Latvian President Edgar Rinkevich responded to the statement of former German Chancellor Angela Merkel that Poland and the Baltic countries allegedly interfered with negotiations with the Russian Federation in 2021, and the latter launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine the following year, writes Delfi. During the period in which Merkel spoke, Rinkevich was the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Latvia.

“Wait when my memoirs come out, there may also be something interesting. But seriously, I think, in this crazy time we forgot that there were many discussions in 2021, this is not a big secret... In the summer of 2021 there was a European council, there was a foreign council. The first data appeared, in the spring of 2021 the first concentration of the Russian armed forces near the borders of Ukraine was observed. And then the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the Baltic countries, representatives of many other countries went to Kyiv to discuss about support programs, ”Rinkevich said.

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He also added that different ideas were expressed in 2021. At that time, according to the Latvian president, it was already clear that the Minsk agreements were not working and the Russian Federation was not going to implement them.

Then, Rinkevich noted, Poland and the Baltic countries clearly said that Russia did not want to negotiate on the merits with the European Union and will do everything for the split of the EU position. It turned out to be true. The President of Latvia added that they then talked about the search for a format in which the Russians would not talk to individual countries, but with the entire European Union, which the latter were constantly avoided. Rinkevich emphasized that Poland and the Baltic countries spoke about this in 2016, in 2021 and now.

He believes that today they returned to this topic again, because the EU is still difficult to formulate a single position. According to the Latvian President, some countries understand the risks posed by the Russian Federation better, while others understand less.. In addition, all countries have different economic situations, which also affects the options of opinions. At the same time, Rinkevich emphasized: after 2022, many politicians in the West admitted that they did not listen to the opinions of Poland and the Baltic countries, although they turned out to be right.

“It was true for us, I still think that the truth is for us. But I am the president of the Latvian state. I think that from representatives of other countries you can hear that you need to look again for objects or subjects of political discussions and speak with the Russian Federation. We saw what attempts were made to organize a Russian-Ukrainian summit, Russia itself does not want to talk. Was Russia ready to speak in 2021 Only if all her ultimatums were fulfilled. And let’s not forget that in 2020-2021 there were quite a lot of such ultimatums - regarding Ukraine, NATO, and the rest. But I think that at the moment when the Polish politicians and the Baltic countries, which are still active, will retire, write memoirs and give interviews, you will hear a lot more, ”said Edgar Rinkevich.

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Let's remember that Merkel, in an interview with the Hungarian opposition media Partizan, noted the refusal of Eastern European countries to allow direct negotiations between her, Vladimir Putin and French leader Emmanuel Macron, describing the events leading up to Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in 2022. According to her, these countries were "

Former Latvian Prime Minister Krisjanis Karins, Polish legislators, Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna, PiS MEP Waldemar Buda, and former Polish Ambassador to the United States Marek Magerowski responded to Merkel's statement.