Russia's continued military build-up on its border with Ukraine was discussed today at an online conference hosted by U.S. President John Biden by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, Polish President Andrzej Duda, who heads the OSCE this year, and European Council President Charles Michel and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
"Participants stressed the importance of unity at this critical time and made clear that any further Russian aggression against Ukraine would be costly," NATO said in a statement.
Jens Stoltenberg supported the deployment of additional alliance member states' troops to Eastern Europe, stressing the importance of improved information sharing and enhanced defense and deterrence.
"Secretary General Stoltenberg recalled NATO's consistent two-pronged approach to Russia: strong deterrence and defense combined with dialogue," NATO said in an official statement.
Jens Stoltenberg invited all leaders of the NATO-Russia Council for further meetings to discuss European security, including the situation in and around Ukraine, relations with Russia, and arms reduction and nonproliferation.
