- 2026-07-14 “Thank you very much, Thomas. And 1st of all, congratulations to Ireland starting its presidency, and let me wish all the success to you, Thomas, personally with the ambitious and extremely important tasks set out for your presidency. And the most important, may the luck of the Irish be with you.
Of course, those big priorities, competitiveness, security, European values are fully, fully fully supportable. We believe that the European Union must remain united, uphold our shared values, and strengthen both our defense readiness and partnerships with like minded countries. And that's why enlargement is our security guarantee. And, we should do everything to open all the negotiation clusters with this year with Ukraine and Moldova. It should be definitely a top priority.
We're also ready to support presidency's efforts on the MFF. And, let me, on behalf of the friends of cohesion, also to congratulate, this task and wish you resilience in bringing forward the MFF negotiations this year. I would like to recall several big big important topics we outlined in the joint declaration of the Friends of Cohesion we adopted in May.
So 1st of all, regard regarding the heading 2, the our recognition of the centrality of the principle of excellence is there, and, we believe that we need to fully explore it across European Union. And that was also, in June, 1 of the main takeaways from our leaders' leaders' discussion.
Another important issue we outlined about cohesion policy, common fisheries policy, agriculture policy is they are playing fundamental role in promoting convergence, economic growth, and also food security. And we believe that, treaty based policies contribute, more and more to the new priorities and need to have adequate resources as well.
So, that's why long term investments in these areas, they create realistic and favorable, conditions to, everyone around. And lastly, also on the new owner sources, we have been discussing them, from council to council, and, we believe that, there's still, progress can be made and, but they must be genuine, fair, and simple. And, we would like to invite the presidency to take the our declaration into account in further negotiations and, in particular, in the revision of the Nebuga books. Thank you.”
Own EU resources
- 2026-07-13 “00:22 - 12:03:26): Mister Chairman, mister commissioner, colleagues, at 1st, we would like to wish all the best for the Irish presidency. The agenda includes a very important agricultural issues.
We would like to sign the commission for their work regarding the livestock strategy and protein plan.
As regards to livestock strategy, we appreciate Commission's holistic approach to this issue. The entire value chain is important.
The livestock sector is important not only for production and economy, but also for rural vitality.
Therefore, we welcome the emphasis on the territorial approach and the challenges of the Eastern border.
We also welcome the fact that the strategy emphasizes strengthening 1 Health approach and the need to ensure adequate funding for the prevention, surveillance, control and emergency measures of animal diseases and zoonosis.
In particular, as regards to biosecurity and increased uptake of vaccination, We expect concrete solutions to the commission's objective to promote level playing field with 3rd country producers.
And with regard to animal welfare and environmental and climate requirements, we believe that the new solutions must be rational, proportionate and feasible, taking into account the adaptive capacity of the sector and the specificities of the regions as well as the funding available appropriate transition period should be provided for.
There should be no additional administrative burden and costs.
Meanwhile, in any case, we must be able to react to critical situations.
Currently, urgent EU level measures are necessary in order to stabilize the situation in the big sector due to overproduction.
Then as regards the protein plan, we support the plant's emphasis on promoting protein crop cultivation and processing in the EU, strengthening the entire value chain and reducing import dependency.
The EU protein sector, currently a kind of assigned branch needs to become a self sufficient sector and also an essential basis for a resilient EU life sector.
It is welcomed that the proposals for the future MFF aim to strengthen and support the sector in the EU.
However, the decision on interventions in the protein crop sector for the recognition of producer and intersectoral organizations should remain at the discretion of the member state.
It is particularly important to support the research into alternative sources of protein and innovations.
It is also important to ensure sustainable production, competitiveness with 3rd countries and trade with reliable partners, in particular with Ukraine.
At the same time, care must be taken not to become dependent on a single supplier.
So we need to diversify reliable sources of supply.
We expect detailed discussions in order for the potential of these strategies to materialize as sufficient funding and efficient implementation are needed. Thank you.”
Animal diseases prevention and management in the EU
- 2026-07-13 “Yes. Thank you. I would like to thank the Italian colleagues for drawing our attention to the matter of funding for promotion programmes. Latvia two joins the call on the Commission to review the financial envelope for 2027 and explore every possibility in order to maintain a financial allocation that is adequate, stable and fully in line with the strategic objectives of the EU promotion policy. Thank you.”
Agricultural funding
- 2026-07-13 “58:46 - 15:01:38): Thank you, Martin. Thank you, presidency, for putting this issue on the agenda. Gender equality issues are certainly also worth our attention also in the context of agriculture. We're pleased to report that AFP is 1 of the leading member states in the involvement of women in the agriculture. For example, in 2025, almost 45% of all CAP beneficiaries were women. Also similar statistics are there on the farm managers, 44% of farm managers in Latvia are women. Also among young farmers, more than onethree of beneficiaries are women, and this is well above the EU average. Women clearly make an important contribution to agriculture and development of rural areas. And besides, the the farm is often a family business, and so the actual involvement of women is likely to be even higher.
And in Latvia, we are active throughout the agricultural and food supply chain as well as in non agricultural entrepreneurship in rural areas. And the local action groups in Latvia are a good example of the active involvement of women in local development. They significantly contribute to planning and implementation of local development strategies. So therefore, further attention should be paid to maintaining and strengthening of the existing equal opportunities, But it is also equally important to promote the attractiveness of the agricultural sector and rural entrepreneurship, which is also an important aspect in the context of generational renewal. We need to promote the exchange of good practices and experience, highlight successful examples of women's involvement. And so we, like to thank the commission for setting up the platform for men women in agriculture.
Then the 2nd question, the, women's involvement in the sector varies widely, and the situation varies widely between member states, and so the need for specific measures should be assessed individually according to specific situations. The regulatory framework in Latvia already ensures equal rights and opportunities for women and men to acquire and inherit a farm as well to receive support for its development. And so we believe that in future, CAP should also promote the involvement of all new players in the sector by providing stable and accessible funding, the learning and business development opportunities rather than opting for mandatory support measures specifically aimed at women. In addition, the measures to encourage new actors, including women, must be simple, easily accessible and practicable. Thank you. Thank you, Lian. Next up is Germany followed by Bulgaria and Italy. Markus, the floor is yours.”
Gender roles, equality and inclusion
- 2026-07-10 “30:33 - 11:31:34): Dear president, all the best for the Irish presidency. We continue to support the ambitious work program to accelerate the progress on the market integration and supervision package with the aim of reaching a council agreement in October. We broadly agree with the list of outstanding issues and strongly support efforts to modernize market infrastructure, enhance the connectivity of the post-trade infrastructure, further harmonizing regulatory frameworks and facilitate cross-border access to financial products.
Regarding the most critical issues, Latvia believes that a reasonable level of physical presence of local stock exchanges should be maintained to ensure that local businesses, particularly small and medium-sized enterprises, retain effective access to capital markets and that supervisors can continue to perform their market surveillance responsibilities. When it comes to supervision, ESMA's direct supervisory power should be limited to market infrastructures that are genuinely systemic in nature and operate on a cross-border basis. We do not support a broad application of the group criterion as this could bring infrastructures of limited market significance within the scope of ESMA's direct supervision, thereby undermining the principle of proportionality.
