at the White House for the second time, after his visit during his first term in 2019, when Donald Trump was president.
