Finnish Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto will visit Riga on Tuesday 30 July. Haavisto will meet Egils Levits, Latvia’s newly elected president, and hold discussions with Minister for Foreign Affairs Edgars Rinkēvičs.
The foreign ministers will discuss topical EU issues, the objectives of Finland’s Presidency of the Council of the EU, relations with Russia, neighbourhood policy and the situation in the Persian Gulf.
“The Baltic Sea region is of key importance to Finland from the point of view of foreign and security policy, trade and the economy, and the environment. I’ll be interested to hear Foreign Minister Rinkēvičs’ thoughts about the development of the European Union. I’m pleased to be able to meet the new President of Latvia, Egils Levits, who has strong experience of the European rule of law and human rights in the Court of Justice of the European Union and the European Court of Human Rights," Haavisto has said.
“One of the key objectives of the human rights-based foreign and security policy of the Finnish Government is to promote equality and the rights of women and girls. Another important topic in the Government Programme is the environment. To save the Baltic Sea, we need international cooperation,” Haavisto has explained.
During his visit, Minister Haavisto will also have an opportunity to learn about the NATO Strategic Communications Centre of Excellence, which is based in Riga.
