Is meditation necessary in Buddhism?

According to wikipedia article on the eightfold path, https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noble_Eightfold_Path >The Eightfold Path consists of eight practices: right view, right resolve, right speech, right conduct, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and **right samadhi ('meditative absorption or union')**. In early Buddhism, these practices started with understanding that the body-mind works in a corrupted way (right view), followed by entering the Buddhist path of self-observance, self-restraint, and cultivating kindness and compassion; and **culminating in dhyana or samadhi**, which re-inforces these practices for the development of the body-mind. My question: Is meditation necessary in Buddhism? Is the practice of Buddhism incomplete without meditation?