Canberra, 8 August 2022 (TDI): Edgars Rinkēvičs, the Foreign minister of Latvia, and Penny Wong, the Foreign minister of Australia, had a meeting on August 8, 2022, in Canberra.
The Ministers spoke about recent world developments, bilateral cooperation, and ties between Australia and the European Union.
.@edgarsrinkevics meets with 🇦🇺 Minister for Foreign Affairs @SenatorWong and notes: “#Australia is a significant partner for NATO in Oceania. Therefore, we welcome its participation in #NATO summit in Madrid and the decision to join @STRATCOMCOE in Riga.”https://t.co/8M3u3yhkGu pic.twitter.com/lFLLWO7wa0
— Latvian MFA 🇱🇻 | #StandWithUkraine 🇺🇦 (@Latvian_MFA) August 8, 2022
Edgars Rinkvis expressed his happiness over opening the Latvian Embassy in Canberra, which would be crucial in enhancing political and economic engagement with Australia and other Indo-Pacific nations.
The Ministers were very appreciative of the close partnership between Australia and Latvia, which was built on a common sense of the importance of advancing human rights, democracy, and an international system based on rules.
The ministers strongly denounced Russia’s ruthless and unjustified action against Ukraine, jeopardizing global security and stability. Edgars Rinkēvičs commended Australia for joining in on sanctions against Russia and its current military and financial support for Ukraine.
Rinkēvičs said that the growing geopolitical problems necessitate strong collaboration between like-minded nations within international organizations and the development of bilateral relations between Australia, the EU, and NATO.
The Ministers emphasized the need for collaboration between democratic nations and the necessity of defending shared ideals against authoritarian governments’ alternative interpretations of international law.
Edgars Rinkēvičs’ Remarks
Edgars Rinkēvičs said, “Australia is a significant partner for NATO in Oceania; therefore, we welcome its participation in the NATO summit in Madrid and the decision to join the NATO Strategic Communications Centre of Excellence in Riga.”
Furthermore, he said that Latvia was ready to contribute and that Ukraine required assistance from the international community as it underwent rehabilitation.
Rinkēvičs also said, “Upon the opening of the Embassy we are also interested in deepening economic cooperation, considerable contribution to which is to be brought both by the EU’s Free Trade Agreement with Australia and the planned negotiations for the agreement between Latvia and Australia on the avoidance of double taxation and the prevention of fiscal evasion.”
