On Thursday, 15 September, the Saeima adopted in the first reading the draft law “On the Protocol to the North Atlantic Treaty on the Accession of Montenegro”, thus conceptually supporting ratification of the Protocol on Montenegro joining NATO.

On Thursday, 15 September, the Saeima adopted in the final reading amendments to the Law “On the Change of a Given Name, Surname and Nationality Record”, which aim to simplify the procedure for foreigners of Latvian origin registering their nationality.

On Friday, 9 September, during his working visit to Moldova, Gundars Daudze, Deputy Speaker of the Saeima, met with Andrian Candu, Speaker of the parliament of Moldova. “Latvia and Moldova are engaged in an active political dialogue and constructive parliamentary cooperation. The Eastern Partnership continues to be Latvia’s strategic priority,” the Deputy Speaker of the Saeima confirmed to Andrian Candu.

On Friday, 9 September, the chairpersons of the European Affairs Committees of the parliaments of the Baltic States and Poland met in Tallinn, Estonia, where they adopted a joint statement in support of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership between the European Union (EU) and the United States of America (USA).

“Latvia strongly believes in international law. This belief is rooted in our experience of being able, under international law, to reinstate our statehood after 50 years of occupation,” stressed Inese Lībiņa-Egnere, Deputy Speaker of the Saeima, on Thursday, 8 September, when opening the 12th Annual Conference of the European Society of International Law (ESIL) at the Latvian National Library. This year the prominent legal forum focused on how international law works in times of crisis. 

On 8–10 September Gundars Daudze, Deputy Speaker of the Saeima, is on a working visit in Moldova, where, upon the invitation of the parliament of Moldova, he is taking part in the celebration of the 25th anniversary of the independence of Moldova.

On Tuesday, 30 August, in Riga parliamentarians of the countries of the Baltic Sea region stressed the need to establish closer cooperation in education so as to integrate the education system with the labour market. The parliamentarians adopted the Resolution of the 25th Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference (BSPC) emphasising the role of education in improving the region’s competitiveness.

On Monday, 29 August, Ināra Mūrniece, Speaker of the Saeima, called on the Baltic Sea region countries to jointly contribute to the region’s peace and democracy, which is now more vital than ever to counter the conflict threats.

Linking education with the labour market is an essential prerequisite for regional economic development and prosperity of our people; therefore, this issue should stay high on the agenda of the Baltic Sea region countries. This was stressed on Monday, 29 August, at the annual Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference (BSPC) by Jānis Vucāns, President of this parliamentary cooperation forum and President of the Baltic Assembly (BA). He also encouraged the Baltic Sea region countries to step up their cooperation even more.

The 25th Baltic Sea Parliamentary Conference (BSPC) will be held in Riga on 28–30 August 2016. The main focus of the discussion will be high quality education and labour as requirements for unlocking the future growth potential of the Baltic Sea region.