Whereas the United States marks the significance of 140 years of diplomatic relations with Romania and congratulates Romania on its achievements as a stable and vibrant democracy and its commitment to being a responsible member of the international community; Whereas the United States regards Romania as a critical North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) ally in Central and Southeast Europe; Whereas the United States supports Romania’s significant contribution to NATO’s collective defense, including its decision to host the Aegis Ashore missile defense site in Deveselu and meeting the NATO target of spending 2 percent of GDP on defense; Whereas the Romanian armed forces have supported NATO and United States counterterrorism operations in Iraq, Afghanistan, and other theaters for almost two decades, contributing more than 30,000 total combat and support personnel to those missions; Whereas Romania has played a critical role in NATO cybersecurity activities, and was the first country to enter into a Memorandum of Understanding with the United States Government on the secure implementation of 5G technology; Whereas Romania has been a driving force leading to the establishment of the Three Seas Initiative, and one of the first countries to invest in the Three Seas Initiative Investment Fund, which aims at increasing energy independence and infrastructure connectivity across Central Europe, thereby strengthening the United States and European security; Whereas Romania has been a champion of energy security in Europe, supporting the United States Government’s Partnership for Transatlantic Energy Cooperation (P–TEC) initiative as leading partner on civil nuclear energy; Whereas, during the first half of 2019, Romania conducted its first Presidency of the Council of the European Union and promoted an agenda advancing important United States-European Union goals such as energy security, intellectual property, human rights, and regional cooperation across the Balkans and the Black Sea areas