Foreign Minister calls on US businesses to invest in Latvia

RIGA - On Monday, Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics took part in a US-Latvia Business Forum, during which he invited US businesses to invest in the economy of Latvia.

In his remarks, the Foreign Minister pointed out that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was posing the most serious threat to Euro-Atlantic security since World War II. We are grateful to our closest allies and the United States Administration for their unwavering support for Ukraine, and for contribution to the strengthening of defense and deterrence in Latvia and across NATO’s eastern flank, Rinkevics said.

The Minister informed those present that this past June, Latvia hosted the Three Seas Initiative Summit and Business Forum as its input to the strengthening of transatlantic cooperation with likeminded partners, especially in economy. Working in the Three Seas format, the countries should pool efforts to address the needs for the diversification of energy supplies.

The Trade and Technology Council established last year is vital for the European Union and the United States to respond to and address common geopolitical problems, Rinkevics said. He welcomed enhanced cooperation in the areas such as export control and investment screening, in particular, in view of joint sanctions against Russia, resilience of supply chains, and security and safety of critical technologies. Our work on this council will reinforce the global leadership of the European Union and the United States based on our common values, for instance, the rule of law and human rights, the Minister underlined.

It is essential not to create new dependencies on authoritarian regimes in energy supply. We call on the United States to develop liquefied natural gas terminals to ensure the availability of gas for regional and EU markets, the Minister noted. He added that Latvia had taken a decision to replace Russian gas with alternative supplies of liquefied natural gas as from January 1, 2023.

The Minister informed the audiences about Latvia’s plans to develop a cross-border offshore wind park project and about the opportunities for developing and manufacturing high technologies in Latvia.