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“The commitment of the United States to Nato (…) is absolutely clear. Article 5 is a sacred commitment the United States has made. We will defend literally every inch of Nato, every inch of Nato,” the US president said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Also at the meeting was Nato Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, who pointed out that almost a year after the start of Russia\u2019s invasion of Ukraine, Putin “is not preparing for peace \u2013 on the contrary, he is preparing for more war.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSo we must sustain and step up our support for Ukraine. We must give Ukraine what they need to prevail. We don\u2019t know when the war will end, but when it does, we need to ensure that history does not repeat itself,\u201d Stoltenberg said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
During the meeting, which was closed to the press, the leaders of the Bucharest Nine were expected to ask Washington for more security guarantees amid fears that Putin could look to expand the war beyond Ukraine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The group, made up of Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Slovakia, was created in 2015 in response to what those nations saw as Russia’s increasingly aggressive behavior after it annexed the Crimean peninsula in 2014.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Biden was flying back to Washington on Wednesday night at the conclusion of a tour of Europe that included an unannounced visit to Kyiv and a speech in the gardens of the former royal castle in Warsaw. EFE<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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