The ministerial meeting, held on April 26, was attended by defense ministers of the Bucharest Nine, the countries of NATO's eastern flank. This format is constituted by: Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Slovakia and Hungary. The special guest was British Secretary of Defense B. Wallace.

The defense ministers of the Bucharest Nine have taken a position in which they stand against attempts to rebuild the Russian empire and show unity on the security of NATO's eastern flank. (...) The joint ministerial position shows our unity and our solidarity when it comes to countering attempts to rebuild the Russian empire. It shows our unity and solidarity when it comes to strengthening security on the eastern flank of the North Atlantic Alliance.

- Deputy Prime Minister Mariusz Blaszczak said after the meeting of the Bucharest Nine.

During the meeting, the ministers discussed the current agenda of the EU's Common Security and Defense Policy, as well as NATO and EU support for consolidating the defense capabilities of Moldova, Georgia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, which are threatened by destabilizing Russian actions.

The participants of the meeting also debated on the issue of preparations for the July NATO Summit in Vilnius, the process of further strengthening, building interoperability, deterrence and defense of the Alliance and the security of its eastern flank.

We are focused on strengthening our armed forces through cooperation, but also by carrying out modernization activities that develop the armed forces of the North Atlantic Alliance. We talked about the military plans that will be adopted, the plans for building a system of deterrence and defense of the NATO eastern flank countries (...) We talked about joint exercises, about building interoperability between our armed forces.

- Minister Blaszczak noted.

As the head of the Ministry of Defense emphasized at the conference, the B9 meeting was also an opportunity to talk about bilateral military cooperation between Poland and Romania.

Our meeting was also a chance to talk with Minister Angel Tilvar about Polish-Romanian relations. We are in constant contact. Our armed forces are modernizing. We use very similar equipment (...) We are grateful that Romanian soldiers are stationed in Poland. We are also grateful for the very hospitable reception of Polish soldiers stationed in Romania. (...) We cooperate with each other so as to strengthen security on NATO's eastern flank.

- added the head of the Ministry of Defense.

During the meeting, there was also a discussion of the international security situation in the face of Russia's war against Ukraine, as well as the support of the international community, including NATO and the EU, for the Ukrainian side - the B9 countries, among others, are playing a leading role in the aid.

Today, Ukraine is experiencing Russian aggression. Joint action is key to overcome neo-imperial threats (...) It has been 14 months since Russia's unprovoked and unjustified aggression against Ukraine, aggression which has destroyed the foundations of security in Europe. We must continue our support for Ukraine and help it win this war. We must guarantee its security for years to come.

- stressed Deputy Prime Minister Blaszczak during a meeting of the B9 group.

Also Romanian Defense Minister Angel Tîlvăr spoke about the importance of strengthening military cooperation in all possible formats, thus strengthening security.

I thank Deputy Prime Minister Blaszczak for hosting this meeting.  Poland and Romania have a practical relationship based on strategic partnership. It is crucial that we continue our dialogue in various formats in order to ensure the security of our citizens

- said the head of the Romanian defense ministry.

At the conclusion of the event, Deputy Prime Minister M. Blaszczak thanked all participants for attending the meeting and taking further steps to strengthen security.

I would like to thank once again my colleagues, the defense ministers of NATO eastern flank countries (...) Together we discussed the most important security issues on the eastern flank of the North Atlantic Alliance. We can confirm that we are stronger together.

- summarized Deputy Prime Minister Mariusz Blaszczak.