This weekend's North-South Summit, called by Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo, was also attended by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis as well as EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas.

Orpo noted that he deliberately invited two representatives each from Nordic countries, southern EU countries and the EU representative in order to coordinate their views on security.

"Over the past decade we've often been on different sides regarding major European issues – such as the euro crisis and the financial crisis," the Finnish government leader acknowledged.

"Now, however, we are facing completely different challenges, and in this case, our positions are very similar," he continued. "We understand that Russia is a major threat to us, and we recognize the issues involving border security and immigration, even though these differ in the north and the south."

According to the Greek prime minister, they have a shared understanding when it comes to security.

"We need to do more, and we need to be smarter when allocating defense funds, at both the national and EU levels," Mitsotakis said.

He added that budget rules should be made more flexible when it comes to defense spending, which would help all member states boost their defense budgets.

Orpo emphasized that Russia is a long-term threat, and one that acknowledges only force, which is why it's crucial to improve defense capabilities.

"We have to understand that Russia is able to continue waging war," the Finnish leader stressed. "We cannot wait for Russia to collapse under our sanctions. No! It's capable of continuing the war, which is why we can't afford to wait. We must strengthen our defense and security as quickly as possible!"

Speaking at the press conference held at the end of their meeting, all of the participating leaders emphasized the need to increase defense spending while also addressing security more broadly and countering hybrid influence.

"I believe that this collection of simultaneous crises we're increasingly facing highlights the need to strengthen the EU's collective readiness," noted Kristersson.

According to their shared understanding, managing immigration is also seen as a key aspect of security.

Meloni underscored the importance of cooperation, noting that to date, each country has had to handle migration issues alone, which has been a mistake.

"The result is that we've failed to protect our external borders, we've endangered free movement within the EU, and various forces have exploited migration to apply pressure and blackmail," the Italian prime minister said. She added that the EU has now changed course, and that its external borders are being protected.

"We will not allow Russia or criminal organizations to threaten our security," Meloni emphasized.

EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Kaja Kallas stated that security is broad-based, and action must be taken together.

"Russia is a direct threat to European security, but security consists of various elements," Kallas acknowledged. "These differ in the east, west, south and north, but we'll manage them if we act together."

--

Follow ERR News on Facebook and Twitter and never miss an update!