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On Monday, 16 March, the highest officials of the Baltic and Nordic parliaments, including Gundars Daudze, Deputy Speaker of the Saeima, met with the Speaker of the Ukrainian parliament, Volodymyr Groysman, and agreed on a joint initiative aimed at sharing their parliamentary experience with Ukrainian MPs and thereby contributing to the effectiveness of the Verkhovna Rada.

“The exchange programme is a great opportunity for the newly-elected Ukrainian MPs to strengthen democracy in Ukraine. Therefore, we agreed on the joint Baltic and Nordic initiative aimed at promoting a better understanding of the parliamentary system and practical managerial issues. This is especially important given the high proportion of newly-elected MPs in the Ukrainian parliament who account for 60% of the current convocation and who have to assume their duties at a time that is full of challenges and characterised by significant and historical developments,” said Gundars Daudze, emphasising Latvia’s preparedness to share its reform experience. 

Deputy Speaker of the Saeima underlined the importance of administrative exchanges and cooperation between the parliamentary committees. The initiative envisages hosting Ukrainian parliamentarians in the Baltic and Nordic states to share their experience on practical issues such as the forming and functioning of parliamentary groups, interaction of the coalition and the opposition, work of sectoral committees, parliamentary scrutiny, and other aspects of parliamentary work.

During the meeting with Speaker Groysman, Deputy Speaker Daudze, together with other top parliamentary officials, expressed unwavering solidarity and support to the Ukrainian people. “We strongly support Ukraine’s territorial integrity and are continuing a policy of non-recognition regarding the annexation of Crimea. It was the non-recognition of the incorporation of the Baltic States into the USSR and support from the international community that helped us to regain our independence 25 years ago”, said Gundars Daudze.  

The highest officials of the Baltic and Nordic parliaments also underlined the need to ensure long-term support to Ukraine, while emphasising the need for Ukraine to actively continue the reforms it has initiated. Likewise, it was pointed out that in order to raise public awareness about the need for long-term stability it is necessary to explain the reforms and their impact to the general public, as well as to Ukraine’s cooperation partners, namely, the EU member states. 

The need to curb the high level of corruption in Ukraine was also addressed during the meeting. Deputy Speaker Daudze said that the Latvian Embassy in Ukraine is planning to hold a round-table discussion on anti-corruption issues in Kiev and Kharkov. Aleksejs Loskutovs, Chairman of the Corruption Prevention Subcommittee of the Defence, Internal Affairs and Corruption Prevention Committee of the Saeima, is expected to take part in the discussions.  

The Deputy Speaker also reaffirmed that the Eastern Partnership, including the situation in Ukraine, is high on Latvia’s agenda as it is the presiding country of the Council of the EU. He reported that the Eastern Partnership Summit will be held in Riga this May, and he invited Ukrainian top officials to take part in the event. 

During the visit to Ukraine, Gundars Daudze met with Hanna Hopko, Chairperson of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Verkhovna Rada; Andrii Artemenko, Chairman of the European Integration Committee of the Verkhovna Rada; members of both committees, as well as other newly-elected Ukrainian MPs and heads of parliamentary groups.

The highest officials of the Baltic and Nordic parliaments also laid flowers at the Maidan square to honour those who sacrificed their lives for the cause.

From 15 to 17 March, the Deputy Speaker of the Saeima takes part in the meeting of the speakers of the Baltic and Nordic countries. The officials meet in Ukraine to express their unwavering support for Ukraine’s territorial integrity and discuss the situation in the East Ukraine. 

Photos from the meeting are available at: https://www.flickr.com/photos/saeima/sets/72157651372718652/
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Saeima Press Service