In terms of ESMA's governance, the role of the board of supervisors should be strengthened. In particular, the board should be granted enhanced oversight of decisions taken by the executive board and granted powers to intervene where necessary.
As proposed by the commission, asset managers should retain the flexibility to use depository services provided by entities established in other EU member states without being subject to a local presence requirement. We are confident that these issues can be addressed within the set timeline, and we can reach a balanced compromise. Latvia is ready for cooperation in a constructive manner. Thank you.”
Financial regulation
- 2026-06-29 “Yes. Thank you chair. As many already underlined, affordable housing is one of the most pressing social challenges. To address this, we need a balanced and coordinated approach. Experience shows that the most effective solutions combine supply side reforms, targeted financial support, and smart regulatory adjustments from Latvia's perspective, a key priority is to increase housing supply. This requires simplifying and digitalizing planning and and construction procedures, accelerating permitting processes and reducing administrative burdens for the developers. These steps can significantly shorten project timelines, timelines, and lower development costs. At the same time, no single measure will be sufficient. Strong results come from combining policies supporting faster delivery of new housing, including affordable rental housing for middle income households. And here we come to the financial component. Financing is equally critical. Latvia supports a diversified approach that combines public support with private investments. Instruments such as long term financing funds and public private partnership can mobilize investments while maintaining affordability. So targeted support mechanisms and innovative financing models are essential to ensure housing security, strengthen social inclusion, and provide sustainable housing solutions for our citizens. Thank you.”
EU housing policy
- 2026-06-29 “Thank you chair. And first, let me also welcome the EU anti-poverty strategy. Fighting poverty requires a comprehensive and coordinated approach across all stages of life. It is not only about addressing consequences but also tackling root causes. Latvia is already implementing a comprehensive life cycle based approach to poverty reduction policies, combined income support, access to essential services, and labour market inclusion. We believe that clear and accessible information about available support is essential, as well as conditions and opportunities for receiving it. It is important that cross-sectoral cooperation is being strengthened to ensure that people who need specific services are informed about them as early as possible. Latvia promotes the uptake of social benefits and services primarily through a decentralized system, where municipal social services serve as the primary point of access. This is supported by proactive engagement with social workers and case management. This enables tailored support based on individual needs. We also place strong emphasis on outreach, especially to vulnerable groups and as other member states mentioned, on combining digital solutions with in-person support to ensure inclusivity inclusivity. Looking ahead, we see value in strengthening proactive outreach, simplifying access to services and promoting more integrated, people centred approaches. Thank you.”
Child poverty policy
- 2026-06-29 “Yes. Thank you chair. Fair, fair. Labour mobility is a cornerstone of the European Union and digitalisation plays a crucial role in achieving this. Well designed digital solutions enable faster, more reliable exchange of information between member states. Besides, it can help reduce administrative burden for both authorities and employers. Efficient cooperation between national authorities is equally important in this regard. Latvia supports further strengthening the European Labour Authority's role, particularly in facilitating cross-border cooperation and data sharing mechanisms, which can contribute to more effective enforcement of fair labour mobility. By reinforcing monitoring and job placement mechanisms, we can better support mobile job seekers and ensure that mobility contributes positively to both individuals and labour markets across the union. Additionally, we would like to emphasise that improve that exchange should also help prevent fraud and undeclared work, while ensuring the protection of workers rights and equal treatment. As to the further modernisation of the Social Security coordination rules, we must first ensure that the recently agreed review is working effectively and practice effectively in practice before introducing new changes. Thank you.”
EU regulation of cross-border and posted workers
- 2026-06-26 “15:27 - 10:17:26): Thank you very much. So Latvia followed by The Netherlands followed by. Thank you, chair, dear colleagues. Latvia supports the proposed directive and would like to thank the presidency for its constructive work on the file. In particular, we appreciate the efforts made to preserve flexibility for member states by allowing them to choose the most appropriate approach in certain areas. At the same time, as we discussed simplification, it is important that we do not create a new layer of complexity. The objective should be to generally simplify procedures and make the system more predictable for all stakeholders. We need to make sure that rules are practical, non contradictory, and understandable. Equally important is the issue of public acceptance. Infrastructure projects move faster and more successfully when local communities are engaged daily and transparently. Public consultation should not be viewed as an obstacle. Building trust with local communities, municipalities, landowners, and environmental stakeholders is essential to accelerate deployment while maintaining public confidence in the energy transition. The Latvian approach highlights that effective permitting is not simply about speeding up decisions. It is about also about creating clear, transparent, and trusted rules throughout the entire project lifestyle from planning and construction to operation and eventual decommissioning. I hope that these elements can be taken into account also during further discussions on this matter. Thank you. Thank you very much. So we're moving to The Netherlands, then Slovakia, and then Estonia.”
EU policy on permitting for renewable energy projects
- 2026-06-26 “56:29 - 11:57:13): Yes. Thank you. Dear colleagues, Latvia fully understand that methane is 2nd most powerful greenhouse gas responsible for about 1 3rd of global warming, and we need to work together to mitigate this impact. However, energy security and affordability is a very important issue. And so currently, we support the Czechoslovak proposal, and I think that it is necessary to ensure energy security in the current current situation? Thank you.”
EU approach to energy security (home-made vs import sources)
- 2026-06-26 “55:05 - 10:57:19): Thank you, presidency, dear colleagues. Latvia supports the objectives behind the proposal and would like to thank the presidency and the commission for constructive work. Better grids across EU keep the prices fair. They also ensure everyone has power when they need it. However, strong and protected grids make energy supply safer and more reliable for all. We would not only think about building new interconnections, but also about protecting infrastructure and investments that we already have. In Latvia, we see that protection and resilience of critical energy infrastructure as an important element of security and supply of and energy affordability. Experiences in the Baltic Sea have highlighted our vulnerabilities and shows the urgency to improve both physical and cybersecurity for across border energy projects. Other countries can learn from these experiences. Latvia has advocated that protection and resilience of energy infrastructure needs to be reflected more clearly and prominently in the framework. We, therefore, appreciate the establishment of distinct project category in the regulations. This will ensure that we will be able to upgrade existing electricity interconnections, repair them, create reserves, and design new projects with resilience in mind. While we welcome the progress made and support the overall direction, there is scope to make the approach more efficient in practice. The category should include functioning tools for repairs, and it should be financed according to the required level of prioritization. Having said that, we fully support the joint statement, presented by my Estonian colleague. Thank you. Thank you. So Finland followed by Spain followed by France.”
EU energy infrastructure integration
- 2026-06-25 “Thank you. Dear presidency, dear Commissioner a have welcomed the European Water Resilience Strategy in 2025, and we still regard it as a roadmap for the commission and for member states. And we believe that it is very important that we respect national and regional differences, both in availability of water resources and intensity of their use and different starting points in water efficiency. Latvia has invested rather heavily in in water supply issues, and the average water losses are rather low. And that means that it might not be realistic or cost effective to. Get very huge improvement in this area. We have been promoting the efficient use of water resources for many years by permitting system and annual reporting system and taxation system as well. So the system is very well developed and we are constantly improving with, for example, with requirements for for assessing water leakages and uniform approach and regular information to authorities in, as it has already mentioned, also in Latvia more and more importance is devoted to the critical infrastructure issues. And although we very appreciate the digital tools and and all these improvements we should also take into note water security aspects, and both for the informational aspects and also the physical aspects of. Of protection of water extraction sites. Thank you for your attention.”
