Maryland severs its sister-city links with Russia's Leningrad region in a symbolic gesture of support for Ukraine

• Maryland has terminated its sister-city relationship with Russia's Leningrad.
• Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan called the move a "symbolic gesture" in support of Ukraine.

Maryland severed its sister-city ties with the Leningrad region in Russia on Monday in what the state's governor called a "symbolic gesture" backing Ukraine.

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan wrote to his counterpart in Leningrad, Gov. Aleksandr Drozdenko, to terminate the relationship between the two on February 28.

The sister-city ties were established in 1993 to promote peace and prosperity between communities via links between local governments, per Hogan's letter.

"It is the duty of every government to remain vigilant of unlawful acts against public order, democratic principles, and innocent civilians," Hogan wrote.

"Having witnessed the unprovoked invasion of Ukraine by the Russian Federation, I am obliged to immediately dissolve and terminate Maryland's partnership with the Leningrad Region," the letter continued.

Speaking to reporters after terminating the sister-city relationship, Hogan said it was a "symbolic" gesture in support of Ukraine.

"We're taking every action we can to voice that support," Hogan said.

"We're also taking actions to make sure that no state agency and the retirement system and everybody else, that we're divesting of any interests," Hogan added. "We are not doing anything to support Russia in any way — or their economy."

Hogan attended a prayer service at the St. Michael the Archangel Ukrainian Catholic Church in southeast Baltimore on February 28, where he expressed "complete solidarity" with the people of Ukraine.

The US-Russia Chamber of Commerce lists 69 cities that have ties to Russian cities. California's Long Beach, for example, is Sochi's sister city, while St. Petersburg in Florida is the sister city of St. Petersburg in Russia.

Montgomery County, the most populous county in Maryland, also issued a statement on Sunday halting all sales of Russian liquor in the county's stores.

Other states, including Texas and New Hampshire, have issued similar boycotts of Russian goods. In New York, Gov. Kathy Hochul signed an executive order on Sunday banning all business transactions with Russia.

Insider's live blog of the Russian invasion of Ukraine is covering developments as they happen.