Latvija in brief

Prime Minister Laimdota Straujuma declared on Sept. 24 that investigation of the Maxima-Zolitude roof collapse disaster is still the top priority for the government, along with measures being taken to ensure that such disasters never occur again, reports LETA. This in reaction to the informative report released by the Inter-departmental Coordination Center on the investigation’s progress and results, and the report from law enforcement agencies. As for Straujuma, on Oct. 16 she plans to hold a meeting with victims of the tragedy and others to discuss the investigation.

QS World University Rankings, a list of the world’s top universities, has included seven Baltic universities this year, reports LETA. Out of the seven Baltic universities on the list, the University of Latvia is the only university representing Latvia. LU is in the 701-800th group on the list, sharing the position with three Lithuanian universities - Kaunas Technology University, Vilnius Gediminas Technical University, and Vytautas Magnus University. Out of the seven Baltic universities, Estonian universities were evaluated the highest, with University of Tartu 379th, whereas Tallinn University of Technology is 501-550th. Lithuania is represented by four universities, of which the highest position, 551-600th, is occupied by Vilnius University. U.S. Massachusetts Institute of Technology is 1st, followed by University of Cambridge.

Latvia will deploy 300 soldiers and two ships for NATO’s rapid reaction force, Defense Minister Raimonds Vejonis announced after a Saeima Defense, Internal Affairs and Corruption Prevention Committee meeting on Sept. 16, reports LETA. During the recent NATO Summit in Wales, representatives from seven member states signed a protocol of intent on the establishment of a Great Britain-led joint rapid reaction force, which will be made up of troops from Denmark, Estonia, Netherlands, Norway, Lithuania, and Latvia. The new ‘spearhead’ force will comprise several thousand troops and would be ready to deploy in a few days if necessary.

Riga Mayor Nils Usakovs (Harmony Center) said he is ready to “grab a weapon” to protect Latvia from any aggression; this was in response to an interview question with the Latvian Radio show ‘Krustpunkta,’ on which side he would take if Russia declared war on Latvia, reports LETA. “If there is any aggression against Latvia, I will get a weapon in my hand regardless from which side the aggression comes. I am a citizen of Latvia, and my position is clear and plain,” Usakovs said. When asked whether he trusts the Russian media, Usakovs replied that one must rely only on his or her own common sense. He said there are both good and bad media, and that the best option would be to use as many different sources of information as possible. He admitted, though, that in connection with the Russian media, there have been cases where the quality of information was questionable.