Latvian President: Only the West’s Weakness Can Provoke Russia
Egils Levits talks about military aid for Ukraine, a special tribunal for Russian war crimes, and how to respond to nuclear blackmail.
By Benjamin Bathke, a Berlin-based entrepreneurial multimedia journalist.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky shakes hands with Latvian President Egils Levits.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky shakes hands with Latvian President Egils Levits after their joint press conference with Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Sept. 9. Alexey Furman/Getty Images
Having spent almost 1 percent of its GDP in aid to Ukraine, proportionally more than any other country, the Baltic nation of Latvia has been one of Kyiv’s staunchest supporters. Latvian President Egils Levits—who, in April, was one of the first Western leaders to visit Ukraine after the Russian invasion and meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky—has been vocal in support of Ukraine’s European Union candidate status and the need to stop Russian political and economic influence in Europe.
Benjamin Bathke is a Berlin-based entrepreneurial multimedia journalist. He has worked in online and radio journalism for the past six years and is currently covering migration, media innovation, and technology for a variety of international publications.
Latvian President Egils Levits, Slovakian President Zuzana Caputova, U.S. President Joe Biden, Polish President Andrzej Duda, and other participants leave the podium after posing for a group photo in Warsaw.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping give a toast during a reception following their talks at the Kremlin in Moscow on March 21.
Russia has gone from one mobilization to the next, burning through equipment and ammunition faster than it can replace it—even resorting to the recruitment of prisoners to fight its drawn-...Show moreout war in Ukraine. Meanwhile, Kyiv has received a major infusion of military aid from the West in the last three months. What are its chances of success in a forthcoming offensive?
Join FP’s Ravi Agrawal for a discussion with James Stavridis, a retired four-star U.S. Navy admiral and NATO supreme allied commander. Tune in for a wide-ranging discussion on Russia and Ukraine’s military options; the respective roles of Europe, the United States, and China; and more.
Over the last few years, Washington has prioritized relocating manufacturing production back to the United States. Critics abroad argue that America’s new industrial policy is protectionis...Show moret and fosters unfair competition.
Economist Adam Posen goes a step further. He says the problem with U.S. policy isn’t just that it channels zero-sum thinking but that it is destined to backfire on a number of its goals, from job creation to innovation and decarbonization.
Posen argues that for U.S. industrial policy to be successful and resilient, it needs to be barrier free. How and why? Subscribers are encouraged to send in their questions. Posen will discuss his FP cover essay in a conversation with FP’s editor in chief, Ravi Agrawal.
BEIJING, CHINA - MARCH 05: A general view of the Great Hall of the People during the Chinese Premier Li Keqiang delivers a speech in the opening of the first session of the 14th National People's Congress at The Great Hall of People on March 5, 2023 in Beijing, China.China's annual political gathering known as the Two Sessions will convene leaders and lawmakers to set the government's agenda for domestic economic and social development for the year. (Photo by Lintao Zhang/Getty Images)
FP editor in chief, Ravi Agrawal sat down for a regular China discussion with three experts: Ryan Hass, a former China director at the National Security Council; Zongyuan Zoe Liu, a Council ...Show moreon Foreign Relations fellow and Foreign Policy columnist; and James Palmer, a deputy editor at Foreign Policy and writer of China Brief.
The discussion encompassed highlights from the recent meeting between the presidents of China and Russia, the recently concluded “two sessions” meetings in Beijing—an annual rubber-stamp convening—and the ongoing dramas over TikTok and a recent public sighting of Jack Ma, the founder of Alibaba. The bit our editors want to highlight in particular, however, involves rival diplomatic missions from Taiwan. Former President Ma Ying-jeou became the first sitting or former leader to visit mainland China since 1949, a trip Taipei’s ruling party has called “regrettable.” It comes right as President Tsai Ing-wen prepares to visit the United States and Central America this week.
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