“Ukraine has always been an important country to Latvia, but since 2014 it became a really strategic partner”, - State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Latvia Andrejs Pildegovičs said at the meeting with Deputy Foreign Minister for European Integration Olena Zerkal at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine on 22 March.

Mr.Pildegovičs confirmed the invariable support of Latvia for territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine.  

During the meeting, the parties recognized the high level of bilateral political dialogue and common approaches to key issues of international agenda.

Discussing the practical support of Latvia in implementation of reforms in Ukraine, the State Secretary of the Foreign Ministry of Latvia emphasized the readiness of his country to share experience in the spheres of electronic government, strategic communications, national minorities’ education and reforms in phytosanitary control system.

In the context of countering information and propaganda war waged by Russia, Andrejs Pildegovičs pointed out that Latvia understands it better than anyone else, how the Russian propaganda machine works, as since 1990s Latvia has been suffering all the cliché, which Russia uses against Ukraine now.

During the meeting the importance of recent fixing by the Ukrainian Parliament of the decision on NATO accession as Ukraine’s strategic aim was underscored. The particular emphasis was placed on enhancing cooperation in countering hybrid threats, which directly threaten national interests of Ukraine and Alliance member states.

The parties noted the high dynamics of implementation of the Association Agreement by Ukraine and the positive trends in its trade with the EU, as demonstrated by relevant 2017 statistics. The importance of substantial preparation for the Copenhagen International Conference on Implementation of Reforms in Ukraine, scheduled for the end of June 2018, was also noted.