On 3 May 2023, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Latvia, Edgars Rinkēvičs, and the President of the Estonian Parliament (Riikikogu), Lauri Hussar, discussed current bilateral cooperation between Latvia and Estonia, the security situation in the region, and support provided by the two countries to Ukraine.
The Latvian Foreign Minister appreciated the close and multifaceted cooperation between Latvia and Estonia.
“Latvia being the first country to which the Estonian President made his first bilateral visit is a symbolic testament to our close neighbourly relations,” emphasized Edgars Rinkēvičs.
During their conversation, they highlighted the considerable potential for deepening contacts between the two countries, particularly in defence, energy, transport, digitalisation, as well as education and culture.
Minister Rinkēvičs commended the importance of the Languages Award presented by the Latvian and Estonian Ministries of Foreign Affairs in promoting the Latvian and Estonian languages and in creating a deeper understanding and interest of both peoples in each other.
Edgars Rinkēvičs welcomed the active cooperation with Estonia in multilateral formats, which is particularly important in addressing the Russian aggression in Ukraine. The Foreign Minister and the President of the Riikikogu agreed that Latvia and Estonia, as like-minded countries, should continue to advocate strongly for supporting Ukraine and strengthening sanctions against Russia. It is important to continue close coordination in the run-up to the NATO summit in Vilnius.
