. More than 10 years have passed since Romania’s NATO accession and 8 years since our country’s EU accession as a full‐fledged member. The road that we have pursued since then deserves proper acknowledgment and appreciation. Romania has changed during this period, and the National Defense Strategy intends to reassert, with utmost responsibility, the irreversible feature of this path and of its implicit commitments. The Strategic Partnership with the United States of America and the NATO and EU memberships represent the key pillars of our foreign policy. Building strong Romania is also closely linked to these pillars. * * * The National Defense Strategy falls under the prerogatives of the President of Romania. This document isn’t and mustn’t represent the will of a sole person, even if that person holds the highest office within the state, nor the will of several institutions. The National Defense Strategy is more than that. It aims to meet society’s needs and expectations and it concerns each citizen, the society as a whole, as well as state institutions. Thus, drawing up the National Defense Strategy involved several consultations with experts, political factors, representatives of the institutions with attributions in this field, members of Academia and civil society. I have always believed that national security policy (through all its elements), must be subject to dialogue and consensus throughout Romanian society. As President, my mission and responsibility is to integrate foreign and security policies in order to defend and promote our national interests. 4