Putin punishing Ukraine for introducing European standards - Ukrainian ambassador

RIGA - Russian President Vladimir Putin is currently punishing Ukraine for introducing European standards and defending European values, which is the foundation of the European Union and NATO, Ukrainian Ambassador to Latvia Olexandr Mischenko said during an international conference on the resistance movements of the Baltics and Ukraine on Thursday.

According to him, the Ukrainians' hope that the West will protect Ukraine as part of the European community is quite logical. The statements made by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky about NATO and the Ukrainian people's criticism of the Alliance's weak response to the current situation are understandable, Mischenko said with confidence.

Frustration is growing in Ukraine because of the West's lack of commitment, especially among the NATO alliance, Mischenko said.

The ambassador explained that the West is opposing Russian aggression with unexpected unity, but that this unity and assistance to Ukraine is catastrophically insufficient at the moment.

"Some Western countries are showing ignorance and believe that dialogue with Putin is possible, some are even trying to take advantage of the situation and continue to work together with Putin's criminal regime and Russia," the ambassador said.

He emphasized that Western leaders and NATO allies were trying to avoid World War III, but that the war has already begun and that events in Ukraine are culminating.

At the conference, Mischenko expressed confidence that Ukraine would clearly win the war, but without Western help, the victory would cost hundreds of thousands of lives, but with Western support, Ukraine could win the war quickly, but it requires solidarity and courage from NATO leaders.

The ambassador said that for Ukraine, each life is precious, unlike for the Kremlin dictator. "Putin's soldiers mean nothing to Putin. Putin's goal is to cause as much suffering as possible to the Russians so that he can stand on the stage of history, next to his idols, Ivan the Terrible, Peter the Great, Stalin," he explained.

Mischenko also thanked the Latvian people and government for their help, support and unity with the Ukrainian people, and called for Ukraine's fate to continue to be defended on all international platforms.

"Russia cannot be one of the most important decision-makers in the UN Security Council. It cannot be a trading partner for anyone, because they will only supplement the budget for war and murder," the ambassador stressed.