Upon an invitation from President of Iceland Mr Guðni Th. Jóhannesson on 25–26 August President of Latvia Egils Levits and Mrs. Andra Levite will visit Iceland on a working visit, where together with the presidents of Lithuania and Estonia they will participate in events dedicated to the 30th anniversary of the restoration of diplomatic relations between the Baltic States and Iceland. Iceland was the first country to recognise the restoration of independence of Latvia and the other Baltic States in 1991.
Upon arrival in Reykjavik on Thursday, 25 August, the presidents of Latvia and Estonia will meet with Speaker of the Parliament of Iceland Mr Birgir Ármannsson and members of parliament.
Afterwards the presidents of all three Baltic States, the mayors of Reykjavik and the capital cities of the Baltic States, representatives of the government and parliament of Iceland, the President of the Supreme Court of Iceland, the Rector of the University of Iceland, members of the diplomatic corps and representatives of the business sector will attend a special event hosted by the President of Iceland in honour of the 30th anniversary of the restoration of diplomatic relations between the Baltic States and Iceland.
On Friday, August 26, the presidents of Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia and Iceland will participate in an event at a symbolic location – Höfði House, where the act on restoration of diplomatic relations was signed in 1991. During the event the ministers of foreign affairs of the Baltic States and Iceland will sign a declaration attesting to their commitment to cooperate and aim to create a safer, more innovative and competitive Nordic and Baltic State region.
Afterwards the presidents of the Baltic States and Iceland will go to the University of Iceland to take part in a discussion about the important role played by Iceland in 1990 and 1991 in the journey of the Baltic States towards their independence. The discussion will be opened by the President of Iceland with a lecture “Icebreaker on the International Scene? Icelandic Support for Baltic Independence, 1990-1991”. The discussion will be broadcast online on the website of the University of Iceland at https://english.hi.is/.
During the working visit the presidents of Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia and Iceland will visit Hellisheiði Geothermal Power Plant, which is the 8th largest geothermal power plant in the world and the largest in Iceland, and they will also meet with the Prime Minister of Iceland Ms Katrín Jakobsdóttir.
During the working visit President of Latvia Egils Levits and Mrs Andra Levite will visit the Reykjavik Latvian School, where together with the pupils of the school they will open the new school year and meet with compatriots.