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Latvian and Nicaraguan foreign ministers discuss broader cooperation prospects

BC, Riga, 10.09.2013.Print version
Yesterday, Latvian Foreign Affairs Minister Edgars Rinkevics met with Nicaraguan Foreign Minister Samuel Santos Lopez, LETA was informed by the Foreign Ministry.

Samuel Santos Lopez and Edgars Rinkevics. Riga, 9.09.2013. Photo: flickr.com

Rinkevics noted that Latvia continues to foster relations with Latin American and Caribbean countries both as part of bilateral relations and within the framework of the European Union, devoting special attention to expanding economic contacts. Both parties see good prospects in the European Union-Central America Association Agreement, the trade aspects of which are already being put into practice between the EU and three Central American countries – Nicaragua, Honduras and Panama – through reduced customs duty rates on import, alleviating market access conditions in cross-border trade and applying other liberalization measures in a number of cooperation areas.

 

Rinkevics and Lopez reviewed the possibilities for expanding bilateral cooperation and mentioned the appointment of honorary consuls in Latvia and Nicaragua as a means of achieving this. They also exchanged opinions on the situation and cooperation in regional and international matters. Rinkevics expressed support for Georgia's territorial integrity and noted that Latvia is closely cooperating with Georgia within the Eastern Partnership and supports Georgia's aspirations towards the EU and NATO. Nicaragua, for its part, was one of a couple of states which recognized the independence of South Ossetia and Abkhazia in 2008. The ministers also voiced concerns over the developments in Syria.

 

Lopez introduced his counterpart to further plans for building the Nicaragua Canal, which is due to start in 2014. After the completion of the project, the canal will connect the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea to the Pacific Ocean, thus creating jobs and considerably boosting economic growth. The Nicaraguan side wishes to attract investments to the project, including those from European countries.






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