The S&D Group condemns the statements made by the foreign minister of Latvia Edgars Rinkevics in which he compared modern Russia to the German Reich and predicted that it will have the same end as the Nazi regime in Germany.
Gianni Pittella, S&D Group president said:
The unacceptable remarks of the Latvian foreign minister run contrary to all diplomatic efforts being made by the EU high representative for foreign and security policy Federica Mogherini and EU governments to find a political solution to the crisis in EU relations with Russia. It is particularly deplorable that they were uttered by a foreign minister of a country holding the rotating EU presidency. We firmly reject such rhetoric with respect to Russia, and fully support the efforts of high representative Mogherini, in trying to find a constructive way of dealing with the challenges presented by the Russian Federation.
Knut Fleckenstein, S&D Group vice-president said:
There are certainly plenty of legitimate grounds to criticise Russian actions in Ukraine, but this kind of rhetoric is counter-productive, insulting and only contributes to further escalation of tensions between the EU and Russia. Scoring domestic political points at the expense of the long-term inter-ethnic harmony in Latvia and relations with such an important neighbour as Russia is totally irresponsible.
