Second state visit takes President Kaljulaid to Latvia
President Kersti Kaljulaid visited Latvia on Friday, where she met with President Raimonds Vējonis and Speaker of the Saeima Ināra Mūrniece in Riga. Kaljulaid emphasized the necessity of cooperation on all levels, and said that the countries had a similar understanding of the security situation in the region.
The meeting discussed matters of economic and cultural cooperation between Latvia and Estonia, including current topics like the Rail Baltic project, and the upcoming 100th anniversary of both countries.
Both presidents stressed that Estonia and Latvia were very close in their understanding of matters of security, energy independence, and transport. They also said that the countries shared a common vision of the future.
President Raimonds Vējonis said that in the current geopolitical situation, unity among allies was particularly important and needed to be sought also in situations where opinions diverged. Vējonis added that Latvia and Estonia had the same understanding of a currently restless world.
Referring to Russia, Vējonis said that one couldn’t pick his neighbors, and expressed satisfaction with the fact that NATO had decided at its 2016 summit in Warsaw to expand its presence in the Baltic countries.
Latvia was Kaljulaid’s second state visit, after she met with Finnish president Sauli Niinistö in Helsinki on Thursday. She will meet with the Lithuanian president on Oct. 26.
Editor: Editor: Dario Cavegn