On 3 March 2025, in a conversation with the new non-resident Ambassador of the People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria to Latvia, Mohamed Salah Eddine Belaid, the Under Secretary of State of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Political Director Ivars Lasis called for holding the second political consultations between the two Foreign Ministries in Riga in order to identify opportunities for mutually beneficial cooperation.
Ivars Lasis welcomed the ongoing economic cooperation. Latvian companies export food products, optical products and peat to Algeria. The diplomats agreed that the ICT sector holds potential for closer cooperation.
The officials also discussed the regional security situation, including the negative impact of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine.
The Algerian Ambassador resides in Warsaw, Poland.
On 28 February 2025, Ivars Lasis met with the Ambassador of the Republic of India to Latvia, Namrata Satdeve Kumar. The Deputy State Secretary, Political Director welcomed India’s decision to open an embassy in Latvia. This will provide new opportunities for strengthening bilateral political dialogue as well as developing the potential for economic cooperation with India as an important partner to Latvia and the European Union (EU) in the Indo-Pacific region. During the conversation, officials also discussed the security situation in the region, which is heavily affected by Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. Ivars Lasis also highlighted Latvia’s interest in promoting strategic partnership between the EU and India.
The Ambassador-designate of the Republic of India will be the first resident Ambassador of India to Latvia. Until now, Indian ambassadors accredited to Latvia have resided in Stockholm, Sweden.
On 27 February 2025, Ivars Lasis met with the Ambassador-designate of Iran, Hojatollah Faghani, and underlined Latvia’s desire to maintain open channels of communication between the two countries so as to facilitate exchanges of views, including on issues where opinions differ, and to ensure the most effective protection of the rights of Latvian nationals. Ivars Lasis informed the Ambassador of Latvia’s position concerning the Russian aggression against Ukraine, including the deepening of Iran's cooperation with Russia. Ambassador Fagani assured the Latvian official of Iran’s continued support for the principles of the UN Charter, in particular, the sovereignty and territorial integrity of states, due to which Iran had not recognised Latvia’s occupation. Iran adheres to this policy by not recognizing the annexation of Crimea, Donetsk and Lugansk. The Ambassador referred to Iran’s current cooperation with other EU Member States and asserted his desire to also strengthen relations with Latvia.
The Iranian Ambassador resides in Stockholm, Sweden.