EU policy on water management
- 2026-06-25 “Dear president, dear Commissioner. Latvia broadly supports the objective of the proposal to ensure a gradual transition towards zero emission mobility while maintaining a technological neutrality. We think that recognising the contribution of sustainable renewable fuels is important and can be beneficial to reach the global goals, and we believe the proposal is a step in the right direction to find the balance between climate and energy policy objectives, while taking into account the market of low emission vehicles. Latvia supports Cyprus presidency in its work with the proposal, and remains flexible regarding possible solutions for further progress on this proposal, including, of course, that the target should be realistic for all countries. Thank you.”
Road transport environmental policy
- 2026-06-25 “Thank you presidency, for organising this timely debate. Latvia sees Nature services as essential foundation for long term competitiveness, resilience and welfare. Our competitiveness is directly linked to healthy forests, wetlands, freshwater systems and Baltic Sea. To unlock this potential, we need predictable public support payments for ecosystem services, advisory, support for land managers and businesses, and better integration of nature related risks into financial decision making. The transition to nature positive economy must be proportionate, cost effective and realistic, especially in the current context of geopolitical risks, security challenges and budgetary constraints. Countries cannot implement all possible measures at once. Prioritisation is essential. Latvia sees nature credits as promising complementary instrument, but only with a clear EU level framework a common standards for measurement, verification and integrity and safeguards against double counting and greenwashing. Policy coherence is essential. Energy security and climate objectives require renewable energy deployment. But spatial planning must safeguard biodiversity. Possible tensions between biodiversity, climate and energy objectives should be acknowledged openly and managed pragmatically. To conclude, Latvia supports ambition with realism. The pace of transition must reflect today's economic and security challenges, while ensuring that environmental ambitions reinforce Europe's resilience, competitiveness and security. Thank you.”
Nature protection and restoration in the EU
- 2026-06-25 “Dear president, dear colleagues, Latvia welcomes this timely discussion on the ways forward for the rich regulation. We think that priority should be given to improving implementation and enforcement of existing framework, while ensuring regulatory stability and predictability for businesses. We support making full use of comitology procedures to ensure timely and efficient adaptation of reach to scientific and technological progress, thereby improving the regulatory framework without creating prolonged uncertainty for businesses and competent authorities. We see particular value in updating technical requirements to reflect recent developments in chemicals legislation, promoting alternative non-animal testing methods, and advancing digitalisation of safety data sheets. As digital solutions can improve access to information and reduce the administrative burden before introducing new obligations or legislative measures, it is important to assess the effectiveness of existing enforcement mechanisms and to identify the practical obstacles that hinder compliance. Latvia supports a balanced approach that strengthens implementation and enforcement, facilitates technical updates through Comitology and maintains a high level of protection of human health and environment while safeguarding the competitiveness of European industry. Thank you.”
Chemicals regulation
- 2026-06-22 “Thank you, Madam Chair. Commissioner. Colleagues. Thank you to Romanian colleagues and colleagues from Slovakia for bringing up this issue. Also in Latvia, the bear population is increasing Rapidly. We agree that the assessment of the species population status allows, where necessary, to review the conservation status provided under the Band Convention and the Habitats Directive. We support the principle that in cases where the population of large predators reaches and maintains a favourable conservation status, member States should be provided with greater flexibility in its management, similar to what is currently established for the wolf. Therefore, we support a timely review of the Habitats Directive, thereby strengthening the co-existence of large predators, including bears, with humans, in order to prevent threats to humans. Thank you.”
Large Carnivores
- 2026-06-22 “Thank you, Madam President. Colleagues, thank you to our German colleagues for highlighting this issue. On many occasions, we have pointed out that the requirements of the revised control regulation are disproportionate, difficult to apply, and they are not consistent with reality. There is still no solution to the problem of margins of tolerance that would be acceptable for Latvia. The Commission's approach does not simplify or reduce the administrative burden. It creates additional difficulties for fishermen, exporters, importers and competent authorities. The legislation and digital solutions must ensure the re-use of data, avoid duplication and improve the interoperability interoperability of systems. We call on the Commission to take into account the capacity of SMEs and to prepare workable requirements that do not impose disproportionate burden. Thank you.”
EU policy on pesticides
- 2026-06-22 “Thank you, Madam President. Commissioner. Colleagues. Thank you to the Commission for the evaluation of the CFP. However, the Commission's delay with a clear vision for the CFP poses a risk to targeted programming of the EU. Support. Only a modern CFP will ensure competitiveness, development and sustainability of coastal communities. Therefore, first, we need a vision for 2040 fisheries and aquaculture as soon as possible. There are many challenges, but the cuts proposed by the commission for the CFP in the next Multiannual Financial Framework are not compatible with the ambitious objectives. Second, we agree that the three pillars of the CFP remain relevant. However, we believe that socio economic considerations have not been sufficiently taken into account while setting fishing opportunities, which threatens the economic and social stability of the sector. Therefore, we call for socio economic impact to be fully and equally assessed in the future. Third, we agree that the main weakness of the CFP is regulatory fragmentation and the complexity of application. We have continuously reiterated this. The CFP control framework is particularly problematic. Requirements are often difficult to implement or unfeasible. Compliance is costly and real gains are minimal. The CFP should be purposefully simplified, significantly reducing administrative and financial burdens and moving away from overregulation by the EU. A common approach does not always reflect the diversity of the EU. Fisheries and member states should be given more flexibility in the implementation of control and monitoring measures. I would also like to highlight a few points important for Latvia. It is necessary to review the principles for the fishing fleet capacity management, providing more flexibility, in particular for quota managed species and taking into account additional capacity needs for the energy transition in order to encourage investments. We have to ensure sufficient financing for strengthening resilience. We support further strengthening of the regionalisation principle. The joint recommendations of regional cooperation bodies should have more weight in the decision making process. In conclusion, we support a speedy but qualitative review of the CFP, a more flexible, simpler and better adapted policy to today's needs and sufficient financing from the EU funds. Thank you.”
