On 7 May, President Edgars Rinkēvičs paid an official visit to the Armenia. In the Armenian capital, Yerevan, the President of Latvia met with the President of Armenia Vahagn Khachaturyan, the Speaker of the National Assembly of Armenia Alen Simonyan, and the Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan.
During the official visit, E. Rinkēvičs expressed Latvia’s interest in strengthening bilateral relations between the two countries by deepening political dialogue and promoting practical cooperation, including in the economic sphere. “It is encouraging that relations between Latvia and Armenia are friendly and constructive. We wish to deepen and expand them through regular political dialogue and practical cooperation,” said E. Rinkēvičs.
The President reaffirmed Latvia’s strong support for Armenia’s aspiration to strengthen ties with the European Union. In discussions with Armenia’s senior officials, President Rinkēvičs commended Armenia’s political will and active efforts to move closer to its European partners and address shared challenges. “Only recently, you hosted high-level participants of the European Political Community and chaired the first European Union–Armenia Summit. Yesterday, you also organised the Yerevan Dialogue. This demonstrates Armenia’s political will, significant achievements and growing momentum in fostering a closer partnership with the European Union. It also highlights Armenia’s role in addressing the common challenges facing Europe today,” said President Rinkēvičs.
During the meeting, the parties discussed the peace process between Armenia and Azerbaijan. “Latvia sincerely hopes that a comprehensive and lasting peace agreement will be concluded in the near future. At the same time, we are aware of the ongoing conflicts in the wider region. Russia’s war against Ukraine and the situation in the Middle East continue to affect our regions and create challenges for our countries. This only increases the need for closer cooperation between our nations,” emphasised the President of Latvia.
“The close ties between our people bring our countries together. We highly value the Armenian community in Latvia – talented and hard-working people who are respected members of our society. They enrich Latvia’s cultural life and serve as a living bridge between our countries. Latvian poets, too, have admired Armenia and its spirit. For example, poet Rainis loved Armenia so deeply that he wrote the entry ‘Armenia’ for the Latvian Encyclopaedic Dictionary. He admired the Armenian ability to express vivid emotions through colourful language. Poets such as Uldis Bērziņš and Jānis Peters have also celebrated the Armenian spirit, weaving its timeless essence into Latvian poetry. Just as Rainis drew inspiration from Armenia’s vibrant poetry, our shared musical heritage finds its voice in two “masters of melody”. In the cinematic ballads of Charles Aznavour and the deeply moving compositions of Raimonds Pauls, we hear proof that a song can carry the weight and resilience of a nation’s heart,” said President Rinkēvičs during the official luncheon.
During the visit, the President also visited the TUMO Centre for Creative Technologies in Yerevan, where he met with young people to discuss the importance of freedom and democracy for national development, as well as the benefits to society arising from integration with the European Union. The TUMO Centre for Creative Technologies is a free extracurricular educational programme for teenagers aged 12 to 18, focused on skills in technology and design.
During the official visit, the President of Latvia laid flowers at the Armenian Genocide Memorial.
