Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Latvia
PRESS RELEASE
2012-11-14 08:49:31
On 13 November in Washington, State Secretary of the Foreign Ministry of Latvia Andris Teikmanis met with U.S. Deputy Secretary of State William Burns and Assistant Secretary Philip Gordon, head of the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs.
During the conversation the parties accentuated a lasting U.S. presence in Europe through participation in European security projects and practical military exercises. The United States will continue its close, invariable and visible involvement in Europe and the Baltic region, Deputy Secretary of State William Burns confirmed.
The Foreign Ministry State Secretary Teikmanis stressed that Latvia was interested in deepening transatlantic relations, in particular, during Latvia’s Presidency of the European Union. The parties also discussed economic cooperation between both countries, including the development of the Northern Distribution Network. The U.S. officials commended the economic development of Latvia on its way out of the crisis. State Secretary Teikmanis confirmed Latvia’s commitment to becoming a member state of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and invited U.S. partners to support Latvia’s membership application.
Latvian officials expressed gratitude for U.S. support for extending the Baltic air policing efforts into a permanent NATO mission. The parties further discussed topics concerning cooperation with the EU’s Eastern Neighbourhood countries and with Russia, as well as support by Latvia and the U.S. for security in Afghanistan. The schedule for next year’s visits was also reviewed, while the parties highlighted visit to Latvia this year by the U.S. Secretary of State Hilary Clinton, a high-level Congress delegation and a United States business mission.
