Latvia was only EU country to oppose lifting of sanctions against Usmanov and Friedman, - Prime Minister Kulbergs
Latvia remained the only EU country to oppose the removal of Russian oligarchs Alisher Usmanov and Mikhail Fridman from the sanctions list. In particular, this decision was supported by Lithuania and Estonia.
According to Censor.NET, citing Delfi, this was stated by the Latvian Prime Minister, Andris Kulbergs.
According to him, the issue of extending the sanctions needed to be resolved in such a way that Latvia was not left to stand alone with its position. He also believes that the Baltic states should have developed a common approach to this issue.
Kulbergs noted that all other EU Member States had agreed to remove Usmanov and Friedman from the sanctions list.
The Prime Minister expressed surprise that Lithuania and Estonia had also agreed to this decision, emphasising the need for a united stance among the Baltic states.
"It was a tough choice: either a really bad situation or just a bad one," said Kulbergs.
According to him, Latvia remained steadfast in its position and did not agree to the lifting of sanctions, but was ultimately forced to abstain rather than vote against the decision as a whole. Kulbergs also stated that he was surprised that Latvia’s interests had, in fact, not been the subject of discussion.
- As previously reported by Censor.NET, the EU has extended the restrictive measures against individuals responsible for undermining or threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine for a further 36 months, but has removed Russian oligarchs Alisher Usmanov and Mikhail Fridman from the sanctions list.
