“The main thing is to maintain faith in Ukraine’s victory, not least in the moments when we see the sufferings of the injured – soldiers, civilians, including children. We must help the wounded to maintain their faith and conviction, this being a fight for the freedom and independence of Ukraine, for its future in the EU and NATO,” Foreign Minister Baiba Braže emphasized in a meeting with representatives from Ukrainian medical institutions at the National Rehabilitation Centre Vaivari on 12 November 2024.
Latvia has supported Ukraine in the rehabilitation of soldiers since 2014. Baiba Braže thanked in particular the United States government for granting co-financing that makes it possible to ensure the rehabilitation of Ukrainian soldiers and civilians.
“Let me thank the doctors who are selflessly saving lives every day and helping those wounded in the war to recover, as well as upgrading Ukraine’s medical and rehabilitation system. This is an added value of a large-scale project – it is gaining an increasingly wider regional reach, involving partners from medical institutions in various regions of Ukraine. Due to that it is possible to help more and more Ukrainian people during the war,” Foreign Minister Braže noted.
She also underlined that strengthening Ukraine’s medical system and overall public health is one of Latvia’s priorities in development cooperation with Ukraine.
The Foreign Minister thanked the NRC Vaivari and representatives from Ukrainian medical facilities, who are doing significant work to strengthen Ukraine’s rehabilitation system.
16 medical professionals from seven Ukrainian health care institutions have arrived in Latvia on a study visit as part of a project carried out by the National Rehabilitation Centre Vaivari. In Ukraine, they are implementing rehabilitation programmes in Ukrainian health care institutions for patients with injuries sustained due to Russia’s military aggression.
For information
The study visit takes place as part of the development cooperation grant project supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, “Sharing of experience with Ukrainian medical care institutions in the implementation of rehabilitation programmes, including for patients after limb amputations”, carried out by the National Rehabilitation Centre Vaivari since 2022.
In 2023, the project raised $200,000 in funding from the Development Cooperation Partnership programme run by the U.S. Department of State, thereby expanding the project’s circle of partners. The objective of the project is cooperation and experience sharing to help Ukraine introduce rehabilitation programmes for patients affected by the Russian military aggression and suffering from limb amputations and to create a system for circulation of technical aids.
