Ukraine: Nordic and Baltic countries declare their full support for Ukraine following the Trump-Putin summit.

They warn that Putin is untrustworthy and that the "root causes" of the war are his "imperialist ambitions."

MADRID, 16 (EUROPA PRESS)

The heads of government of the Group of Eight Nordic-Baltic Union (G8) have declared their unwavering support for Ukraine following Friday's summit between the presidents of the United States and Russia, Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin, and demanded a voice for the Ukrainian government in future talks, defending the inviolability of its territorial integrity and the inability of Moscow to prevent its possible entry into NATO.

After applauding Trump's efforts to end the war, the group, which includes Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, and Sweden, stated that "to achieve a just and lasting peace, the next step must be with Ukraine."

Only Ukraine can make decisions about its future. "Decisions about Ukraine cannot be made without Ukraine, nor decisions about Europe without Europe," they declared, before adding that "experience has shown that Putin cannot be trusted" and that, ultimately, "it is Russia's responsibility to end its flagrant violations of international law."

In response to Putin's historical claims, the group asserts that the true root causes of this war are "Russia's aggression and imperialist ambitions" and insists that "a just and lasting peace requires a ceasefire and credible security guarantees for Ukraine."

"A peace agreement requires firm and concrete commitments from transatlantic partners to protect Ukraine from any future aggression," they added.

In response to Putin's proposal to "demilitarize" Ukraine and keep the country isolated from the Atlantic Alliance, the group has strongly opposed any "limitations" on the armed forces and warned Russia that it "has no veto power over Ukraine's accession to the EU and NATO."

"We maintain our unwavering support for Ukraine's sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity," the group stated, concluding by demanding that Russia "urgently return abducted children from the occupied territories, as well as prisoners of war and civilians."

"We will continue to arm Ukraine and strengthen European defenses to deter further Russian aggression as Russia continues its killing spree, and we will continue to strengthen sanctions and broader economic measures to pressure Russia's war economy," they concluded.