Officials and representatives of the B9 countries meet in Latvia's capital Riga on June 11, 2024 (Photo: president.lv)

High on the agenda was developing Ukraine’s interoperability with NATO forces in preparation for Ukraine’s eventual integration into the military alliance.

For the first time, the summit did not end with a joint declaration. Instead, a statement will be issued in the names of the presidents of Latvia, Romania and Poland, who jointly hosted the Riga gathering, reaffirming the steadfast support of the B9 countries for continued financial, military, and humanitarian aid to Ukraine.

The B9 event features officials and leaders from Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Slovakia, plus NATO's newcomers Sweden and Finland, as well as its Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.