Prime Minister Victor Ponta announced on Monday that Romania is to offer food, blankets and water to people in neighbouring Serbia and to Bosnia and Herzegovina in an effort to help flood victims.

Bucharest is also to send anti-flood pumps to the affected areas.

Serbia and Bosnia have appealed for international aid after the worst flooding the region has seen since modern records began 120 years ago.

But analysts allege that Romania has been late in lending a helping hand to its Balkan neighbours.

“Many EU countries already sent aid to the people in need, the US sent money and even Russia sent two aircraft and rescue teams. Only Romanian officials have been so far blind to the tragedy our neighbours are facing,” said journalist Liviu Iolu from Adevarul daily newspaper.

Iulian Leca from the Ziare website suggested that politicians were slow in offering help because “a rescue operation won’t secure any bonus points in the EU election campaign”.

“Only when the Romanian section of the Danube overflows and causes floods in our country will those in power start showing strength and solidarity,” Leca said.

Romania is expecting the Danube level to go up this week to its highest ever, having been fuelled by flooding in other countries upstream, Serbia included, with its peak expected on May 22.

Minister of Administration Liviu Dragnea said on Monday said rescue teams, the police and the army have been put on standby to help deal with potential flooding.

Dragnea said there was no danger of the water level overflowing the river dams, although it could erode them.