Funding for fisheries and aquaculture
- 2026-06-22 “Madam president. Commissioner, colleagues, thank you to the Commission for the assessment of the situation and for setting out the principles of establishing fishing opportunities in 2027. We underline the need for timely discussions with sector experts and with member states regional fisheries management groups. This is necessary when decisions on fishing opportunities are made. Environmental conditions in the Baltic Sea remain difficult and fish stocks continue to decline. However, this is no longer driven only by fishing activity of the EU member states. We want to highlight an additional threat. Russia's continued targeted Overfishing, which is having serious impact on most endangered species like cod, herring and sprat stocks. We call upon the commission to take this into account and not place all responsibility on EU fishermen. For many years they have followed scientific advice and established catch limits as well as additional protection measures. We also repeat our call to address the growing negative impact of seals and cormorants in the Baltic Sea. It should be controlled. Their increasing numbers are putting further pressure on fish resources. At the same time, we do not agree that all fish stocks in the Baltic Sea are in critical condition. Herring and sprat stocks in the Gulf of Riga have remained stable and are managed according to scientific advice. And recently the condition of central Baltic herring stocks have also improved. Meanwhile, cod and salmon are mainly affected by environmental and natural factors. We should also recognise that the fishing industry is under pressure from the geopolitical situation and the effects of war, including rising energy costs. Our task is clear we must allow our sector to operate and earn the income needed to remain viable. For 2027, we should fully utilise fishing opportunities in accordance with scientific advice and the principle of maximum sustainable yield. This will support sustainable fish stocks, while at the same time protecting the resilience, competitiveness and long term future of the sector. So we have to think about it. Thank you.”
Environmental regulation of fisheries
- 2026-06-22 “Thank you, Madam Chair. Mr. Commissioner, dear colleagues, thank you to the Cyprus Presidency for the invested work during these six months. Thank you for the efforts to reach a partial general approach on this proposal, which is essential for us for Latvia. It was most important to ensure that the CFP conditionality regulation aligns with the regulation on national and regional plans, including a clear separation of the Ocean Plan pact implementation measures which have separate funding from CFP activities. In this area. There are a lot of. In Clarities. We consider that the work should be continued on. Clarification should be achieved. Thank you.”
Funding for fisheries and aquaculture
- 2026-06-22 “Thank you, Madam President. Commissioner, colleagues. The ongoing negotiations for a new fisheries agreement with Mauritania are of the highest importance. However, the results so far raise serious concerns about the possibilities to safeguard the interests of the EU fleet. Latvia has continuously emphasised interests in maintaining the existing fishing opportunities. Our fishing vessels have been operating under the Mauritanian agreement for a long time, and there are no alternative fishing opportunities for them. We have concerns about the commission's current proposal for fishing opportunities, in particular with regard to category six and small pelagic fisheries. That's not sufficient to meet the needs of the EU fleet. The proposed volumes are insufficient even to maintain the current fishing operations of Latvian fishermen, let alone the interests of the entire EU fleet. If this is not corrected, it will become economically impossible for Latvian fishing vessels to operate. Unfortunately, it's very likely that when the current protocol expires, the interruption of fishing operations will become inevitable. The current EU agreement will not be continued. This will have a direct impact on EU fisheries, reducing regional presence and allowing other countries to benefit from the unused fishing opportunities and it will be done in a more unsustainable way. We call on the commission to work on continuation of the negotiations and in close cooperation with the Member States concerned, find a solution to the protocol that would ensure sufficient and economically viable fishing opportunities for the EU fleet. We would also like to receive clear information from the Commission on the planned actions to ensure the continuity of fishing operations. We are prepared to fish responsibly to comply with the requirements to secure revenues in the national and the EU budget, but at the moment we do not see opportunities for that. The negotiations ended with no result. What's next? How to explain the situation to the industry. We invite the Commission to provide an update on the negotiations with the Kingdom of Morocco and about the next steps as negotiations have not started yet, despite the mandate granted by the council in January. Thank you.”
Funding for fisheries and aquaculture
- 2026-06-16 “Thank you very much, Marilyn, and thank you very much, Peter. And I should say that, first of all, I really agree with Commissioner Serafim, and I thank the presidency and the Duma, Elena, for your enormous efforts on providing us an egg box and also for trying to accommodate diverse interests of member states. They are indeed very different, and it's great that we are having this on the table. And we also acknowledge that there are some positive developments, but we also believe that there's some more work needs to be done. And I have several bullet points on our thoughts about the the work that is still still undone or still need to be addressed. So first of all, on the cuts, we truly believe that before proposing to make any reductions in MBF. We need to have a serious work on our own resources on the new own resources. We believe that there is a. There is a playing field playing field on that. And Latvia has expressed our openness to consider our new own resources and also to consider changes in existing ones. And we believe that this is the reserve. We still haven't used enough. Secondly, we are quite often talking about the needs of the eastern border regions, which for the fifth consecutive year face both socioeconomic and security consequences of the Russia's unfair war in Ukraine. And we thank the commission, of course, for the communication on the eastern border regions.”
Own EU resources
- 2026-06-16 “That explained very well the challenges we face. I will not dig into details, but last week's and last drone incursions, they pressure both our economy and security, And this pressure is increasing. Uh, and, uh, we appreciate that the box now mentions the support for all external borders, but we believe we need a specific solution for eastern border regions. And we we will continue to stand with this evaluation. Uh, third, unfortunately, there is at the moment no solution that will ensure a level playing field for our farmers. And it's not only a question of funding levels, but it's actually mainly the question of the conditions of support for our farmers and how they change the amount of support in every member state. Uh, this is important for the majority of member states on the table, I believe. And it's not only important because of the funding member states need, but also because of the few security. Uh, let's face the truth. We, we are having multiple crises just popping up all around our, our continent. And we truly believe that we need to make sure that the support for our farmers is large enough that we can produce here on our own soil, because in the case of crisis, it's hardly imagined that we will be able to get the basic resources elsewhere. Fourth to the proposed cuts under heading two.
**Latvia We think this proposal is actually quite dangerous. Uh, heading two finances, uh, priorities that actually, I believe everyone agrees on. Defense, security, connectivity, and competitiveness. And the reduction of funding for these areas would definitely be against our interests. And this is especially true for the defense window of ICF and ECF. And finally, last but not least, uh, some might say, and some are already saying that cohesion and common agricultural policy are policies of yesterday. And they are they are not contributing to the modern priorities or the new priorities of European Union. I don't believe it's really correspondent to the reality we live in because development and modernization in Latvia, and also in many other countries and many other regions of different countries, since the accession in the EU has happened to a large extent because of these policies. And of course, the new MFF will modernize the cohesion policy even further, and we definitely support that. But we need to make sure that these policies are effective and modern and still standing, because this has been, and I believe will continue to be the driver for our economic activity. And just to conclude, we are definitely ready to work with everyone to address the remaining issues. We don't believe that there is no way how to fix them and how to address them, but we are unfortunately still quite far from the final result. Thank you.”
Cohesion and rural funding · Defence spending · Agricultural funding
- 2026-06-16 “Thanks a lot, Marilyn. And we would like to thank the presidency for advancing discussions on these three highly important draft regulations. We have supported the presidency's efforts with the aim of reaching the agreement on the MFF by the end of this year, and we want to be constructive and open to discuss reasonable compromises along the way. And this is why we also vote in support today. However, of course, this is not the end of the process. As we have already noted in the statement, several important issues remain to be addressed during the MFF negotiations and notably through the Negro box. I'll just outline some of them regarding the ECF. We need to continue our work to ensure access for excellent projects from across the EU, specifically including in those parts of the Union where private investments are constrained by security risks and thus for the NLP. Everyone around this table is already aware of the socio economic challenges facing the eastern border regions, and we will continue our efforts to better tailor the RNP to these pressing needs. And lastly, within the Common Agricultural Policy Framework of the. Nlp will also continue our work to ensure a level playing field for our farmers and to avoid undermining the common nature of the Common Agricultural Policy. Thank you.”
