At a meeting on Thursday of the Supreme Council for National Defence (CSAT), Presdient Traian Basescu underscored the need for strategic guidelines for NATO's medium and long-term developments. This will be the stance Romania will support at the North Atlantic Treaty Alliance summit in Lisbon, November 19-20.

'The meeting discussed the mandate of the Romanian delegation that will attend the NATO Summit in Lisbon and its outlines were approved. President Basescu insisted on the importance of the New Strategic Concept of NATO, particularly in relation to the need to provide strategic guidelines for NATO's medium and long-term developments,' reads a press release issued on Thursday by the Presidential Administration.

Another topic discussed by CSAT was the European Union's Strategy for the Danube Region.

The aim of this strategy is to get Danube countries involved in a process of resizing regional cooperation to sustain economic and social development and achieve the objectives of integrated EU policies, including those established under the 2020 Strategy of the European Union.

'The European Union's Strategy for the Danube Region has the following main priority axes: connectivity (transport and energy); environmental protection and risk prevention; social and economic development (tourism, research, innovation, culture, education and competitiveness). It is expected to be approved by the European Commission this December and submitted for consideration to the summit of the European Council in June 2011,' reads the release.