On March 3 in Lviv, President of Latvia Egils Levits met with President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The President of Ukraine thanked Latvia for all the military, financial, humanitarian and political assistance provided so far, which has been essential in the fight against Russian aggression. "Latvia was one of the first countries to provide aid to Ukraine. Ukraine will never forget it. We are close friends," said V. Zelenskyy. During the meeting, E. Levits and V. Zelenskyy signed a joint declaration.
The President of Latvia pointed out that providing support to Ukraine was a matter of course, as Latvia had also historically experienced Russian aggression. According to E. Levits, the provision of support should be continued because Ukraine is fighting not only for its freedom, but also for the values and security of the whole of Europe. "Latvia is doing its utmost to convince other Western countries that it is necessary to continue to provide aid and support to the people of Ukraine, because Ukraine must win this war. We need to raise awareness in the West that Russia is a threat not only to its immediate neighbours, but also on a much wider scale," said E. Levits.
The two presidents also discussed practical aspects of military assistance. President Levits emphasized that in order to repel Russian aggression, military capacity must be strengthened. V. Zelenskyy said that Ukraine expected a clear message at the NATO summit in Vilnius in July this year about its progress towards NATO.
At the same time, Ukraine, in putting forward its so-called 10-point peace formula, calls for the widest possible international support for it. Both presidents agreed that Russia must return to its internationally recognised borders and restore full territorial integrity of Ukraine. Only then can a diplomatic dialogue for peace be launched, emphasized E. Levits and V. Zelenskyy.
The two presidents also discussed cooperation between Latvia and Ukraine in international organisations.
V. Zelenskyy highly appreciated Latvia's active support for the Ukrainian issue within the UN, as well as the work on the creation of an ad hoc international tribunal to judge Russia's aggression against Ukraine.
The President of Latvia also expressed his support for Ukraine's reform efforts so that it could start negotiations on membership in the European Union as soon as possible. V. Zelenskyy assured that Ukraine was making every effort to move towards this goal, which would send an important signal to the Ukrainian people.
Before the meeting, the presidents of Latvia and Ukraine, with the participation of their spouses A. Levite and O. Zelenska, laid flowers at the Lviv cemetery in memory of the fallen defenders of Ukraine.
