On 28 March 2022, the State Secretary of the Latvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Andris Pelšs, received accreditation visits from the new Ambassadors of Italy, Morocco and North Macedonia to Latvia.
In a conversation with the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Italian Republic to Latvia, Alessandro Monti, the State Secretary commended the good bilateral relations between Latvia and Italy, while highlighting the potential for economic cooperation.
In the context of developments in Ukraine, the Ambassador underlined the importance of cooperation between the countries, because both of them “share the same home and belong to one and the same family”. He pointed out that greater attention should be paid to European energy independence. Andris Pelšs informed the Ambassador about the work already under way to explore solutions in the energy sector, and he underlined the increasing importance of renewable energy.
The officials spoke about the need for a common European security strategy and NATO’s essential role in the current situation. Andris Pelšs thanked Italy for its contribution to the strengthening of security in the region.
During the meeting with the Ambassador of Morocco to Latvia, Karim Medrek, who resides in Stockholm, Sweden, views were exchanged on the possibilities for a political dialogue and the exchange of high-level visits and for expanding the legal framework. Andris Pelšs underlined the interest of Latvian businesses in cooperation with the region of North Africa in the sectors of transport and transit, as well as the information and communications technologies. The State Secretary called on Morocco to support international initiatives countering Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and outlined the position of Latvia.
The active bilateral and multilateral cooperation between Latvia and North Macedonia was underlined in a conversation with the Ambassador of North Macedonia, Sashko Todorovski, who resides in Prague, the Czech Republic. Andris Pelšs expressed support for the process of North Macedonia’s integration with the European Union and confirmed that Latvia was prepared to further share its experience of implementing EU-related reforms.
The accreditation of the Ambassadors with the President of Latvia, Egils Levits, has also been scheduled for 29 March 2022.