Contents tagged with Latvia

  • Ukraine and Latvia agreed to coordinate efforts to return money withdrawn under Yanukovych

    Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and Latvian President Raimonds Vejonis agreed to coordinate efforts to return to Ukraine the money illegally withdrawn by former officials under the Yanukovych regime. Poroshenko said during a briefing at Riga, "Today we reached several important agreements, including on further work and coordination in the return of Ukrainian financial assets."

    Poroshenko thanked Latvia for supporting Ukraine’s aspirations to European integration, for condemning Russia's …

  • Ukraine and five Eastern European countries ask U.S. not to remove sanctions from Russia

    Diplomats from six Eastern European states, including Ukraine, made a plea to U.S. senators to help in the confrontation with Russia.

    As noted by Reuters, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Pavlo Klimkin, as well as the Ambassadors of Poland, Georgia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia came to hearings of the U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations.

    They urged the U.S. not to lift sanctions from Russia in the near future. "Until Russia withdraws from the Ukrainian territory, there should …

  • U.S. Blackhawk helicopters arrive in Latvia

    On the 1st of March, five U.S. Blackhawk helicopters were deployed to Latvia during Operation Atlantic Resolve, Delfi reported. Soldiers from the Phoenix division of the 10th Aviation Brigade of the U.S. Army also arrived in Latvia.

    The 10th Aviation Brigade is the first of many allied armed forces to arrive in Europe as part of a rotation of units to show the readiness of the United States and NATO to ensure security in Europe.

    The Brigade is normally posted at Fort Drum, New York. Previous …

  • Latvian Security Police is worried about election interference from Russia

    Russia could implement "targeted and very specific" actions through an information campaign against Latvia before the start of parliamentary and local government elections, according to Delfi’s report on the concerns of Security Police Chief Normunds Mežviets.

    According to Mežviets, Russia could try to discredit the Latvian state, its policies and its leaders to support its anti-state sentiments and pave the way for political organizations that offer an alternative model of the political …

  • Latvia assures Ukraine that it supports keeping sanctions on Russia until Minsk agreements are implemented

    The State Secretary for Foreign Affairs of Latvia, Andrejs Pildegovičs, assured the State Secretary of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Andriy Zayats, that his country supports the continuance of sanctions against Russia until the full implementation of the Minsk Agreements. Andrejs Pildegovičs expressed this position during a visit to Riga by the Ukrainian State Secretary of Foreign Affairs, as reported by the press service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

    The public discussion entitled “25 …

  • Latvia installs 23 km fence along border with Russia

    Latvian State Border Guards spokeswoman Evgeniya Poznyak announced the installation of a border fence 23 km in length between Russia and Latvia. The fence has been installed in order to prevent attempts to illegally enter Latvia, Delfi reported.

    "The work on the construction of the fence began in 2015, and its completion is scheduled before 2019. Currently, a frontier 65 km long is laid out and a 23 km fence has been installed on the border," she said.

    Poznyak also noted that EUR 6.3 million …

  • NATO battalion will arrive in Latvia by June

    A NATO Battalion headed by Canada with more than 1000 servicemen will arrive in Latvia by the end of June.

    This was stated by the Commander of the Joint Headquarters of the Latvian National Armed Forces, Leonids Kalnins, as reported by the Delfi news website.

    “Before June, smaller NATO units will arrive in Latvia, which will prepare for the arrival of the battalion. By June, the complete battalion will arrive in Latvia,” Kalnins said.

    According to him, it is expected that the battalion will …

  • Lutsenko went to Latvia as part of investigation into corruption of former Ukrainian officials

    As reported by the press service of the Prosecutor General, on Friday, January 13th, the Prosecutor General, Yuriy Lutsenko, met with the Prosecutor General of Latvia, Ēriks Kalnmeiers, and the guidance of the Bureau on prevention and struggle against corruption (KNAB).

    As noted, the parties were discussing the cooperation in current criminal proceedings and particularly agreed with the government of Latvia to assist in the investigation of Ukrainian ex-officials and the return of illegally …

  • The Latvian Minister of Foreign Affairs condemned Russia’s aggression against Ukraine

    Speaking at the UN Security Council, the Latvian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Edgars Rinkēvičs, condemned Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, saying it contradicts international standards and violates the principles of the UN Charter, Delfi reported.

    Rinkēvičs emphasized in his speech that all UN Member States should respect the UN Charter and renounce the illegal use of force and threats. As for conflicts, all of them should be resolved peacefully.

    Rinkēvičs also commended on the veto right …

  • Spain to deploy 300 soldiers to Latvia as part of NATO mission

    Three hundred Spanish soldiers will be deployed to Latvia as part of NATO’s rotational battalion in the Baltic States, as stated by Latvian Defense Minister Raimonds Bergmanis.

    According to him, preparations for the Canadian-led battalion are currently under way, and a meeting will be held in Ottawa at the end of January to discuss the logistics of the deployment.

    "Spain will also join the battalion, sending a large group of soldiers in the amount of 300 people. In total, the battalion will …