Lest we forget

It was a privilege for me to lay a wreath last Sunday at the Bucharest War Cemetery in Tâncăbeşti, on behalf of the British Government, in a ceremony honouring the British and Commonwealth servicemen and women killed in the First World War and more recent conflicts, as well as those from other countries who gave their lives in fighting against oppression. We were joined by the Chief of General Staff, Lt Gen Ştefan Dănilă, and other senior representatives of the Romanian armed forces and government, veterans, and Ambassadors representing countries in every continent of the globe.

The Bucharest War Cemetery, like many others throughout the world, is lovingly maintained by the unsung heroes of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission. 81 Commonwealth airmen are buried in the cemetery, members of the Balkan Air Force, who bombed oil fields and other strategic sites in the Second World War. Other graves at the cemetery include six First World War naval graves, transferred here following the closure of the Brăila protestant cemetery in 1974.

This year the ceremony had a particular poignancy, marking the centenary of the start of the First World War. On the previous day, I had travelled to Mărăști and Mărășești, to pay my respects to the thousands of Romanian service personnel killed in 1917, in a theatre of the First World War which is too little known in the United Kingdom. It was poignant to see at Mărășești the simple monument to 12 year old Măriuca Zaharia, shot while reporting on the German troop movements from the walnut tree behind her house.

And with the handing over of Camp Bastion to Afghan control last month, this was a moment too to remember almost 3,500 coalition forces killed in Afghanistan, including 453 British servicemen and women and 21 Romanians.

I was delighted to see such an enthusiastic response to the Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal in Romania, with collections organised at the Embassy, the British Council, the British Romanian Chamber of Commerce, and a range of schools, restaurants and bars with links to the UK and the Commonwealth. My thanks to all involved.