West of England Metro Mayor Dan Norris has written to his counterpart Vitali Klitschko the Mayor of Kyiv to express his personal support and pass of the good wishes of the people of the West of England at this critical moment for Kyiv and Ukraine as Russian troops cross the border.
The West of England Metro Mayor has asked Mayor Klitschko the best way in which the people of the West of England can show their support to his city.
Mr Norris has already begun a review of Russian inward investment into the West of England and has held discussions with groups including Business West.
Metro Mayor Dan Norris said: “Hostile helicopters, tanks and explosions in Europe – this is not what any of us wanted or expected to see in the 21st century. It harks back to a darker time and so we must act.
At a national and international level the hardest possible sanctions must now be implemented against all those linked to the Putin regime. But we here in the West of England also have our part to play.
Looking at the Russian finance coming into the region is the right and moral thing to do. I know the people of our region will be deeply concerned by the scenes in Ukraine and the threat to the democratically elected government in Kyiv and Ukrainian way of life. The actions over the last few days by the Russian government is a grave danger to international order and stability.”