Agricultural funding
- “Thank you, dear presidency. Thank you for the opportunity to discuss this important issue today among environmental ministers. Knowing that our Prime Ministers will also address it soon. We welcome the decision to move this debate to the highest political level. We expect to see more light on the principles of the future futures architectures of the targets. It is vital that the future target is realistic, especially under difficult geopolitical circumstances. By strengthening our defence is a top priority. And yes, so dirty is important too. We welcome the significant progress made in the text. Several elements suggested by Latvia are included. Thank you for that. We believe they must be preserved. It helps to us to keep that important to trust of society where we are going together. The 2040 targets must be practically achievable and beneficial to our economies and society. Country level impact assessments are necessary to ensure clarity. The climate law should include the following important elements. We must be able to continue using local renewable energy, especially biomass. Like my previous colleague Estonian said, more than half of Latvian territory is forest the same? And that was the key how we could switch off from Russian gas despite we have straight pipeline. The law must respect the natural of the Lulucf sector, including the uncertainty and variability of CO2 removals and its role in the economy and food security.”
Energy (green transition)
- “Another issue that Latvia's investments in defence capabilities and readiness to safeguard the our common eastern border from external threats are in real life done at the expense of productive investments. And furthermore, of course, the war in Ukraine has a negative and disproportionate social economic impact on the countries bordering Russia and Belarus. And regretfully, we do not see this reality reflected anywhere besides the home funds and also regarding our farmers. It's important that the location cement historical injustice and finally ensure a level playing field in terms of direct payments. As for security, defense and Competitiveness fund. We welcome the overall increase in funding for security and defense. And also we welcome that a sizable share of the competitiveness fund is directed towards defense sector, military mobility and civil defense industry, as well as critical infrastructure. This is definitely a positive development. Uh, for interconnectivity part, we also welcome the increase of in the amount of staff, particularly for transport and military mobility, but also for energy. Uh, all these sectors are crucial for the future economy of the EU, and this is good that we are able to increase the funding there. For Ukraine, we fully welcome that. There is a predictable and long term instrument for supporting Ukraine. And last but not least, for the owner sources. We are open to continue discussions on how to diversify financing in the next MFF and have started to analyse the new proposal, but will be more concrete further on. Thank you very much.”
Defence spending
- “Latvia welcomes the work done by the Spanish presidency and proposal for a solidarity act. Latvia's main concerns over the current proposal of Cuba's Solidarity Act is as follows. Quality [00:12:30] ensures long tum success and therefore reasonable time is needed to discuss the proposal in detail, including on information exchange among regional security operation centres, Council's role in the European Union Cyber Security Reserve and other main discussion points. Adoption of the regulation as soon as possible should not be an end in itself. Latvia stresses that it's crucial to evaluate the authority of European Commission, determined how national and regional security operations [00:13:00] centers carry out information exchange. It's necessary to explain the involvement of the private sector in the national stocks of the countries, because there is still no clarity about it. The requirement that companies providing cybersecurity services in the EU need to have a European Union level cybersecurity certificate to participate in procurement, and the European Union Cybersecurity Reserve could contribute to a negative impact on national cybersecurity competence. Community [00:13:30] of countries in its growth. It should be assessed whether the Cybersecurity Incident Review Mechanism does not duplicate existing formats, for example EU Cyclon. A greater understanding of the nature of the format is required. Thank you.”
Governance of EU cyber crisis-response mechanisms (Cyber Solidarity Act)
- “Thank you. Dear colleagues, I will be very brief, uh, to say that if we want to succeed, we must include each and every member state in the value chains. Um, addressing competitiveness challenges are affecting everyone. But the challenges are different. Uh, starting from security, ending with very specific industries and challenges they are facing. But the EKF have has to influence the entire single market positively. Uh, and it cannot Create differences. Disadvantages for different regions. So cohesion element is a must have. Thank you.”
"Buy European" provisions
- “Colleagues, we appreciate the opportunity to talk about this vision today, which is a good basis for continuing to work on preparing legislation for agriculture and food, in particular, the Cap. The future policy must be simple, clear and easy for farmers to implement. We welcome the fact that agriculture and food production are recognised as strategically important sectors for the EU. It's very important to highlight that the work of farmers in producing healthy, high quality food and to provide public goods should not be Considered as a given. We are also happy with the scope of the vision, which covers various important aspects when it comes to developing the sector. We also wonder, though, if the drawing up of strategies and visions is really what's going to help us improve the situation. What we need to do is take action. So we feel that a lack of a direct link with financial resources and the necessary resources to implement the strategy is the main shortcoming here. The vision contains very ambitious plans, but without an adequate budget, which is distinct from the cap, we won't be able to implement the plans. And that is why after 2027, the Cap must continue as a strong, distinct European policy which has specific financing set aside for it under the MFF. The two pillars must receive enough financing in order to make sure that our major ambitions can be carried out. In order to answer the presidency's first question, let me say the following.”
Agricultural funding
- “Colleagues, I would like to underline the importance of ensuring consistency across different areas of EU legislation. As we move forward with transport decarbonisation, it's essential that climate, energy and industrial policies remain consistent and reinforced. On one other. Latvia welcomes the Commission's effort to introduce greater flexibility in the Co two performance standards for cars and vans. We support a pragmatic approach that maintains the overall trajectory toward climate neutrality, while also improving the competitiveness of European automotive sectors. In our view, the decarbonisation of transport should really not only on zero emissions vehicle technology but also renewable transport fuels with the lowest lifecycle greenhouse gas intensity. Latvia can support the proposal adjustment of 2035 target 90%. We are. So we are also open to considering the further adjustments, for example, to 80% provided that the remaining emissions can be compensated through the use of sustainable renewable fuels and low carbon materials in recycle productions. They encourage increasing the sailing for renewable fuel credits to at least half of the compensatable compensatable reduction, and avoiding additional sub limits for specific fuel categories. This would improve policy coherence with renewable energy objectives and better support Europe's competitiveness and energy transition. Finally, in the context of EU ongoing efforts to simplify legislation, we suggest considering the repeal of the directive on the Promotion of Clean vehicles. We think the requirement under the regulation would, in practice, already deliver the directive's objects and help to avoid overlap over overlapping and potentially inconsistent regulation frameworks. Thank you.”
2035 ICE phase-out: strict zero-emission target vs. flexibility for carmakers · Road transport environmental policy
- “Thank you. Chair. Commissioner. Colleagues in Latvia. You. The proposed framework is moving in the right direction and can meaningfully contribute to strengthening industrial capacity, accelerating decarbonisation and improving competitiveness in strategic EU sectors. Thus saying this and hearing all of the speeches before I can say, uh, we have to align our interests because all of the questions raised today, uh, without this will be very hard to move forward in practical ways. For example, uh, we, we all support the streamlined, uh, procedures, permitting procedures, All of the tools that can help to reindustrialize Europe in a smart manner. All of the practical implementations of the rules. And when we come to the question, how can we move further forward faster? Um, I stated in the doorstep, where is will? There is a way. And I think the will is here. And the only problem is the way. And we have to find a faster way. We have to find a better way to move forward, to align all of our interests, not go to the extremes in regulating the market markets. For example, uh, regarding the public procurement part, I don't think there would be a minister here who wouldn't say that European sourcing sourcing is utmost the most important thing for the industry to be reborn in Europe.”
