The press-service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (hereinafter – the MFA) informs that the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine and Latvia, Dmytro Kuleba and Edgars Rinkēvičs, while talking by the phone, paid special attention to development of economic and trade cooperation between Ukraine and Latvia, despite the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Kuleba said that the two countries should double their efforts in order to support business and exporters, develop trade. This will lead to reduction of negative effects for the economies of Ukraine and Latvia, caused by the pandemic.

During this conversation he has also mentioned opening in April of the interactive electronic platform “Ukrainian Trade House” in Latvia. This platform creates additional opportunities for processing commercial proposal from Ukrainian exporters, for promotion of Ukrainian products on the European market and for signing the direct contracts.

Moreover, the head of the MFA of Ukraine welcomed the decision of the Latvian Government to renew work of the Latvian Agency of Investment and Development in Ukraine.

The Ministers have also voted for the approval of the date for holding the next meeting of the Ukrainian - Latvian Intergovernmental Commission on Economic, Industrial, Scientific and Technical Cooperation as soon as the restrictions, connected with the COVID-19, will be removed. 

In addition to this, the heads of the MFAs of Ukraine and Latvia have discussed the situation in Donbas and the negotiation process in the Normandy format.

Rinkēvičs has emphasized that the Latvia supports the sovereignty and the territorial integrity of Ukraine and that this can’t be changed. The Ministers have agreed on the issue of the sanctions policy towards Russia, which, on their opinion, should be continued until the full deoccupation of the Ukrainian territories and progress in the implementation of the Minsk agreements.

They have both mentioned the effectiveness of the cooperation between Ukraine and Latvia in international organizations, in particular, in the UN General Assembly. Kuleba and Rinkēvičs have stressed out the importance of struggle for historical truth.

The Ukrainian Minister hasn’t forgotten to congratulate his colleague from Latvia on the 30th anniversary of the Restoration of Independence of the Republic of Latvia.

According to the information, provided by the MFA, the volumes of trade between the two countries amounted to 564 million USD (according to the results of 2019). The trade growth was more than 2% with a positive balance of 136 million USD.

Reference source: UKRINFORM