The State Secretary Andris Pelšs receives Slovenian and Estonian Ambassadors on accreditation visits

On 15 August 2022, the State Secretary of the Latvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Andris Pelšs, hosted accreditation visits from the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Slovakia, Tomaž Matjašec, and the Ambassadors Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Estonia, Eerik Marmei.

In a conversation with the Slovenian Ambassador, Tomaž Matjašec, the State Secretary said he was convinced that the opening of an Embassy in Riga would open opportunities for broader cooperation between the two countries and he highlighted the close bilateral cooperation. Andris Pelšs thanked Slovenia for its contribution to the strengthening of Latvia’s security and that of the region by taking part in the NATO enhanced Forward Presence battle group in Latvia.

While discussing economic relations between the two countries, the State Secretary noted that there was great potential for expanding cooperation in the areas such as artificial intelligence, medicine, and the services sector. Views were exchanged on the current security climate in the region and the situation in Western Balkans. The officials were in agreement about the need to continue providing support for Ukraine and about a coordinated action of all Member States based on EU values, especially concerning Russia’s war in Ukraine.

During the meeting with the Estonian Ambassador, Eerik Marmei, the State Secretary praised the close cooperation between Latvia and Estonia both bilaterally and in multilateral formats. Andris Pelšs noted with certainty that the latest Report on Latvia-Estonia Cooperation, the presentation of which is due in September, would be a stepping stone for deepening relations between the two countries and developing new avenues of action. Andris Pelšs also underlined the major role of the Languages Award established by the Latvian and Estonian Foreign Ministries in the strengthening of bilateral cooperation through the promotion of the learning and use of the Latvian and Estonian languages.

In a discussion on economic relations, the State Secretary pointed out at the high potential for expanding cooperation in vital sectors such as energy, transport, and infrastructure projects. Opinions were also shared on the current security situation in the region, and the officials were unanimous about the need to continue and expand support provided by both the countries to Ukraine.

The accreditation of the Ambassadors with the President of Latvia, Egils Levits, has been scheduled for 17 August 2022.