In a joint statement released after a summit in Warsaw on Wednesday, Poland's President Andrzej Duda and his counterparts from nations referred to as the Bucharest Nine group condemned "Russia’s war of aggression" and said that "those responsible for atrocities and war crimes" in Ukraine "will be held accountable."
"We, the Heads of State and Government of Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and the Slovak Republic, met today one year since Russia launched its unprovoked and brutal war of aggression against Ukraine," the nine leaders said in their statement.
They vowed to "continue to support" Ukraine "as long as necessary" and saluted "the heroism of Ukrainian people and valiance of their military."
"We pay tribute to the Ukrainian servicemen and servicewomen defending their freedom and our common values," they said.
They declared their determination to "sustain international pressure on Russia" and also condemned "all those, including Belarus, who are actively facilitating Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine."
The statement welcomed the participation in the Warsaw gathering of US President Joe Biden and NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, saying it served as "testimony to the strength of the transatlantic bond" and underscored "NATO’s unwavering commitment to defend every inch of Allied territory."
Biden told the nine eastern-flank NATO allies in the Polish capital on Wednesday that Article 5 of the alliance's collective defence treaty "is a sacred commitment” and that America "will defend literally every inch of NATO."
NATO's Stoltenberg warned that Russian President Vladimir Putin was “preparing for more war” and urged allies to "give Ukraine what they need to prevail.”
The Bucharest Nine is a Polish-Romanian initiative launched in 2015 that aims to help exchange views and coordinate positions on the security of NATO’s eastern-flank countries, according to officials.
The Bucharest Nine (B9) group of NATO's eastern flank allies is made up of Poland, Romania, Lithuania, Bulgaria, Estonia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Latvia, and Slovakia.
Wednesday was day 364 of Russia’s war on Ukraine.
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Source: PAP, IAR, prezydent.pl, whitehouse.gov