The NATO on Wednesday vowed to be in solidarity with its Black Sea allies and and keep backing Ukraine.
The remark was made by NATO Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoana during a NATO-Ukraine Council meeting held at NATO Headquarters on the security situation in the Black Sea region.
"We stand in solidarity with our Black Sea Allies, we will continue to protect one another, and we will continue to support Ukraine for as long as it takes," he said.
The NATO-Ukraine Council met at NATO Headquarters Wednesday to address the security situation in the Black Sea region following Russia's termination of the Black Sea Grain Initiative, said a NATO statement.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg convened the meeting at the level of ambassadors following a request for consultation from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. NATO Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoana chaired the Council, it added.
It noted that Russia's new warning area in the Black Sea, within Bulgaria's exclusive economic zone, has created new risks for miscalculation and escalation, as well as serious impediments to freedom of navigation.
Geoana said: "Russia continues to show utter disrespect for international law and for the people worldwide who depend on Ukrainian grain. Russia is threatening civilian ships, terrorising peaceful cities, and destroying parts of the world's cultural heritage with its brutal strikes." NATO welcomed the continued efforts of Turkiye to revitalise the grain deal, and the efforts of others including Bulgaria and Romania as well as the European Union and the United Nations to enable the continued export of Ukrainian grain by land and sea.
NATO member states also made clear that they would continue to provide Ukraine with major military, economic, and humanitarian assistance.
NATO is stepping up surveillance and reconnaissance in the Black Sea region, including with maritime patrol aircraft and drones.
Today marked the second meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Council, following its inaugural meeting at the NATO Vilnius Summit earlier in July.
Oleksandr Kubrakov, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Communities, Territories, and Infrastructure; and Brigadier General Oleksii Hromov, Deputy Chief of Main Operational Directorate of General Staff of the Armed Forces joined the meeting via video conference.
Source: Kuwait News Agency
