Romania is reviewing its plans to spend 4.5 billion euro on procuring fighter planes, in order to provide funds for other military spending and please both its European and US partners, Financial Times reports.
The paper says Romania is pressed by its US and European partners to choose the company which will provide its military planes, but also to find the money needed for helicopters and other equipment that is necessary to the Romanian troops in Afghanistan and Iraq.
The Romanian Supreme Defense Council (CSAT) authorized last year the spending of 4.5 billion euro for 48 fighter planes to replace the fleet of outdated MIG Lancers. Some Romanian Defense officials say however that Romania is no longer needing four squadrons of fighter planes and that they're thinking to spend half of the money on other equipment such as helicopters, armored vehicles and drones.
