"Russia's abduction of children is a combination of genocide and russification policies aimed at erasing Ukraine's national identity and culture", said Zanda Kalniņa-Lukaševica, Deputy Speaker of the Saeima and Head of the Latvian Delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), at the opening of the event Uprooted Children: How the Russian Federation Deports Ukrainian Children and Erases their National Identity, organised jointly by the Latvian and Ukrainian delegations in Strasbourg on Tuesday, 10 October.
Press releases
In Copenhagen, Latvian delegation to NATO PA discusses global security situation with Canadian MPs (09.10.2023.)
In Copenhagen, the Latvian delegation to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly (PA) met with Canadian MPs to discuss the security situation in Europe and globally, current challenges and the most common threats. Currently, Raimonds Bergmanis, Head of the Latvian delegation to the NATO PA, and permanent representatives Irma Kalniņa and Aleksandrs Kiršteins are in Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark, to participate in the NATO PA autumn session.
In solidarity with the people of Israel and to honour the victims of last weekend’s terrorist attack, the flag of the State of Israel was raised at the main building of the Saeima on Monday, 9 October.
The Saeima Foreign Affairs Committee strongly and categorically condemns the terrorist attacks on Israel by Hamas (07.10.2023.)
The Saeima Foreign Affairs Committee strongly and categorically condemns the terrorist attacks on Israel by Hamas. Such indiscriminate violence and targeting of civilians is despicably cruel and barbaric; it sows unjustifiable inhuman destruction. It is terrorism at its most horrific.
The Baltic Assembly Prize in Science to be awarded to Dr. Art. Arnolds Laimonis Klotiņš (06.10.2023.)
On Friday, 6 October, having met at the Saeima, an international jury evaluated candidates for the Baltic Assembly (BA) Prize and decided to award this year's prize to Dr. Art. Arnolds Laimonis Klotiņš for his monographs “Music in Post-war Stalinism: Latvian Music Life and Creativity 1944–1953” and “Music in Exodus: Latvian Music Life and Creativity in Post-war Europe 1944–1951”.
Speaker of the Saeima in Vilnius: Not a single day or minute to lose in our support for Ukraine (06.10.2023.)
We must not lose a single day or even a minute in hesitation to support Ukraine. As people of the Baltic States, we understand this well, and we are the advocates convincing our allies to take similar action. We must also send the message to our people that we are unwavering and tireless, said Daiga Mieriņa, Speaker of the Saeima, on Friday, 6 October, to her Lithuanian colleagues during a working visit to the country’s capital Vilnius.
On Thursday, 5 October, the Saeima passed in the second and final reading urgent amendments to the Criminal Law, intensifying criminal liability for illegal moving of a person across the state border.
Speaker of the Saeima Daiga Mieriņa in Tallinn: Estonian could be the second foreign language in our border region (03.10.2023.)
We aim to fortify cooperation with our Baltic neighbours in the border areas. As Russian will no longer be taught in Latvian schools, in the future, Estonian could potentially replace it as the second foreign language in the northern border regions of the country, while Latvian could be integrated into the Estonian school curriculum. This would not only reinforce the position of our national languages against other foreign languages, but also address the shortage of foreign language teachers, as stated by Daiga Mieriņa, Speaker of the Saeima, during her official visit to Tallinn, Estonia, on Tuesday, 3 October.
On Tuesday, 3 October, at the annual Warsaw Security Forum in Poland, Zanda Kalniņa-Lukaševica, Deputy Speaker of the Saeima, addressed the participants of the panel discussion "Europe's Energy Transition: Delivering Secure, Sustainable and Affordable Energy" and took part in several roundtable discussions.
Parliament Open Door Day attracts over 1300 visitors (29.09.2023.)
On Friday, 29 September, the annual Open Door Day was held at the Saeima. This year's event was held to honour the centenary of the Saeima Rules of Procedure, allowing visitors to learn about the organisation of the legislature's work through the years. Over 1300 enthusiasts, predominantly school groups from across Latvia, visited the Parliament during this event.