Biden hosts Romanian leader at the White House to celebrate NATO partnership

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden hosted Klaus Iohannis, the President of Romania, at the White House on Tuesday, where the two leaders celebrated their joint cooperation on issues including international security, the economy and continued support for Ukraine.

According to the White House, the meeting in the Oval Office was intended to mark Romania’s twenty years as a member of NATO.

At the start of the meeting, Biden joked that he advocated Romania joining NATO when he was a senator “180 years ago” and said the alliance was stronger for the country’s integration. Noting that Romanian and U.S. troops have been fighting and training alongside each other, Biden praised Romania for “stepping up” to help Ukraine fend off Russia’s invasion.

“The United States would like to stand with you,” Biden told Iohannis.

In turn, Iohannis thanked Biden for hosting and called the transatlantic alliance “a cornerstone of our democratic way of life.” He said he planned to make progress toward a visa waiver for Romanian travelers to the U.S., but that the main topic was “finding a way to restore peace in Europe” and ensuring that Russian President Vladimir Putin doesn’t win.

Iohannis announced in March that he will run as NATO’s next secretary general, although Biden and many other leaders in the alliances have thrown their support behind Mark Rutte, the Dutch prime minister. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre declined Tuesday to say whether the issue arose during the two leaders’ meeting, deferring to a readout expected later.