"Buy European" provisions
- “Yes. Dear colleagues, let me express once more my gratitude to the presidency for initiating this vital discussion and answering the first question. I would like to underline that priorities at both the EU and national levels should address the major health threats and most important burdens on the health sector. These are non-communicable diseases, including oncological diseases and vascular diseases. There are key risk factors that should be addressed, namely, tobacco and nicotine products as well as alcohol consumption can be prevented through targeted intervention. In Latvia, a study indicates that the direct and indirect cost of alcohol consumption to the national budget and the economy in 2023 were around 1.3 to 1.8% of GDP, accounting for 2.7% of total health care spending. These cost estimates indicate that investing directly in measures to prevent alcohol consumption and smoking initiation is cost effective, since the cost of addressing the consequences is higher than investing in prevention. I therefore call for a more proactive and targeted approach at both the EU level and nationally to continue implementing evidence based and cost effective measures recommended by the W.H.O. and the OECD. On the second question, I would like to emphasize the need for a more proactive and focused implementation of the initiatives set out in the policy Planning document adopted at the EU level, and the European Central Plan was already developed in 2022 and includes measures that the Commission has committed to implementing for reduction of both smoking and alcohol consumption.”
EU measures on lifestyle-related behaviours (smoking, drinking, eating, etc.)
- “Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And commissioner colleagues, I would like to thank our Portuguese colleagues for this proposal. Latvia, too, believes that we should create a favourable environment for the introduction of new technologies in agriculture, and that allowing the use of drones would be the first step in this direction. Therefore, we support and we have joined the document prepared by Portugal. We too would like to receive from the Commission clear proposals on the use of drones for the application of plant protection products, including risk assessment and risk management procedures and criteria. Our farmers too, have shown interest in using drones to make the application of plant protection products more precise and efficient. This technology has already been successfully implemented in several parts of the world. Thank you.”
Digital and precision farming
- “Thank [00:09:00] you. We thank the Austrian colleagues for suggesting this item for discussion. We fully agree that agriculture is facing an unprecedented pressure. Currently, I support everything that is mentioned in the document on requirements of the Green Deal. It needs to be reasonable, realistically implementable. It is necessary to evaluate the impact of all these legislative acts on agriculture. As regards plant protection products, we need alternatives there. Secondly, we support Ukraine. It is a priority. We need to facilitate their export. [00:09:30] We have created also the Baltic Corridor that helps exporting products from Ukraine. We need information from the Commission on measures suggested by Ukraine. Thank you.”
Agricultural trade: Ukraine imports
- “So I should like to thank our French colleagues for having brought up this topic. I think it would be extremely valuable if farmers could use their available arable land flexibly in the current conditions characterised by negative economic outlook and poor harvest, instead of removing a certain percentage of arable land. Therefore, we think the French proposal should be extended to include other member states and by a solidarity approach to apply the legal framework to everyone to all Member states. It is appropriate to provide in the regulation that in all areas of land left fallow and earmarked to ensure the 4% of Guy et first requirement, farmers could be granted permission to produce there. This is what [00:14:00] we are asking for and exactly what we have been asking so far. It has substance and this is very important for the farmers. Thank you.”
Agriculture (green)
- “Thank you. Mary. Thank you. Colleagues who cooperated with us to found to find the proportionality in the controls and audit of the implementation of the CFP. Almost all member states have joined this document. We therefore invite you to take into account our common arguments. The first years of implementation of the Cap, moving towards a performance based approach were very complex, especially for paying agencies. The set of conditions are detailed, requirements increase significantly, but the Commission's guidelines and methodology were produced lately. What we as member States went through and what we introduced in 2023 under absolutely new conditions, within short deadlines, was a huge challenge. We put in place effective measures to achieve the objectives of the Cap, including through the introduction of ambitious climate and environmental schemes. A functioning management and control system is in place, comprising both the geospatial Application system and the Area monitoring system. All this has required significant changes in our IT systems and administrative processes, significant financial resources as well as extensive information to farmers. Farmers were not happy about it at all. The most difficult were precisely the first years of implementation, which the Commission recognized as a testing or transition period. But what is happening now? Countries that have invested to maximum, both financially and in terms of work and quality, are subject to the conformity clearance procedure and heavy financial corrections. We therefore call on the Commission to review the scope, timing and proportionality of the requirements of the guidelines and to apply a genuine risk based audit approach in the context of conformity clearance procedures. On the other hand, a proportionate approach aimed at improving the system should be applied rather than financial penalising member states for first years of implementation. I very much hope that the result of constructive dialogue. The Commission will avoid applying an exaggerated approach to audits, controls and calculations. These lessons should also be taken into account with a view to the future. Cap. Thank you.”
Agricultural funding
- “Dear ministers, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, we thank the Polish Presidency for organising a debate on the lessons learned from the Horizon Europe mid-term evaluation with a look towards Fp10. To answer your first question, Latvia agrees with many of the findings of the interim evaluation, notably that the Framework Programme provides a strong return on investment and contribution to addressing societal challenges. In particular, collaborative research has proven its value as the cornerstone of EU research and innovation policy and must be continued in the next seven year period. The report notes that the research and innovation gap in Europe remains persistent, as does the disparity in participation amongst member states in Horizon Europe. Therefore, looking forward, we must strengthen the Widening Participation instrument and ensure the continuation of dedicated measures aimed at reducing the gap in Europe. The report highlights several shortcomings of the Horizon Europe missions, including an overly complex and burdensome governance structure and the lack of coherence with European partnerships, which must be improved. Adequate ring fencing must be ensured insured for research and innovation funding, and the missions have not set a good precedent in this regard. To answer your second question on encouraging small and medium enterprise participation, we support the consolidation of EU and innovation instruments having fewer and more targeted programmes. The number of high quality proposals which do not receive funding in the ESC must be reduced. The time to grant needs to be minimised, and we must maintain focus on supporting deep tech startups in Europe. To answer your third question, we strongly support the initiative to fund dual use projects through the European Innovation Council and the current MFF. We also support removing the dual use restriction for EU research and innovation funding in the next period. Thank you.”
EU research funding
- “Thank you, madam chair, commissioner, Nikolay. We were happy to host you in Riga on the morning of the Europe Day. That was bright and clear signal to Latvian people. Thank you for being with us, and thank you for reflecting that, today.
We live in times when the resilience of our democracies and societies is constantly challenged. We can no longer afford entertaining the myth that culture is luxury. It is culture that brings us together and inspires us. Culture and cultural heritage are the drivers of societal resilience, security, and sustainable development.
