"These three allies have been leaders in NATO, contributing significantly to their defense budgets, leading the way in NATO and also leading the way in support for Ukraine at a time when that support is absolutely vital and I think it's a recognition on the part of all three countries, as well as the United States, of what the stakes are when it comes to our support for Ukraine".
In response, Latvia's Krišjānis Kariņš said: "We're deeply united in our basic values – freedom, democracy, the rule of law. And we see that our basic values, that our societies share, are being directly challenged around the world. Notably in our region it's Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine – we're going into the third year – and it's up to us, with our combined efforts, with NATO's combined efforts, to stand up against that and to not only say 'This is bad', but to make sure that that evil does not have a chance to spread."
Earlier in the day the three Baltic Foreign Ministers made more expansive comments in a conversation at the Hudson Institute thinktank, which you can watch in full below.
