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Freedom of media and expression is the foundation of human rights and democracy, said Muiznieks. Freedom of expression and media plays an important role in human rights, as without it there would be no free elections and other fundamental rights that Europe knows. Muiznieks indicated that during conflicts, media usually become the first victims, as they are under a great risk of becoming propaganda tools in somebody's hands.

He also said that, since taking office, he has visited all Eastern Partnership countries, except for Belarus. 2014 and the current year have been very negative in several Partnership countries, especially in Ukraine. "Last February was the first time I visited Ukraine, where I met journalists who were threatened during the protests. They were attacked and injured. Some of them were also killed," Muiznieks emphasized, explaining that in such cases, propaganda cannot be countered with propaganda, but with freedom of media.

He said that areas that have no local media are always dominated by the Russian media. "I have noticed that Eastern Partnership countries, and also Latvia, have regions where national information sources often fail to provide their own opinion," added Muiznieks. "Do you really want these people to learn about the European Union and NATO from Russia?"