How to move ahead? We must listen to the European citizens as we develop our new plan. The Eurobarometer tells us that some priorities must be made. The accessibility of culture and art, protection of cultural heritage, and prevention of natural catastrophes and climate change, as well as protection and digitization of cultural heritage.
Protection of cultural heritage, is a matter of security for our societies. In the context of geopolitical instability and hybrid threats, institutions and heritage require active risk management and strengthening resilience. Hybrid war warfare is not only carried out with weapons, but also with narratives. Destruction of heritage, disinformation about European values, erosion of community bonds are all part of the same evil strategy. The next plan must clearly define the steps we are about to make to fight this.
We, must, improve accessibility of culture. We must continue supporting access to culture, which is a fundamental right of every citizen. The EU's Eastern border countries know it better than anyone else.
When it comes to the role of culture and democratic resilience, we cannot leave behind those who sustain our linguistic diversity, historical memory, and embody European values. These are our artists and creative professionals.
Likewise, we must continue working on strengthening Europe's leadership in international cultural policy. The next work plan should pay more attention to the EU's role as a global cultural actor. The EU needs to develop a clear and united position that recognizes culture as a global public good and an integral part of sustainable development everywhere.
It is important to ensure that the next plan builds synergies with the global and EU cultural policy guidelines defined in Mandia Cult and the Culture Compass.
Latvia is ready to contribute to an ambitious work plan. It must be both resilient, preserving what works, and bold in responding to today's and tomorrow's challenges through concrete action rather than general objectives. Thank you very much.”
EU and national cultural identities
- “Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Madam Commissioner. Thank you to our Czech colleagues for initiating the discussion. Taking into account the geopolitical situation in Europe, Russia's war in Ukraine. This issue is really relevant. I'd like to indicate that Latvia acknowledges the harmful effects of lead on human health and the environment, and supports the EU efforts to reduce the impact of lead. But at the same time, I'd like to point out that this is not the right moment to radically change the production and supply opportunities of ammunition in the EU. As regards coastal fisheries, recreational fisheries and aquaculture and commercial fisheries, there are no alternatives at the moment. Such restrictions jeopardise the existence of the sector. We have to work on developing scientifically based alternatives materials to replace lead weights. This would be a good step to protect the environment, but this is more likely to create a rise in prices for fisheries tackle and fish and fisheries products. Therefore, I'd like to stress that Latvia supports and joins the Czech proposal. Thank you.”
Chemicals regulation
- “Mr. [00:19:30] chairman, Commissioner. Colleagues, I'd like to thank the Polish delegation for including this item on our agenda for today. We can support the comments of the Polish delegation and the common. Uh 2040 climate objective. To our mind, is too ambitious and it cannot be reached. And it will also affect agricultural and lulucf sector. The current 2030 target is a major, already a major [00:20:00] challenge, in particular for agriculture and lulucf. And it will not be. We will not be able to achieve it without closing down farms, without eliminating jobs in agriculture and forestry. I would like to point out that now, when we are working on 2030 targets, issues related to access to finance have still not been solved. Therefore, when working on the next programming period, it is important to reflect on the availability of finance [00:20:30] to meet climate objectives. Latvia calls for coherence between EU food security and climate change policy objectives. Thank you.”
Agriculture (green)
- “Thank you. We appreciate the strategy and efforts to address the issue of generational renewal. The strategy provides a good overview of the main challenges and solutions. It's important that the eastern border is in focus. Population aging and generational renewal is not only a problem in agriculture. To change the current trends, we need a national cross-sectoral strategy where agriculture is just one of the elements. But the level of ambition is not proportionate to the possibilities, for Latvia's requirement of 6% of funding is actually means tripling of the available funding. I'm also skeptical about the 2040 target to double the share of young farmers from 12 to 24%. The reality is harsh. The proportion of young people within the overall population structure continues to decline. We need reasonable, realistic and balanced approach. Thank you.”
Agricultural funding
- “Yes. Thank you. Maria, I would like to thank the commission, among other things, for the high level meeting on CFP audits. I appreciate that simplification of Cap is now being taken seriously, including the omnibus. This is an absolute priority to avoid complicating legislation from the outset rather than correcting existing errors later. Overall, I view the first year of implementing the vision positively. There are targeted proposals initiatives as well as broad strategic dialogues. We eagerly await both the livestock and protein strategies. It is important to boost the competitiveness of sectors facing complex challenges. We also appreciate the updated bioeconomy strategy and progress in the context of carbon neutral agriculture. These represent new income opportunities and creation of higher added value in the regions. However, the vision recognises agriculture and food production as strategically important sectors. Therefore, the proposals for the next MFF are a huge disappointment. The new approach and the low level of funding allocated to the CIP diminish the sector's importance. Funding that is commensurate with the CIP objectives is no longer guaranteed. The vision and MFF proposals acknowledge the need to address the fair distribution of CIP payments. However, due to the specifics of the funding calculation, an unfair distribution remains. National cofinancing requirements further exacerbate this inequality. The vision envisages a more targeted CIP. In reality, countries with limited budgetary resources will struggle to implement all these mandatory measures.”
Agricultural funding
- “Thank you, Madame Chan. Also like to thank Bulgaria. We believe that the claim is justified. We also advocate that to absorb the rural development funding in these current conditions, 23 years period. We also voiced this demand before, and the topicality of this subject hasn't changed. The CFP funds are limited and even direct payments and persistent volatilities there in the sector, especially on our eastern border. And so it's important for member states not to lose a penny of the available funding. And also, I'd like to stress that to also thinking of the next, MFF, it's important because N plus 1 approach is there. Thank you.”
Agricultural funding
- “Thank you. Chair. Dear colleagues, uh, Latvia as an open economy which is deeply integrated in the EU value chains, we support the Clean Industrial Deal emergency plans as coordinated and timely framework for steel, metals, chemical and automotive sectors and of course, emphasizing administrative simplification and regulatory clarity as, uh, I would say these are the low hanging fruits that should be picked and will be beneficial for everyone. Uh, the single biggest horizontal, uh, condition is accessible, accessible, predictable, and clean energy. Uh, thus, it means we have to have investments in the grid capacity, energy efficiency, and mechanisms to reduce energy price volatility. As many of you already stated, uh, we also need particular pathways for SMEs to plug into the large scale European industrial value chains through simpler access to the instruments and now on the specific industrial sector, starting with the steel and metal. We support the reinforcement, the clarity pillar with better, uh, collection, sorting and recycling of the scrap, because of course, in every industrial, uh uh, complex, the raw materials are playing a major key role in chemicals and automotive sectors. We support clear transition pathway to low carbon hydrogen, carbon capture and utilization, uh, bio based solutions, and of course, strengthening, strengthening the battery value chains, uh, and cross-border testing corridors. On automotive, we highlight the promotion of the EU produced zero emission vehicles and support for the infrastructure. Enabling connected and autonomous mobility and focus should be on the supply and infrastructure side of the automotive sectors, not as much as on the demand side. Uh, finally, on the objectives of the Critical Raw Materials Act, we support a stronger security of supply, of critical raw materials and, of course, technological neutrality. Uh, after hearing all the discussions, in my opinion, there are a couple of things that should be addressed as well. And one of them is, uh, we sometimes say, uh, here, that we are basically lacking a balanced consumer acceptance for the policies that leads us into these situations. Uh, I will stop at that. Thank you.”
