Foreign Ministry has not received information from security agencies warranting closure of visa centers in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan

RIGA - The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has not received any information from Latvian security agencies warranting the closure of visa centers in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, the ministry's press secretary Liga Jermacane told LETA.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it would make an appropriate decision if such information was received.

The ministry's press secretary indicated that Latvia, based on an agreement concluded in 2015 with the outsourcing provider VF Worldwide Holdings, uses the outsourcing provider's services to accept visa applications in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. Visa applications are accepted at these visa centers and forwarded for review to the Latvian embassies in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.

As reported, Lithuania is closing its visa centers in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, and Bosnia and Herzegovina for security reasons. These centers, whose operations were managed by an outsourcing provider, accepted applications for visas and residence permits.

Lithuanian Interior Minister Martynas Katelynas emphasized that these offices act as intermediaries between foreign nationals and Lithuanian authorities - they accept applications for residence permits and initiate migration procedures.

He explained that, after assessing security risks and terrorist threats, Katelynas sees no reason why such services should remain in these countries. The minister noted that this decision was made in light of warnings from the Lithuanian State Security Department regarding potential terrorist risks.

"When the State Security Department warns of potential terrorism risks and has already identified individuals from Central Asia with radical views or links to terrorism, the state cannot wait for a risk to become an incident," the minister said.