On 4 February 2002, senior Latvian and NATO officials met at NATO HQ in Brussels to discuss Latvia's draft reform plan for integration into NATO.

The Latvian delegation was led by State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Maris Riekstins and State Secretary of the Ministry of Defence Edgars Rinkevics. The delegation was composed of representatives from the Ministries of Defence, Foreign Affairs, and Finance, the Constitution Protection Bureau and the Corruption Prevention and Combating Bureau. The meeting was chaired by NATO Assistant Secretary General for Political Affairs Guenther Altenburg and attended by representatives from all 19 NATO member states.

During the meeting, priority issues to be resolved by the Latvian Government in Latvia's process of integration into the Alliance were discussed in detail. In the negotiation chapter on political and economical issues, NATO member states commended Latvia's achievements in societal integration and combating corruption and urged it to continue the implementation of measures in these areas. Representatives of NATO member states evaluated positively Latvia's progress in implementation of the NATO Membership Action Plan. They praised in particular the stable development and dynamic growth of the Latvian economy, which among other things guarantees the necessary financing for the Latvian defence sector and for planned reforms to the defence system.

In the negotiation chapter on defence, an exchange of views took place on modifications to Latvia's defence concept after joining NATO, when emphasis will need to be placed on Latvia's contribution to NATO's collective defence operations and the further professionalisation of the Latvian National Armed Forces. Issues related to the structure of the armed forces and Latvia's contribution to NATO's joint operations were also discussed. A mine clearance unit, LATBAT, military police, military medics and special units were mentioned as Latvia's eventual contribution to future NATO operations. NATO member states advised Latvia to pay increased attention to personnel training issues.

The representatives of NATO member states generally gave a positive evaluation of Latvia's draft reform plan which will, following amendments, be submitted for approval to the Cabinet of Ministers.

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