Baltic states support Ukraine’s efforts to de-occupy Crimea

The chairpersons of the parliamentary foreign affairs committees of the Baltic states supported Ukraine’s efforts to de-occupy Crimea.

As the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine informs, First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Emine Dzheppar met with Chair of the Estonian Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee Marko Mikhelson, Chair of the Latvian Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee Rihards Kols, and Chair of the Lithuanian Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee Žygimantas Pavilionis during their joint visit to Ukraine on April 29.

During the meeting, the First Deputy Minister informed the Baltic partners about the situation in the temporarily occupied Crimea and Ukraine’s efforts to de-occupy the peninsula. The official drew special attention to flagrant human rights violations by the Russian occupation administration in Crimea.

Dzheppar thanked the Baltic states for their continued support for the Ukraine-sponsored UN General Assembly resolutions on the militarization of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and human rights violations in Crimea.

“Active militarization of Crimea, which expands the possibilities of Russia’s military projection both on land and in the Black Sea, poses additional threats to the security not only of Ukraine but also of Europe,” Dzheppar stressed.

The First Deputy Minister told her interlocutors in detail about Ukraine’s new international initiative, the Crimean Platform, emphasizing that the parliamentary dimension will play an extremely important role in promoting its goals and objectives.

“I believe that the inter-parliamentary friendship groups between Ukraine and the three Baltic states will make every effort to keep the issue of the attempted illegal annexation of Crimea in the spotlight of the international community,” Dzheppar said.

The chairs of the parliamentary committees of the Baltic states also plan to visit the JFO area in order to get acquainted with the security situation in eastern Ukraine.

On April 28, Dzheppar presented a Ukraine-initiated draft decision of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe "Human Rights Situation in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the City of Sevastopol (Ukraine)" which aims to intensify the involvement of the Council of Europe in monitoring the human rights situation in the temporarily occupied Crimea.

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