Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo has invited the leaders from Sweden, the Baltic states, Poland, Bulgaria, and Romania to participate in the Eastern Flank Summit.

Discussions will focus on threats to European security and defence readiness, especially at the EU's eastern border.

The one-day Eastern Flank Summit is being held for the first time.

Prime Ministers Ulf Kristersson (Sweden), Kristen Michal (Estonia), Evika Siliņa (Latvia), Donald Tusk (Poland) and Rossen Jeliazkov (Bulgaria) and Presidents Nicușor Dan (Romania) and Gitanas Nausėda (Lithuania) will take part.

A press conference will take place at the end of the one-day summit.

"The threat from Russia is not going away, and strengthening the eastern flank of Europe must become a shared responsibility for Europe," said Prime Minister Kristen Michal (Reform) ahead of the summit in a statement.

"Starting next year, Estonia will invest at least 5 percent of its GDP in national defence. Our needs have been mapped out and work is underway, but to speed up the process, we need significantly more support from the European Union, including through joint funding measures."

Michal said Estonia supports EU defense projects and considers the Eastern Flank Watch defense cooperation initiative to be a priority.

"Air and drone defence, situational awareness, and the ability to stop the enemy at the border are our priorities," said the prime minister.

The live stream has been removed from this article.

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