Kiev [Ukraine], October 11: Ukrainian President VolodymyrZelensky on Tuesday paid his first visit to Ukraine's western neighbour Romania since the Russian invasion to hold talks with President Klaus Iohannis on boosting Ukraine's air defences.
"An official visit to our good neighbours, who are supporting us in the most difficult times and whose support only rises with time," Zelensky wrote on Telegram. The Ukrainian president is expected to address the Romanian parliament in Bucharest.
Romania has assisted Ukraine with the export of the agricultural commodities key to its economy and essential for the food supplies of many poorer countries. Its Black Sea port of Constanta is being used to transfer Ukrainian grain shipped along the Danube to seagoing freighters.
Ukrainian ports on the Danube along the border with Romania have come under drone attack, with debris landing on Romanian territory.
Russian forces continued to target Ukraine with drones in the early hours of Tuesday. Ukrainian air defences reported downing 23 so-called "kamikaze" drones of Iranian design in the Odessa region on the Black Sea coast.
The head of the local military administration, OlehKiper, reported on Telegram that no one had been injured in the attacks. The Ukrainian authorities said that 36 kamikaze drones had been launched by Russian forces overnight.
In a village near Kupiansk in the Kharkiv region near the Russian border in the north-east, two women and a police officer were injured in a missile attack early on Tuesday.
Later on Tuesday, Romanian President Klaus Iohannis pledged to support Ukraine militarily "until victory over Russia," during a visit by President Zelensky to Bucharest.
Iohannis had previously avoided speaking about military assistance to Ukraine and on this occasion he provided no details during a joint press conference.
Zelensky said discussions had focused on air defence, and he noted that Ukrainian pilots would in future be training on US-made F-16 jets in Romania.
Sources in the United States earlier reported that the training would take place at Fete?ti airbase in the east of the country, where Romania's F-16s are stationed.
Ahead of the visit, Zelensky paid tribute to Romania for "supporting [Ukraine] in the most difficult times and whose support only rises with time" in a message on Telegram.
His planned address to the Romanian parliament was called off without an official reason being given. Media reports said there were fears that pro-Russian members of parliament could have disrupted the speech.
The two leaders signed a document reported to be about a "strategic partnership," the details of which were not released.
Turning to the key issue of Ukrainian grain exports, Iohannis said he would work to ensure that the quantity being transported through Romania could double. Some 60 percent of Ukrainian grain exports currently pass through Romania.
Zelensky announced the opening of a new route through Moldova, which lies between Ukraine and Romania. Romania has assisted Ukraine with the export of the agricultural commodities key to its economy and essential for the food supplies of many poorer countries.
Source: Qatar Tribune