On 12 May, Zanda Kalniņa-Lukaševica, Deputy Speaker of the Saeima, met in Copenhagen with Karsten Hønge, Vice‑Speaker of the Danish Parliament and Acting Chair of the Foreign Policy Committee, to discuss current issues in bilateral cooperation in security and the economy. 

“We begin where there is land, where there is work, where there is home, where we feel we belong. We begin where there is freedom: where one harvests cranberries from the bog and, in autumn, inhales the damp breath of the forest; where it smells of bread, summer, and the sea. We begin where a winding road leads us home. We begin within ourselves. And our country’s path is freedom and democracy. Freedom is the path that leads us home,” said Daiga Mieriņa, Speaker of the Saeima, on 4 May at the ceremonial sitting of the Saeima in honour of the 36th anniversary of the restoration of independence of the Republic of Latvia, emphasising that we begin with Latvia, and Latvia is all of us.

On Thursday, 30 April, the Saeima adopted amendments to the National Guard Law. The amendments expand the composition of the National Guard, clarify recruitment and service procedures, improve social guarantees, and introduce a new status – that of a National Guard Supporter.

Poland is among Latvia’s closest strategic partners and plays a key role in ensuring the security, resilience and connectivity of the region, Deputy Speaker of the Saeima Antoņina Ņenaševa emphasised during meetings with senior Polish officials.

Speaker of the Saeima Daiga Mieriņa met in Seoul with Woo Won‑shik, Speaker of the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea, to discuss opportunities for strengthening economic cooperation and to mark a new chapter in Latvia–Korea bilateral relations.

“The strong and friendly relations between Latvia and Canada are based on shared democratic values and close cooperation in the Euro‑Atlantic area. We highly appreciate Canada’s leading role in the NATO Multinational Brigade in Latvia and the importance Canada attaches to the security and stability of the Baltic region,” Secretary of the Saeima Edvards Smiltēns emphasised during meetings with Canadian parliamentarians in Ottawa.

The solution to challenges facing the international order is not abandoning rules but strengthening them. Sustainable peace is possible only if it is just – ensuring full accountability of aggressors, remedying consequences and protecting the rights of victims. Compliance with international norms cannot be selective, as consistency is the basis of trust, emphasised Head of the Latvian delegation Jana Simanovska, addressing participants of the 152nd Assembly of the Inter‑Parliamentary Union (IPU).

On Thursday, 16 April, the Saeima approved the granting of a state short-term loan of EUR 30 million to AS Air Baltic Corporation in order to mitigate the negative impact of the conflict in the Middle East region on the company’s financial situation.

On Tuesday, 21 April, the Saeima will host a conference “Ethics in Contemporary Parliamentarism”, were lawmakers, academics, civil society representatives, as well as foreign experts will discuss the ethical challenges faced by the members of parliaments in contemporary democracy, focusing in particular on the Baltic experience. The conference is organised by the Saeima Mandate, Ethics and Submissions Committee.

In order to strengthen the protection of journalists, researchers, activists, and other defenders of public interest against abusive litigation, on Thursday, 16 April, the Saeima adopted in the final reading the Law on the Protection of Persons Involved in the Public Interest and related amendments to the Civil Procedure Law. The new law aims to reinforce protection against manifestly unfounded or abusive legal proceedings.