Rulings of Constitutional Court must be respected and complied with - PM Karins

2022-10-26
LETA/TBT Staff

RIGA - Rulings of the Constitutional Court must absolutely be respected and there must not be questions about that, Prime Minister Krisjanis Karins (New Unity) said on Wednesday, citing the stance of his New Unity party.

"I cannot form a government if this government believes that the Constitutional Court's rulings can be ignored," Karins said in an interview with TV3 channel when answering a question about forming a new coalition with the United List and the National Alliance.

Karins noted that today a meeting with take place in which the United List and the National Alliance will be offered to sign a cooperation memorandum. The prime minister indicated that there are still some issues that have yet to be discussed, for instance, in the sphere of the rule of law.

Karins said that disagreements might still arise in these discussions but voiced hope that an agreement will be reached and concerns dispelled.

"We'll see," Karins said when asked if an agreement on all issues might be reached today.

For the time being, it is difficult to say how comfortable New Unity will feel in the would-be three-way government coalition. Work in the parliament might not be easy, as 54 mandates are not enough to secure majority on all committees. "It is possible, but will not be easy," said Karins.

If the memorandum is not signed, the coalition talks will run into an impasse, Karins said. Asked what a failure to reach an agreement would mean for Latvia, Karins said that it would be very bad for Latvia.

The prime minister stressed that Latvia needs a forward-looking government that avoids defending narrow interests. "It does not depend on us alone. I am calling on the potential partners to think how they, too, will proceed," Karins said.

It takes will to form a coalition, Karins said, adding that New Unity has such a will and that today's meetings with the other two parties will show whether the potential partners are also willing to form the coalition.