French jets join NATO drills in Romania to bolster defence
Romanian Air Force after thundering through the sky above the Fetesti air base, as NATO bolsters its military presence in member country Romania, bordering Ukraine.
Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, NATO has stepped up its efforts to boost the alliance's southeastern flank defences by sending additional battlegroups to the region.
NATO has also intensified its joint drills along the defence bloc's wider eastern flank — which encompasses eight member countries — spanning from Estonia and Latvia bordering Russia in the east to Romania and Bulgaria on the Black Sea.
The most recent joint exercise in the region — held between October 16 to 20 — for the first time brought together French and Romanian airmen and their planes.
Despite flying different combat jets, «we work like the French, we understand each other perfectly,» said Romanian Lieutenant Colonel and pilot Lucian Tatulea.
About 30 French pilots together with three Rafale jets travelled to Romania in a bid to improve «interoperability» — the ability to work together — and train less predictable «agile» deployments.
As lead nation for the alliance's «Mission Aigle» deployed to Romania, France acts as the point of contact between Bucharest and other allies, who seek to send troops to Ukraine's neighbouring country.
Romania currently hosts more than 5,000 foreign troops, the largest contingent anywhere in NATO's southeastern region.
About 1,350 troops are from France and mostly belong to the French ground forces, who are part of a multinational batallion that includes 300 soldiers from Belgium and Luxembourg.
Stationed at the Cincu military base in central Romania, the French-led battalion also boasts 13 Leclerc tanks and several CAESAR
