The head of Lithuanian diplomacy, Gabrielius Landsbergis, defended this Tuesday in Riga that, with the war in Ukraine, “there are no arguments for keeping a Russian ambassador in any European capital” and urged other countries to reduce relations with Moscow.
Last spring, Lithuania reduced its relations with Moscow after reports of the death of civilians at the hands of Russian troops in the suburb of Bucha, on the outskirts of kyiv, Landsbergis recalled.
In recent days Estonia and Latvia have reduced their representation in Moscow. The Estonian ambassador was expelled by the Russian authorities and the Latvian ambassador was asked to leave the country before the set date.
Landsbergis attended a press conference together with his Latvian counterparts Edgars Rinkevics, Estonian Urmas Reinsalu and Poland Zbigniew Rau after the four ministers signed a declaration on regional cooperation.
The four heads of diplomacy also considered that Russian and Belarusian athletes should be prevented from participating in the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, even if they appear under a neutral flag.
The statement recalls that “Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland share a similar historical experience of aggression and severe oppression by revisionist totalitarian regimes for many decades of the 20th century.”
“Due to our common background, we have developed a similar understanding of potential threats, as well as a determination to strengthen our security and protect our independence and territorial integrity,” it adds.
For his part, the Polish minister indicated that his country’s harmony with the Baltic countries is motivated because “they were also victims of the Russian empire”, a factor that explains the “special support” for Ukraine.
“Our four countries have provided the largest amount of arms, ammunition and equipment to Ukraine compared to their respective GDPs,” Rau said.
In addition to the material support, the Polish minister indicated that Warsaw tried to “draw attention to the Russian threat on the eastern flank” of Europe “with statements in forums such as the European Union, NATO and the UN.”
The Estonian minister said the outcome of Russia’s war against Ukraine is of “existential importance” for the Baltic countries and that Ukraine needs fighter jets and long-range missiles to drive the Russian army out of its territory.
When asked about the possibility of Poland supplying planes to Ukraine, Rau was noncommittal, saying the issue “is under discussion.”
He indicated that relations with Russia will remain frozen for the foreseeable future, with the possibility of being resumed if Muscovo withdraws its troops from Ukraine, pays war reparations and turns over to an international court all the people in Russia responsible for the decision to unleash war.
The military offensive launched on February 24, 2022 by Russia in Ukraine has so far caused the flight of more than 14 million people -6.5 million internally displaced persons and almost eight million to European countries-, according to the latest data from the UN, which catalogs this refugee crisis as the worst in Europe since the Second World War (1939-1945).
Right now, 17.7 million Ukrainians need humanitarian aid and 9.3 million need food aid and shelter.
The Russian invasion – justified by Russian President Vladimir Putin as the need to “denazify” and demilitarize Ukraine for Russia’s security – was condemned by the wider international community, which has responded by sending arms to Ukraine and imposing them on Russia in political and economic sanctions.
The UN presented 7,110 civilian deaths and 11,547 wounded as confirmed since the start of the war, emphasizing that these figures are far below the real ones.
Source: TSF
