On 2 December 2024, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Baiba Braže, will welcome the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the Baltic States and Canada to Riga with a view to strengthening dialogue and cooperation in areas of common interest in the “3+1” format. The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Latvia, Baiba Braže, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Canada, Mélanie Joly, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Estonia, Margus Tsahkna, and the Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania, Egidijus Meilūnas, will discuss topics on the current international agenda – transatlantic relations, support to Ukraine and constraining Russia, cooperation with the Indo-Pacific region, and relations with global partners.
The visit by the Canadian Foreign Minister to Latvia evidences the close partnership with Canada as a transatlantic Ally having an indispensable role in the security of Latvia, the Baltic region and Europe. Canada is currently the lead nation of NATO’s Multinational Brigade Latvia.
The Foreign Minister of Canada Melanie Jolie will have a meeting with the President of Latvia Edgars Rinkēvičs. She will also take part in an Honours and Awards Ceremony to recognize the contribution of the Canadian soldiers to the mission while deployed overseas, which includes the presentation of certificates for those departing and of the special service medal, NATO to eligible members.
Further information
- The first meeting of the Baltic and Canadian Foreign Ministers took place in Lithuania, on 16 October 2020, and the second, in Canada on 2 June 2022.
- Bilateral relations between Latvia and Canada (in Latvian)
- On the NATO Multinational Brigade Latvia
The lead nation of NATO’s Multinational Brigade Latvia is Canada. The brigade currently consists of over 3,500 troops from 13 countries – Albania, Canada, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Italy, Iceland, Latvia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Spain. 600 personnel of the Swedish Armed Forces will be also sent to Latvia in the early 2025.