The states that are part of the Bucharest 9 (B9) format are deeply concerned about the repeated incursions of Russian drones and missiles into NATO airspace and in this case a „robust” response is needed, Romania’s Defence Minister Angel Tilvar said on Wednesday.

He held a joint news conference with his Polish counterpart Pawel Zalewsky on the sidelines of a meeting in Bucharest of the B9 defence ministers.

Tilvar said that the B9 Format „has a key role in shaping the collective approach of NATO’s eastern flank.”

He reiterated that the security situation in the Black Sea region remains worrying, mentioning „a constantly evolving set of threats” mainly generated by Russia’s aggressive actions: hybrid tactics such as disinformation, cyber-attacks and continuous efforts to destabilise the Black Sea region, as well as the entire eastern flank.

„The B9 states are deeply concerned about the repeated incursions of Russian drones and missiles into the NATO airspace in Poland, Romania, Latvia, as well as the escalation of tensions along NATO’s borders. That is why a robust and coordinated response at NATO level is needed, as well as the implementation as soon as possible of NATO’s integrated air and missile defence model.”

According to Tilvar, the meeting discussed coordinating support to Ukraine, „so that the Ukrainian armed forces have the necessary resources for the front.”

At the same time, he also called for support for Moldova’s accession to the European Union, „a safe investment in the security of the Black Sea region and Europe.”

In his turn, Zalewsky said that the B9 Format confirms its role as a discussion forum of the eastern flank, especially in the context of future discussions at NATO and the European Union.

The Polish official also mentioned the incidents involving Russian drones in the NATO space in the vicinity of Ukraine.

„I mentioned the attack on the airspace by Russia. What we mean here is not Romania and Poland only, but also Latvia. Lithuania is also threatened. We agreed that a response from NATO is needed. It is necessary that at the next meeting of NATO defence ministers we establish some concrete ways to support us firstly in detecting these attacks on airspace and the destruction of enemy objects. This is a particularly important aspect that is now growing and has a special significance,” he said, according to the official translation.

He added that „when we say that not an inch of NATO territory can be attacked by Russia and must be defended, we also mean the airspace.”

AGERPRES