On 24 February 2024 in New York, the Parliamentary Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Reinis Brusbārdis, delivered a statement at the United Nations General Assembly meeting concerning the situation in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine.
“The Russian Federation’s brutal war of aggression against Ukraine is a shameful attack on a sovereign independent country and against the rules-based international order. The international community must be resolute and stand against aggression by providing all necessary support to Ukraine,” Reinis Brusbārdis stated.
The Parliamentary Secretary pointed out that the temporarily occupied territories are an integral part of Ukraine and will remain as such. The Russian Federation must immediately withdraw all of its troops and military equipment from the entire territory of Ukraine within its internationally recognised borders. Reinis Brusbārdis underlined: “War crimes committed by the Russian Federation cannot go unpunished, the perpetrators will be held accountable.”
The same date also saw an event co-organised by Latvia, “Stolen Voices. The story of Ukraine children in a time of war”. The Parliamentary Secretary spoke about Latvia’s involvement in the return of children kidnapped by the Russian Federation and invited all countries to join the International Coalition for the Return of Ukrainian Children. He also informed the participants about the international conference held in Riga, “Russian War Against Children”.
In support of Ukraine, Reinis Brusbārdis also took part in the joint press stakeout by Dmytro Kuleba, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, ahead of the UN Security Council meeting.
During the visit, the Parliamentary Secretary met with Eivind Vad Petersson, State Secretary for the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Norway, for a discussion on cooperation between the two countries and the situation in the region.
On February 22 and 23, Reinis Brusbārdis was in New York on a working visit to attend events in support of Ukraine at the UN.