The Parliamentary Secretary: Undesirable foreign influence on democratic processes in the European Union should be prevented

On 29 January 2024, in Brussels, the Parliamentary Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Reinis Brusbārdis, attended a meeting of the General Affairs Council of the European Union (EU), which discussed a proposal to prevent undesirable foreign influence on legislative processes in the EU.

Parliamentary Secretary Brusbārdis emphasised that Latvia supported the protection of democracy, while pointing out Latvia’s concerns about the proportionality of the proposal and its conformity to the aim declared. Reinis Brusbārdis underlined the need to seek a better balance between prevention of foreign interference and safeguarding the fundamental rights of citizens. The Parliamentary Secretary called on the European Commission to continue its dialogue with civil society in order to address the negative impact of the proposal on civil society organisations.

The proposal will make the representation of third countries’ interests in the EU more transparent. EU organisations, including associations, will be obliged to keep records of cases where they have carried out lobbying activities in EU Member State bodies on behalf of, and financed by third countries.

The participants were presented with the priorities of the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the EU. The meeting held a rule of law dialogue, which discussed the current rule of law situation in Spain, France, Croatia, and Italy. There was also an exchange of views on the proposal to improve the methodology of the EU enlargement process.