Romania

"Can NATO bring anyone closer? History does not know any such examples. What I can see is that NATO is adding new members, who are now being pulled in by various methods.”

“Russia will be forced to create and deploy types of weapons that can be used not only for those territories from which there will be a corresponding direct threat to us, but also for those territories where there are decision-making centers on the use of missile systems that threaten us.”

“We proceed from the premise that Russia will not place intermediate-range or shorter-range weapons … either in Europe or in other regions of the world as long as U.S. weapons of this kind do not appear in corresponding regions of the world.”

“We love and are proud of President Vladimir Putin, because he is a friend of Palestine and not only Palestine, but all the people who are seeking freedom. President Putin succeeded in restoring Russia’s authority in the international arena and forced all to respect Russia.”

“The way the referendum is formulated is scam in itself… There is a strong opposition in Macedonia now; the President has said he’s against the referendum, so it will change a lot… What a lot of the Balkan countries are expecting is that by entering the European Union, they will get subsidies… I think most of them couldn’t care less about NATO, as it doesn’t have a good image over there.”

“Apparently, our American colleagues do not want to present any evidence of the ‘Russian cyber interference,’ which they supposedly have, and that is to avoid shame. There is not and there cannot be any [such evidence].”

“Russia is ready to host the World Cup. The stadiums are open. The cops are polyglots. That is a quick recap of many years of work.We're not going to lose face in front of the planet. It’s not for nothing we terrified [the planet] with a missile. In general, all is well. But there is only one “but”: Our team, frankly, is sh-t.”

“After receiving this information I’ve expressed a strong protest regarding today’s unlawful actions by the United States of America and I emphasized that to this day there is not a single bit of evidence of Russia’s interference in the investigation of the case (Skripal) as such, as well as of Russia’s involvement in this tragedy that took place in Salisbury.”

“We have not yet discussed this issue in the cabinet”

“We understand full well what the Americans and NATO members are doing. They are shifting [warships in and out of the Black Sea]. As a matter of fact, this is so-called shuttle presence. It is no secret that such activity, provocative activity, became more obvious after 2014, following the events that resulted in Crimea’s return to the Russian harbor.”

“The American anti-missile defense system base in Romania is threatened by a flock of sheep.”

I will start with an assessment of increased threats. Since 2012, the number of military contingents deployed by NATO near Russia’s western frontiers has increased threefold. Four battalion tactical groups have been deployed in the Baltics and Poland as well as a U.S. Army armored brigade and command staffs of NATO’s multinational divisions in Poland and Romania. The number of engagement-ready forces of the alliance has grown from 10,000 to 40,000 troops, while their notice period has been reduced from 45 to 30 days.