Latvia fully supports Ukraine's rapprochement with the European Union, Latvian President Andris Berzins has said.
“Latvia and Ukraine are united not only by partnership, but also by friendship. We fully support Ukraine’s aspirations for [European] integration,” Berzins said during the extended talks with Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych in Kyiv on Thursday.
According to him, Ukraine’s hopes to join the European Union eventually were among the topics of the presidents’ tete-a-tete meeting in Kyiv on Thursday.
Berzins said Latvia was ready to provide Ukraine with both counsel and assistance in bringing its laws into line with European standards.
Yanukovych, for his part, said that Latvia has been and remains a partner of Ukraine that supports it on the path of European integration.
“This year is crucial, and we hope that an agreement between Ukraine and the EU on association and a free trade area will be signed at the summit in Vilnius in November,” he said.
As reported, Latvian President Andris Berzins is on an official visit to Ukraine March on 14-15 at an invitation of the Ukrainian counterpart.
