Oct. 16, 2024, 4:46 p.m.
(Photo: Intent)
The meeting of the Nordic-Baltic Eight took place in Odesa on October 16 and brought together representatives of the foreign ministries of the eight countries that make up the group.
According to Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiga, the last time the N8 met in this format was a few weeks ago in New York, and he called the format very effective.
He said that the ministers visited a military hospital, where they were told what the institution needs from its partners. They also discussed energy security, the president's victory plan, and a number of other issues. The meeting resulted in a decision to allocate an additional energy aid package to strengthen resilience ahead of winter.
Andriy Sybiga
The ministers also agreed to work together on Ukraine's accession to NATO and discussed blocking Russia's shadow fleet. As the minister emphasized, since the beginning of the invasion, there have been more than 50 Russian attacks on Ukrainian ports.
The Nordic-Baltic Eight (NB8) is a format of regional cooperation that includes Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, and Sweden. The NB8 hosts regular meetings of the Baltic and Nordic prime ministers, speakers of parliaments, foreign ministers, ministers of industry, state secretaries and political directors of the foreign ministries, as well as expert consultations on regional and current international topics.
Maria Malmer Stenergaard
In her turn, Maria Malmer Stenergaard, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Sweden, emphasized that support for Ukraine is a priority for her country in the coming years. She noted that the additional package includes solar packages and generators to prepare for the winter. Sweden plans to allocate 28 million euros in the additional package, and in total, since the beginning of the war, the country has helped Ukraine with 5 billion US dollars. The additional package is a total of 44 million dollars.
Lars Løkke Rasmussen
Minister of Foreign Affairs of Denmark Lars Løkke Rasmussen emphasized that this is his fifth visit to Odesa and noted that Denmark understands the country's need for weapons and reminded that Denmark was one of the first countries to supply weapons to Ukraine and is ready to continue doing so, as well as to block Russian assets.
Margus Tsakhkna
Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsakhkna said that Ukraine should be allowed to hit targets inside Russia, and partner countries should provide more weapons.
"We must realize that there is no peace and no Europe without Ukraine," he said.
Minister of Foreign Affairs of Latvia Baiba Braže.
Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Gabrielius Landsbergis
Minister for Foreign Affairs of Norway Espen Barth Eide
Matti Antonen State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Finland.
State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Iceland.
On Wednesday, October 16, in the Verkhovna Rada, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy presented a plan for Ukraine's victory in the war against Russia. This document includes diplomacy, economy, politics and military component.
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