On 3 March 2021, the State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Andris Pelšs, had an online conversation with the Ambassador of Austria to Latvia, Stella Avallone, at the conclusion of her posting to Latvia.
Andris Pelšs underlined the excellent and friendly relations between Latvia and Austria, including in the EU framework. The two countries are celebrating the centenary of their diplomatic relations this year.
The State Secretary praised the contribution of the Austrian Embassy to the strengthening of relations between the countries despite the Embassy working in a limited capacity and the Ambassador residing in Vienna. Andris Pelšs emphasised that Austria’s diplomatic representation in Latvia is of fundamental importance in bilateral relations and he expressed hope that a full-time resident embassy will resume work in future.
The State Secretary noted that Austria is one of Latvia’s important trade partners and there is potential for strengthening cooperation in various fields of science and new technologies such as photonics, smart cities, smart materials, medical technologies and artificial intelligence.
Ambassador Stella Avallone was accredited to Latvia on 28 August 2018 and resides in Vienna.