On 20 June 2024, during her working visit to Poland, the Minister of Foreign Affairs Baiba Braže, met with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Poland Radosław Sikorski, the Deputy Minister of the Interior and Administration Maciej Duszczyk, and the Deputy Head of the Joint Transitional Cabinet of the Belarusian Democratic Forces and Member of the Presidium of the Coordination Council Pavel Latushka, as well as with representatives from the Ukrainian Communications Group established by Poland and the United States of America.
Foreign Minister Baiba Braže: “We are on the same page with my Polish colleague that without a safe Baltic region, there is no safe Poland, and vice versa. Both Latvia and Poland are currently experiencing common threats: hybrid threats from Russia, the instrumentalisation of migration, cases of intensive sabotage. We will continue to closely cooperate and exchange information even more effectively for a more rapid response. Clearly, our common priority is to enhance the security and protection of strategic infrastructure and ensure its business continuity; however, this must become a priority for both our region and the transatlantic area as a whole.”
Baiba Braže also thanked Poland for its contribution to strengthening of the region’s security. The two ministers expressed their strong support for Ukraine, as well as emphasizing the importance of close regional cooperation in enforcing the existing sanctions and preventing their circumvention.
During the meeting, Foreign Minister Braže handed over the presidency of the European Union Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region to Poland, which will be the lead country and coordinate cooperation under the strategy from 1 July onwards.
In a conversation with Maciej Duszczyk, Deputy Minister of the Interior and Administration of Poland, Baiba Braže emphasised the importance of bilateral and regional cooperation between Latvia and Poland in the protection of the EU’s external border. The Foreign Minister stressed that the aim of the hybrid attacks conducted by Belarus and Russia is to destabilise the European Union Member States, including through instrumentalisation of migration.
During a meeting with Pavel Latushka, Deputy Head of the Joint Transitional Cabinet of the Belarusian Democratic Forces and Member of the Presidium of the Coordination Council, the Latvian Foreign Minister emphasised that the Belarusian democratic society can rely on Latvia’s continued support in fight for democratic freedoms and respect for human rights.
Baiba Braže welcomed the Ukraine Communications Group jointly launched by Poland and the United States. For the representatives of the group, she confirmed Latvia’s commitment to participating actively in its work.
“Our joint mission is to reduce the impact of Russia’s disinformation – not only at the regional, EU or NATO level, but also on a global scale,” the minister underlined.
As part of her visit, Baiba Braže also had a meeting with Sławomir Dębski, Director of the Polish Institute of International Affairs, for a discussion on current regional security issues and support to Ukraine.
Background information
The EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region is the EU’s first internal strategy for a European macro-region, which is based on an innovative and integrated long-term approach to the implementation of EU policies in the Baltic Sea region. The strategy covers eight EU Member States in the Baltic Sea region – Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Sweden.
