Today, 4 August 2026, the Cabinet of Ministers approved the national position of the Republic of Latvia, prepared by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Economics, regarding further work on the European Commission’s proposals to increase tariffs and expand sanctions against Russia and Belarus.
Latvia has made significant progress in reducing its economic ties with the aggressor states. Since 2022, the value of imports has fallen by 91%, from EUR 2.129 billion in 2022 to EUR 193 million in 2025.
The national position emphasises the need to continue weakening Russia and Belarus at the global, regional and national levels by exerting maximum pressure on Russia’s war economy and on Belarus as a co-aggressor. This is the only way to reduce Russia’s ability to finance the war and to bring a just and lasting peace in Ukraine closer.
Latvia believes it is necessary to continue efforts to ensure the timely adoption of future sanctions packages and the introduction of additional extraordinary sanctions in order to maintain consistent pressure on Russia. As part of this process, Latvia will carry out further analysis and advocate for the sanctioning of product groups that may have a significant impact on Russia’s narrative and the spread of its informational influence (soft power).
Alongside EU-level sanctions pressure on Russia and Belarus, Latvia has introduced a number of national-level restrictions – a ban on the import of agricultural and livestock products has been in force since 2024. This year, the national import restrictions were supplemented by a ban on the import of certain industrial goods (pursuant to the Saeima’s decision of 23 July 2026), and a ban on the import of food products is also being developed. At the same time, to ensure a greater impact, Latvia will continue its efforts to introduce similar sanctions at EU level.
FOR INFORMATION
The national position addresses:
- the measures already taken to restrict trade with Russia and Belarus;
- further actions to increase tariffs and expand sanctions to cover all trade with Russia and Belarus;
- an assessment of the possibility of introducing an EU-wide ban on imports of goods from Russia and Belarus;
- an evaluation of the economic impact of a ban on imports of goods from Russia and Belarus on businesses and consumers.
The national position was developed in fulfilment of Paragraph 2, Section 102 of Cabinet of Ministers minutes decision No. 29, adopted on 26 May 2026. This decision instructed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Economics, to prepare and submit, by 1 August 2026 and in accordance with the prescribed procedure, the national position of the Republic of Latvia for consideration by the Cabinet of Ministers concerning further work related to the European Commission’s proposals to increase tariffs and expand sanctions against Russia and Belarus.