Finland, Poland to lead initiatives to protect NATO's eastern flank from Russia
Finland and Poland will lead efforts to strengthen the protection of the EU's and NATO's eastern flank through the initiative to counter Russia's aggressive intentions, the "Eastern Flank Watch".
Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo said this at a press conference in Helsinki with leaders of the Eastern Flank Summit, Ukrinform reports.
Orpo called the summit a "historic moment" for EU and NATO security and a signal that Russia's aggressive war against Ukraine has dragged on. At the same time, he noted that a meeting of EU, US, and Ukrainian leaders in Berlin the day before showed there were no signals from Russia that it seeks peace.
"Russia remains a threat today, tomorrow, and in the foreseeable future for the whole of Europe. This is the reason we are strengthening our cooperation," he stressed.
He noted that this concerns all countries of the eastern flank, from the Baltic to the Black Sea, which feel threatened by Russia.
Orpo emphasized that during the summit the countries agreed to jointly implement security projects in Eastern Europe.
"I am happy to announce that Finland is ready to take the role of the lead nation, together with Poland, in the Eastern Flank Watch," Orpo said.
He added that any EU country can join this initiative, which will be discussed separately at the EU summit later this week.
He said that EU countries decided to work jointly on security projects, and the Eastern Flank Watch is one of them.
"We have started developing plans between militaries, ministries of defense, and also together with the European Commission but in very good coordination with NATO," Orpo stressed.
According to him, implementing the Eastern Flank Watch means jointly strengthening air defense, developing UAV capabilities, reinforcing ground forces, and ensuring close cooperation among countries.
Orpo noted that the current EU budget includes EUR 1.5 billion that could be used to implement projects to strengthen the defense capabilities of the eastern flank.
As reported, leaders of Finland, Sweden, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Poland, Romania, and Bulgaria took part in the Eastern Flank Summit in Helsinki.
Photo: Ministerstwo Obrony Narodowej