Open letter from the ambassadors to Rome of Lithuania Ričardas Šlepavičius, of Poland Anna Maria Anders and of Ukraine Yaroslav Melnyk
An era ended on February 24th. The bloody banner of war began to fly over a Europe devastated by the pandemic and the economic crisis, but which nevertheless enjoyed peace until now. A criminal, meaningless war. A war based on Vladimir Putin’s immeasurable imperialist ambitions. In this darkest hour, an hour of trial for all of Europe, European civilization based on the self-determination of nations and respect for human life can only be saved by unity. Only by speaking loudly and with a single voice will we be able to defend the values we hold dear and resist the aggressor’s arrogance.
We have already shown that when we are united we are strong and can do a lot. The power of the latest sanctions package was able to shut down the Moscow Stock Exchange and destabilize Russian companies on foreign financial markets. All of Europe addresses the Ukrainian nation fighting the invader not empty words, but tangible humanitarian, financial, military and political support.We thank Italy for joining the initiatives to isolate Russian banks from the SWIFT system and block the European airspace for Russian aircraft.
We thank you for the nationwide demonstrations condemning the Kremlin regime’s aggressive actions. Thank you for your willingness to welcome Ukrainian refugees. We appreciate all the gestures of solidarity of the Italian citizens and also the initiatives of the Prime Minister of Italy Mario Draghi who proposed to take further measures against the Russian oligarchs and to further intensify the pressure on the Russian Central Bank and who stated without hesitation that « Italy is ready for further restrictive measures. ”Taking this into account and expressing our deep gratitude for the current support for Ukraine, we also invite you to make an extra effort: launch a nationwide boycott of goods and services Russians.
This appeal is not an action directed against the Russian people who suffer under the yoke of Putin’s authoritarianism, and even less against the Russians who have decided to restart life in Italy. The Kremlin unscrupulously sends tens of thousands of young and inexperienced Russians to the front, having told them they would only participate in drills. Thousands of Russian mothers will no longer see their children and thousands of children will become orphans. Thousands of peaceful protesters will be brutally beaten by officers from the Kremlin’s security apparatus. We want to emphasize this strongly: even ordinary Russians are victims and deserve the utmost respect.