“Latvia and Finland are close allies and partners, we enjoy excellent bilateral relations and a shared position on security and defence matters. We are aware that Russia is a long-term threat to world peace and international order; therefore, NATO’s deterrence and defence measures must to be further strengthened, while coordinating the Allied response to the intensifying threat posed by Russia. Latvia and Finland are making a joint contribution to strengthening the NATO defence industry: this includes our competent authorities guarding the entire eastern border of the EU and NATO from threats emanating from Russia and Belarus,” Foreign Minister Baiba Braže underlined after a bilateral meeting with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Finland, Elina Valtonen.
The Minister reaffirmed their readiness for continued close cooperation to strengthen security in the Baltic Sea region and reinforce measures against Russia to address the threats it poses.
Several incidents involving damage to critical undersea infrastructure are currently under investigation. Elina Valtonen recalled that a power cable between Finland and Estonia (Estlink 2) was ruptured on Christmas day. Two days ago – on 26 January – the same happened to a subsea optical fibre cable between Latvia and Sweden. She noted that those incidents and security situation in the Baltic Sea are a global problem, not a regional one.
The Ministers commended coordination and cooperation between Allies in response to incidents in the Baltic Sea. The Ministers welcomed NATO’s decision to implement additional security measures and increase the presence of forces in the Baltic Sea to safeguard the security of critical infrastructure. They also discussed further steps to curb the activity of the Russian “shadow fleet”. The Ministers then exchanged views on the planned withdrawal of all three Baltic States from the Russian and Belarusian electrical systems (BRELL) in February and connecting to the European electricity grid, which will be an important step towards their energy dependence.
Baiba Braže and Elina Valtonen confirmed that Latvia and Finland, along with the other Baltic States and Nordic countries, will continue to provide comprehensive support to Ukraine and advocate an end to the war on terms of a just and sustainable peace. The territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine is also in the focus of Finland as the country holding presidency of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).
The Ministers agreed that it was essential to strengthen transatlantic cooperation on security and economy-related issues; it is therefore essential to build an active dialogue with the new US administration.
The Finnish Foreign Minister is visiting Riga on 28 January 2025. As part of her visit, Elina Valtonen also participated in the annual meeting of the heads of Latvian diplomatic missions traditionally held in January, the month of Latvia’s international recognition: Latvia was recognised de jure on 26 January 1921. Elina Valtonen addressed its participants on the topic of the security of the Nordic-Baltic region from Finland’s perspective.
Further information
- Bilateral relations between Latvia and Finland (in Latvian): https://www.mfa.gov.lv/lv/latvijas-republikas-un-somijas-republikas-divpusejas-attiecibas
