Vilnius Summit To Strengthen NATO's Defense Posture On Eastern Flank - B9 Statement

BRATISLAVA (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 07th June, 2023) The Bucharest Nine (B9) hopes NATO's Vilnius summit scheduled for July will strengthen the North Atlantic Alliance's defense posture on the Eastern flank, according to a statement adopted after a B9 summit in the capital of Slovakia.

"We expect that the Vilnius Summit will further strengthen NATO's defence posture on the Eastern flank in order to deter and deny any opportunity for aggression," the statement, posted on the official website of the Slovak president, said.

It said this includes advancing forward defenses with combat-ready forces, including land brigades, command and control and force structures fit for purpose, and improving or extending relevant infrastructure.

"We especially recognize the importance of enhanced Integrated Air and Missile Defence on a rotational persistent basis for the security of the Eastern Flank. We support NATO's new regional plans as the cornerstone of our modernised collective defence and we urge all Allies to assign forces and capabilities to these activities," according to the statement.

The leaders of the Bucharest Nine, which includes Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Slovakia, during a meeting in Bratislava on Tuesday compared notes before the NATO summit scheduled for July in Vilnius. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg also attended the event.

The format was founded in 2015 in Romania, at the initiative of the Polish and Romanian presidents, and aimed at developing military cooperation between the nine states. The previous summit of the organization took place in February in Warsaw. US President Joe Biden and Stoltenberg also participated in the meeting. The parties discussed NATO's and the EU's "open door policy" for Ukraine and the alliance's reinforced military presence on its Eastern flank.