Today, on 24 February, in response to Russia’s military attack on Ukraine, an extraordinary meeting of the NATO North Atlantic Council was convened to discuss the security situation and to examine the request of Latvia, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Slovakia for urgent consultations under Article 4 of the Washington Treaty.
Article 4 of the Treaty provides that the Parties shall consult jointly at any time whenever, in the opinion of either Party, the territorial integrity, political independence or security of either Party would be threatened.
During the consultations, a decision was made to protect all NATO Allies and take additional precautions in line with the Alliance’s defence plans and crisis response mechanisms to further enhance defence and deterrence across the Alliance. A firm commitment to comply with Article 5 of the Washington Treaty was also made. NATO will continue to take all necessary measures to ensure the security and defence of all Allies. The Allies are united to defend each other.
"I am pleased that the Alliance responded promptly to the request of the Baltic States and other NATO members to enter into consultations. The planning of additional security support is already underway. Latvia is currently safe, but we must continue to everything to preserve it," says Minister for Defence Artis Pabriks.
The North Atlantic Council in its statement says that it condemns in the strongest terms Russia’s horrific attack on Ukraine, which is absolutely unjustified. Belarus is also condemned for allowing such an attack. This attack is a serious violation of international law. This is an act of aggression against an independent, peaceful state.
"We stand with the Ukrainian people, their President, Parliament and Government elected in legitimate democratic elections. We will always fully support Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty within its internationally recognised borders. We call on Russia to stop its military action and withdraw its forces from Ukraine and its borders, fully respect international law and allow safe access to humanitarian aid. The Russian leader must take full responsibility for the consequences of his actions. Russia will pay a high economic and political price," the statement says.
"Today, the North Atlantic Council decided to activate our defence plans. This is a prudent step to defend the allied countries during this crisis. This will allow us to deploy forces where they are needed. In response to Russia’s huge military growth, we have already stepped up our collective defence on the ground, at sea and in the air. In recent weeks, thousands more soldiers have been deployed by Allies from the North America and Europe to the East and there are still more on standby. We have over 100 aircraft in heightened preparedness that protect our airspace and more than 120 allied vessels at sea from the North to the Mediterranean. This is indicative of the fact that our collective defence commitment to Article 5 is ironclad. We will continue to do everything in our power to protect the Alliance from aggression. Tomorrow I have convened a virtual summit of NATO leaders to discuss the way forward," said NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg at a press conference following the extraordinary meeting of the North Atlantic Council.
In addition, the North Atlantic Council's statement says that throughout this crisis, NATO, its Allies and partners have made every effort to pursue diplomacy and dialogue with Russia. There have been many important proposals to improve the security of the Euro-Atlantic region, but Russia has so far not responded to them. Russia and only Russia has opted for escalation. In turn, the measures taken by NATO are and remain preventive, proportionate and non-obtrusive.
