“We condemn, in the strongest possible terms, Russia’s flagrant violation of the United Nations Charter and the impact of Russia’s war on the rest of the world. We praise Ukrainian people for their courageous resistance and express our sympathy and condolences for their loss and suffering,” the Chiefs of Staff of the U.S.-Adriatic Charter Initiative (A-5) said in the joint statement.

Expressing full solidarity with the Ukrainian people, the U.S.-Adriatic Charter Initiative (A-5) – namely the United States, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia and North Macedonia – reaffirmed their steadfast support for Ukraine.

“We are committed to achieving a just and lasting peace that upholds the principles of the UN Charter, in particular sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence. The collective support for Ukraine confirms our mutual understanding that cooperation with allies and partners is vital to our collective capability to respond to current and future challenges,” the joint statement read.

According to the statement, “the Western Balkans remains subject to malign influences, including disinformation, hybrid and cyber threats, posed by state and non-state actors. In this regard, democratic values, rule of law, internal reforms, good neighborly relations and inclusiveness are vital for regional cooperation and Euro-Atlantic integration and we are committed to continue progressing towards this goal.”

“We reaffirm our commitment to the principles of the US-Adriatic Charter, recognizing that NATO integration of all aspiring countries in Southeast Europe is one of the main goals of the Initiative. In this sense, we support NATO’s open door policy and support the NATO membership aspirations of the remaining South-Eastern Europe countries, respecting the need for internal dialogue,” the statement concluded.

The 27th Conference of the Chiefs of Staff of the U.S.-Adriatic Charter Initiative (A-5) took place in Tirana on Wednesday. The high-profile gathering was co-chaired by Major General Arben Kingji of the Albanian Armed Forces and General Christopher G. Cavoli, the United States European Command (EUCOM) Commander and Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR).

The conference aimed to address pressing security issues in the region and beyond. A key topic of discussion is the push for increased defence spending, urging countries to exceed the 2% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) threshold. This move is seen as crucial for meeting the Alliance’s capability goals and NATO’s strategic planning objectives for partner nations.

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