On 9 and10 June 2022, the State Secretary of the Latvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Andris Pelšs, took part in the meeting of the State Secretaries and Directors General of the European Union’s Ministries of Foreign Affairs in Prague, the Czech Republic. The meeting was chaired by the State Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic, Miloslav Stašek. The Member State participants discussed current challenges in foreign policy and the EU’s security and defence policy, as well as further support for Ukraine.
Ukraine must win this war and we must collectively support Ukraine, which is currently fighting not only for its country but for the entire Europe, Andris Pelšs underlined. In the context of Ukraine becoming a candidate for EU membership, the State Secretary noted that granting the status of an EU candidate country to Ukraine is not only a significant step but also a step that would promote Ukraine’s recovery. The Member States agreed that Russia’s international isolation must continue, including through the EU’s sanction policy. They also had a common understanding of the need for Europe to work together and seek solutions and answers to global challenges, for instance, in the field of food and energy security. Latvia, like other EU Member States, underlined the importance of cooperation between the EU and the United States of America and the necessity of strengthening the EU-NATO cooperation.
During the meeting, the Czech Republic as the next country taking over the presidency of the Council of the EU presented an outline of its priorities while pointing out that, in view of the EU’s intention to end dependence on Russia’s energy resources, intensive work is expected to take place on matters related to EU energy security and the impact of the rising energy prices on society. The Czech Presidency is also planning to work on the following topics: strengthening Europe’s defence and economic resilience; the process of the Western Balkans’s accession to the EU; consolidating the digital single market; and the resilience of democratic institutions.
The Member States discussed updates on the work of the European External Action Service with its Secretary General, Stefano Sannino.
As part of his working visit, Andris Pelšs had bilateral meetings with the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Martin Povejšil, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs for European Issues, Aleš Chmelař, and the Deputy Minister for European Affairs at the Office of the Government, Marek Havrda. The topics discussed were the priorities of the Czech Presidency, the EU’s current foreign and security policy issues, and bilateral relations between Latvia and the Czech Republic.