A long-term war of attrition is predicted for Ukraine Minister of Foreign Affairs of Latvia Edgars Rinkevics in interview which he provided “TO”, in the context of his visit to Athens. According to Mr. Rinkevich, Ukraine is Europe’s first line of defense. With regard to Greek-Turkish relations, he notes that respect for international law and territorial integrity is an unshakable principle Latvia. And he emphasizes that contacts between Riga and Ankara on the purchase of Bayraktar UAVs are still at an early stage.

– Absolutely. I was in Cairo in June. We discussed various things, including energy cooperation. Just two days after my visit, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen visited Cairo. This was a structural error of the EU. dependence on one energy supplier. In the Baltic countries, we were against Nord Stream 2, but I think now there is an understanding that there should be differentiation. There is Algeria, schemes of cooperation between Greece and Cyprus, Israel, Egypt…

– We have experience of such attacks even before 2014 and the seizure of Crimea. I would say that this tactic goes back to the 90s when we were knocking on the doors of the EU. and NATO when they threatened to end economic cooperation. We are used to it. We closed all TV channels that called for national cleansing and war in Ukraine. But we also gave alternatives. Riga has become home to many independent Russian journalists in exile, while many Western media outlets have left Russia and are based in Latvia. Of course, the biggest information war is going on in social networks. We also saw this during the pandemic with the anti-vaxxers who now support Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

As for Bayraktar, there are still discussions about whether this is really a suitable delivery.

– In my opinion, a ban on the exit of Russians to the EU. for “tourist purposes” is correct for two reasons. First, because the Russian middle class must feel the consequences of the war that the Kremlin unleashed against Ukraine, where Ukrainians are killed every day. Secondly, the Baltic countries have a land border with Russia, and in recent months we have seen an increase in traffic at border crossings. Well, it’s also a safety issue. We understand, however, that we should give humanitarian visas or political asylum to people who are being persecuted for their anti-war views.

– Absolutely. The unshakable principle of our foreign policy, which has universal force, is the observance of international law, territorial integrity and sovereignty. That is why we understand the concerns of our friends in Greece and Cyprus. We have always supported the common policy of the EU. but also efforts to de-escalate within NATO. I’m here to better understand the situation. In terms of defense cooperation, our Ministry of Defense does have some ideas, but there are still discussions regarding Bayraktar to make sure that this is indeed a suitable purchase. There is, of course, a movement inside Latvia, where citizens are raising money to buy Bayraktar to donate to Ukraine. This, of course, is something completely different. We see both countries, Greece and Turkey, as valuable allies.

– We believe that the war will be long and aimed at wearing down the enemy. The Russians thought they were going to a “blitzkrieg” (lightning war) – I ended up in Kyiv when the invasion began, for planned operations. I learned firsthand that the Ukrainians will fight. And they did. We underestimated Ukraine and overestimated Russia. However, the Russians still have plenty of resources to use while the Ukrainians fight for their survival and have moral superiority over them. However, the strategy we have outlined must be implemented. That is, to support Ukraine militarily and financially, especially now, when winter is coming, to accommodate refugees. We already have over 40,000 refugees, which is quite a lot for a country the size of Latvia. We must continue to sanction Russia, diversify our energy sources, and further strengthen NATO’s eastern flank. The economic and military machine of Russia must be paralyzed so that they cannot fight. Interest in the West may have waned, but the war in Ukraine must not be forgotten. We need strategic endurance. If Russia succeeds in Ukraine, the same will happen in Moldova, then in the Caucasus, then in Kazakhstan. I don’t want to sound pessimistic, but at some point they might think they can do the same in the Baltics or in Poland. Ukraine is the first line of defense for Europe and NATO, whether we like it or not.