Latvia has elected a new president – making history the first openly gay head of state in Europe. The country’s parliament elected Edgars Rinkēvičs to be its next president, Reuters reported prime minister Krišjānis Kariņš saying. Rinkēvičs has spent a long time in Latvian politics, serving as the country’s ministerContinue Reading
In a Stalinist skyscraper which dominates the skyline of Latvia’s capital, dozens of elderly Russians wait to take a basic Latvian language test as a proof of loyalty to a country where they have lived for decades. Clutching red Russian passports, the participants, mostly women, read their notes for lastContinue Reading
The Baltic states will continue to send military aid to Ukraine, and support the sending of fighter jets, the prime ministers of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania said at a meeting in Tallinn on Friday. Estonia is leading the Baltic cooperation formats this year and the trio discussed Ukraine, joint infrastructureContinue Reading
Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland signed a joint agreement to depend on security cooperation and establish a new platform that spans the four countries. Minister of Foreign Affairs Urmas Reinsalu (Isamaa) and his counterparts co-signed the document in Riga, Lavia on Tuesday. It “lays the foundation for a cooperation platformContinue Reading
No solutions to the current energy crisis can be expected for the next four years, although Russia cannot pressure the West forever, Economic Adviser to the President Kaspar Oja and economic experts Raivo Vare and Heidor Vitsur said on Vikerraadio’s “Välistund” on Monday. According to Vare, the G7’s announcement FridayContinue Reading
From 1 June onward the general water supply and sewer tariff in Riga will increase 22.4%, reaching 2.35 EUR/m3 instead of the current 1.92 EUR/m3, according to the decision made by the Public Utilities Commission. The water supply tariff will be 1.02 EUR/m3, which is EUR 0.17 more than itContinue Reading
Members of pro-Kremlin political party in Latvia – Latvian Russians Union – threaten with «war» if Victory Monument is tampered with, as reported by Neatkarīgā Rīta Avīze (NRA). «Any attempt to move the monument by even a millimetre will be equal to declaration of war, and we won’t be takingContinue Reading
Latvian Ziedot.lv charity organisation frequently receives verbal attacks from angry Latvian residents for the organisations work in Ukraine, said the manager of Ziedot.lv Rūta Dimanta in an interview to LTV Rīta panorāma. As for the level of cohesion within Latvia’s society in the context of the war in Ukraine, DimantaContinue Reading
Denmark is committed to sending approximately 800 of its troops to Latvia to enhance NATO defence against any potential Russian aggression in this region, as confirmed after a meeting between Latvian PM Krišjānis Kariņš and his Danish counterpart Mette Frederiksen on Thursday, 31 March. Kariņš said he hopes this decisionContinue Reading
In a recent interview with Finnish Broadcasting Company (Yle), former Finnish President Tarja Halonen compared the Baltic countries’ accession to NATO in 2004 to Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania belonging to the Soviet Union. “They were used to being part of a collective security system during the Soviet era,” Halonen toldContinue Reading
Sweden
1,222,892
Denmark
529,210
Lithuania
484,537
Norway
300,013
Latvia
259,215
Estonia
226,304
Finland
197,476
Iceland
18,896