MINSK, 24 May (BelTA) – Latvian Ambassador to Belarus Einars Semanis was summoned to the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs over an act of disrespect for Belarus' state flag in Riga, Belarusian Minister of Foreign Affairs Vladimir Makes told journalists, BelTA has learned.
“Today, the Latvian ambassador was summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs over the incident that took place in Riga a short while ago and was an act of disrespect for the state flag of the Republic of Belarus. We regret that the incident involved the mayor of Riga and the Latvian minister of foreign affairs – the head of the agency that is meant to bring nations together instead of alienating them,” Vladimir Makes said.
“We summoned the ambassador to lodge our strong protest over this situation,” he added.
These days the Latvian capital of Riga is hosting the IIHF World Championships and has the flags of the participating countries raised in the city center. Today, Mayor of Riga Martins Stakis and Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics replaced the Belarusian state flag with the white-red-white flag.
