Invasion of Ukraine is the beginning of the end for the Putin regime - Levits

RIGA - The invasion of Ukraine is the beginning of the end of the regime of Russian President Vladimir Putin, the President of Latvia Egils Levits said in an interview with LETA.

He emphasizes that Western society cannot accept a world order in which Russia dictates its own rules to other countries or, as in the case of Ukraine, deny a country's right to exist.

The President believes that Russia must be reckoned with at the moment. Unlike some Western societies, Latvia has never had the illusion of the nature of Russia, and it is good that many Western countries have now opened their eyes what the Russian regime really is.

"Whether he will leave or not, I cannot say, but in any case Western society cannot accept a world order in which Russia dictates its own rules to other countries. (..) This is not acceptable," Levits said, adding that Western society therefore NATO, as the world's strongest military defense alliance, and the European Union (EU), as the world's strongest economic union, have unequivocally and very clearly opposed Russia's aggression and expansion.

The president also hopes that Russian society will soon open its eyes on what is happening, and it is already clear that Putin himself did not expect a part of Russian society to protest against his regime, despite the brutal repression of the opposition.

"Autocratic regimes are, on the one hand, hard, but on the other hand, very fragile. Like glass, when it is touched, it is hard, but if it is touched a little in the right place, it breaks. This is a systemic weakness of Russia and any other autocratic regime," says Levits.

The President also expects that a third package of sanctions against Russia will be adopted soon.