On 24 November 2023, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Krišjānis Kariņš, will pay a working visit to Tallinn, where he will participate in the 29th Baltic Council and present the annual Languages Award of the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of Latvia and Estonia.
The Latvian, Estonian and Lithuanian delegations to the Baltic Council will discuss topical issues of cooperation. Estonia, which holds the Presidency of the Baltic Assembly and the Baltic Council of Ministers, will provide an overview of the progress. The incoming Lithuanian Presidency will present its cooperation priorities for 2024.
The joint statement on the progress made in Baltic cooperation this year and the priority issues for the coming year will be signed by Timo Suslov, President of the Baltic Assembly, and Margus Tsahkna, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Estonia.
The Baltic Council will conclude with a joint press conference of the Presidium of the Baltic Assembly and the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the Baltic states.
During his visit to Tallinn, Krišjānis Kariņš will attend a ceremony where, together with his Estonian colleague Margus Tsahkna, he will present the annual Languages Award of the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of Latvia and Estonia.
Information
The Baltic Council of Ministers (BCM) is a cooperation body of the Latvian, Lithuanian and Estonian governments, established on 13 June 1994. Its task is to ensure the continuity of cooperation at the level of the national executive powers. The Presidency of the BCM rotates annually from one country to the next.
The Baltic Council is a joint meeting of the Secretariat of the Baltic Assembly and the BCM Cooperation Council. During the meeting, the Chairperson of the Cooperation Council, who is the Minister for Foreign Affairs of the country holding the Presidency, presents a report on the progress made during the year. The Minister for Foreign Affairs of the incoming Presidency, in turn, informs about the priorities and planned activities of the upcoming Presidency, which are included in the joint statement of the Baltic Council. The Ministers for Foreign Affairs of the Baltic states serve on the BCM Cooperation Council. The Council is responsible for the overall coordination of cooperation between the Baltic states.