On 4 and 5 August 2022, the Parliamentary Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Latvia, took part in a discussion in Salzburg, Austria, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs informs.
The discussions focused on crisis management models, strengthening EU institutions and issues raised by citizens.
Because of the challenges posed by Russia’s war in Ukraine and the Covid-19 pandemic, focus mainly was on how to strengthen European institutions to contribute to their resilience and security in the face of current and future crises.
It was stressed by the Parliamentary Secretary that with the winter approaching, there will be a lack of access to safe and warm places to live in Ukraine, as well as a growing number of internally displaced persons in a need of shelter.
«Many houses have been affected by Russian attacks. Additional international resources need to be mobilised urgently to ensure that people in Ukraine are not left without a safe shelter in winter. Currently, the available international support and funding in this area is very insufficient,» said the representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The number of people in need of help in Ukraine has reached 18 million.
The parliamentary secretary emphasized the need for the EU to introduce additional sanctions against both Russia and Belarus.
«The EU must strengthen restrictive measures against Russia. Ukraine must win this war. We must provide Ukraine with all the necessary support – military, humanitarian, financial and political.»
The Parliamentary Secretary stressed that a united approach and close cooperation between EU Member States to tackle the energy crisis is essential.
«Russia wants to use gas and oil as weapons to undermine European unity and wants to weaken the support of society and politicians and the imposition of sanctions against Russia.»
Representative of the Ministry of Foreign affairs emphasized that EU needs to be strong and united.«By giving maximal support to Ukraine simultaneously we need to be able to strengthen the rule of law, to continue the EU enlargement process the efficiency of the work of EU institutions.»