Latvia’s foreign policy criticized

RIGA - Latvia’s national interests have to be taken into account in foreign policy, and it has to serve domestic policy, not vice versa, said All for Latvia!-For Fatherland and Freedom/LNNK (VL-TB/LNNK) Co-chairman Raivis Dzintars in an interview, reports news agency LETA.

“Right now in everyday life it looks like this: if the European Union (EU) regulations state that meat and fish have to be sold on separate tables, then we will not only sell them on separate tables, but also build a wall between them. This effort to fulfill everything and be bigger Europeans than the Europeans themselves is often in conflict with Latvia’s national interests,” claimed Dzintars.

He thinks that we have to be more active in negotiations with the EU and have to aspire to stand up for our national interests.
Dzintars regards that Latvia has to continue its current geopolitical course, maintaining the U.S. as our number one strategic partner. “Although many say that we are euro-skeptics, we rather choose a position that we are euro-realists,” explained the leader of VL-TB/LNNK.

On relations with Russia, the politician said that the national alliance definitely supports economic cooperation with this country, but this cannot serve as a pretext to step back from fundamental political positions for Latvia and its independence.
Dzintars added that it is always essential to maintain good neighborly relations, but they have to be upheld in the long term. “In the long term, good neighborly relations can be maintained only when they are based on mutual respect. If dictates take place from one side, and the other side is ready to yield to everything, and looks up to the first side like a big brother, then these respectful relations are unable to exist in the long term,” he stressed.

He believes that Latvian entrepreneurs should aspire to conquer the Russian market. Businesspeople will evaluate the possible risks better, and the state has to support these efforts. “It is possible to combine participation in the Russian market with a firm political stand,” said Dzintars.