The Foreign Minister, Maris Riekstins, on 28 February met with the Director General of the Employers' Confederation of Latvia, Elina Egle, and the organisation's EU Affairs expert, Inese Stepina, to discuss opportunities for co-operation as part of the current Latvian presidency in the Council of Baltic Sea States.

Mr Riekstins informed the representatives about the activities of the Foreign Ministry during Latvia's CBSS presidency and about the concluding event, the CBSS Heads of Government meeting, which will take place on 3-4 June in Riga. As the Minister has stated, it is important that during the summit Latvia should hold a series of events about the opportunities for economic co-operation in the Baltic Sea region, and thus encourage an exchange of opinions between the leading entrepreneurs, politicians and sectoral experts of the region.

The progress of the elaboration of an EU strategy for the Baltic Sea region was likewise discussed. The Foreign Minister indicated that, when defining the priorities of the region, a vital contribution can be made not only by state institutions, but also by representatives of NGO's.

Other issues relating to present and future co-operation between the Foreign Ministry and the Employers' Confederation were also reviewed during the meeting.

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