In her address at the Conference of the Speakers of European Union Parliaments, Ināra Mūrniece, Speaker of the Saeima, urged EU parliaments to ratify the Association Agreements with Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova. This year the annual Conference of the Speakers of European Union Parliaments was held on 20 – 21 April in Rome.
The Eastern Partnership Summit in Riga scheduled for May should send a clear message about the EU’s political commitment to continue its involvement in the region, said the Speaker of the Saeima in her address to her colleagues. She welcomed the fact that the majority of EU member states have already ratified the Association Agreements with Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova, urging the remaining member states to follow the lead.
With regard to the role of the national parliaments in the EU’s negotiations on international treaties, Speaker Mūrniece highlighted the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) between the EU and the U.S. “We expect to achieve significant progress in negotiations on TTIP this year,” said Ināra Mūrniece. She also acknowledged that more information should be provided to the public on the economic benefits of international trade. Furthermore, the
Speaker Mūrniece informed the participants of the Conference about the involvement of the Saeima in public discussions in Latvia on the trade aspects of TTIP.
Saeima Press Service