Prime Minister Nicolae-Ionel Ciucă met with the Speaker of the Latvian Parliament, Edvards Smiltēns

Prime Minister Nicolae-Ionel Ciucă met with the Speaker of the Latvian Parliament(Saeima), Edvards Smiltēns, and Latvian MPs who are paying a visit to Bucharest.

Both sides appreciated the Romanian-Latvian cooperation within the EU, NATO, and formats such as the Three Seas Initiative and B9. In this context, the importance of intensifying cooperation amid the challenges posed by Russia's war against Ukraine and the need to strengthen joint European and Euro-Atlantic action were emphasized.

On a bilateral level, they expressed their active commitment to stepping up bilateral relations by expanding economic and sectoral cooperation included. Saeima Speaker Smiltens thanked for Romania's contribution to the security of NATO's eastern flank, including the participation in enhanced Air Policing missions intended for all three Baltic countries. Prime Minister Nicolae Ciucă emphasized the ongoing steps for the opening as soon as possible of the Romanian Embassy in Riga, as an important factor to boost the bilateral relationship.

At the same time, the exchange of opinions among the officials emphasized the similarity of positions regarding the security situation in the East, in the context of the multidimensional effects of the war against Ukraine. The importance of ensuring political and financial support for strengthening the resilience of the Republic of Moldova was highlighted in this context.

The debates were also an opportunity to exchange ideas on the priorities for the Three Seas Initiative Summit which will be hosted by Bucharest this fall.

During the discussions, Prime Minister Ciucă also thanked Latvia's constant support for the completion of Romania's Schengen entry process. Prime Minister showed that accession to Schengen as soon as possible remains an essential objective for Romania, and this requires maintaining political support from member states that have already acknowledged the quality of Romania's contribution to the protection of the EU's external borders.