Energy (green transition) · Sourcing of critical raw materials
- “11:24 – 17:12:53): Dear colleagues, we appreciate the active work of the Cyprus presidency on the proposal for a military mobility regulation because effective EU military mobility in the current geopolitical context is an indispensable precondition for credible deterrence and for the protection of the whole of Europe. Given the strategic importance of the EU's eastern flank, military mobility is not only a theoretical measure of effectiveness, but it's a time critical defense capability for EU member states bordering Russia and Belarus. Latvia's geographical position makes our country an essential transit and host country for strengthening NATO and the EU. So the regulation must be both politically ambitious and properly implementable in practice. While it is the defense sector that is primarily responsible for this proposal, it is also essential to ensure strong involvement of transport sector in future work. It is of critical importance to ensure that the regulation establishes a workable framework that mitigates operational, legal and security risks. It should make sure that negative effects on civilian transport are minimized as far as possible. Transport safety is not compromised and independence of infrastructure managers is safeguarded, especially in, such member states as Latvia, which have different track gauges. I can also, support the presidency in all the 3 other items. Thank you.”
Relations with NATO
- “Thank you very much. We would like to thank our Portuguese colleagues for putting this point on the agenda. Also, Latvia supports the suggested extension of the eligibility period to apply for financial compensations up until the 31st of December, 2024. This will at least somewhat alleviate the burden that the industry has to bear in this difficult situation, and we hope [00:16:00] for a positive response from the Commission. Thank you.”
Agricultural funding
- “Thank you, Abba. Dear colleagues, firstly, let me thank the Swedish Presidency for the work and the great investment in the making of the proposal. We believe that this is a truly important and beneficial to have a harmonised EU framework for for obtaining and sharing data on short term rental services. As this form of accommodation becomes increasingly important part of the tourism industry also in Latvia. In this view, we can also express our support regarding the information scope which is required to register and will be with what we will be able to work in future. Latvia considers that the additional assignment of the compatibility of the proposal with the Digital Service Act is necessary. As already mentioned by other countries, Latvia has concerns about Article seven of the proposal and its obligations for online platforms, which are likely. The Digital Service Act does not provide exemptions for micro-enterprises and SMEs. Similarly, we would like to further review the proposal to put additional functions on the Digital Service Coordinators for monitoring platform that offer short term rentals, accommodation services as set out in Article 15. We doubt that useful usefulness of this requirements and consider that the choice of supervisory authority should be left to Member States. To sum up, I would like to emphasize that it is important. Firstly, level of harmonisation is appropriate and secondly, whatever changes we apply now, focus on improving the quality and exchange of statistical data. Thank you.”
Liability for online marketplaces
- “Dear colleagues, as speakers before me, I would like to thank the presidency for introducing the discussion about the critical intersections of energy policy and economic growth. In today's agenda overall, Latvia welcomes the report of Professor Draghi that, among other things, addresses Europe's energy challenges and their implications for competitiveness. We agree with those who sees this report as a call for action and not as an excuse to slow down. We are also currently working on our National Energy Strategy for 2050, and I am delighted to see many elements of it reflected in the report as well. One of them being the connection between energy and competitiveness. I am convinced that by prioritising energy efficiency and investing in renewable sources, we strongly enhance our overall economic resilience. A robust, renewable oriented energy framework is not just a tool to reach our climate target, but it is a cornerstone of a competitive, autonomous and prosperous future for Europe. The EU's competitiveness is driven by its energy grid infrastructure. Currently, when it comes to access to grids, EU, with all its challenges, still holds advantage over both USA and China. I strongly believe that we need to work on strengthening our competitiveness in areas where we already have natural advantages, and in this case, I would mean developing even more stronger grids. The report aptly underscores the pivotal role of strengthening our Greek capacity. Without robust grids and interconnections, fully realizing the potential of renewable energy will prove challenging. Therefore, it is essential to create favourable conditions for the development of cross-border infrastructure. Our primary concern lies in equitable sharing of costs associated with the new interconnection projects. A fair distribution of costs and benefits is paramount for the success of future policy. Frameworks must consider the unique circumstances of member states where production potential exceeds national consumption, particularly those situated at the border of European electricity grid. One of the questions you raised concerns financing. It is important to have more active involvement of member States and European Union in adopting measures that would facilitate availability of capital for investments to different market participants. Additionally, to ensure clear price signals for continuous investment in energy facilities, it is important to be mindful of instruments that distort the functioning of the wholesale market. For example, subsidies delivered with feed in tariffs. Instead, a more inclusive use of long term contracts, state guaranteed if necessary, would provide much needed certainty in the market. Finally, it is worth noting that reports omit several significant elements, including the crucial role of energy efficiency in enhancing competitiveness as well as the role of heating sector. I think these two elements must be taken into account while working on future initiatives, and should not be overlooked when developing a comprehensive strategy to enhance the EU's competitiveness in global markets. Thank you.”
Energy (green transition)
- “Thank you, Madam Chair. Commissioner. Colleagues. Thank you. The presidency for having this discussion. In response to the first question. Amendments to the MFF regulation should be supported. However, such proposal would be already overdue. So we cannot expect a significant breakthrough in the energy transition. It is important to eliminate the administrative burden and unfavorable conditions in engine replacement. The purchase of new fishing vessels must be permitted, and the intensity of support for energy transition must be increased. We believe that greater emphasis on these objectives should be placed in the support for the next programming period 28 to 34. Therefore, the MFF for 2834 must secure significantly higher allocated funding for CFB interventions. The current 62% reduction is insufficient to achieve the objectives. The CFB will not be able to compete with other priority areas within national plans. Given that the viability of national fisheries is directly dependent on CFP conditions, we must not forget that CFP support is also needed for other priorities, not only energy transition, it is high time to significantly reform the CFP, as current policy has led to exorbitant energy transition costs for EU fleet and the planet targets being difficult to achieve. Regarding the second issue, the fisheries and aquaculture alone will not be able to implement the financially costly energy transition.”
Funding for fisheries and aquaculture
- “Thank you, Mr. President. Mr. Commissioner colleagues, thank you to the Hungarian colleagues for starting this discussion. Latvia agrees that vaccination can be a powerful tool for limiting the spread and consequences of animal infectious diseases. However, it can only serve as an addition to the existing biosecurity measures and the surveillance of animal infectious diseases. We cannot allow infectious diseases to create public health concerns and adversely affect trade, budget and competitiveness, both in the member states and the EU internal market. For this purpose, we need both safe vaccines and sufficient EU co-funding. Thank you.”
Animal diseases prevention and management in the EU
- “The ministers. Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, we congratulate the Danish presidency on the progress achieved on the framework program text. And we thank the Cyprus presidency for organizing this timely debate on the remaining critical issues of Fp10. The main issue remaining for the partial general approach concerns pillar two and the Interlinkages to the European Competitiveness Fund. We fear that the existing setup provides too much flexibility to reallocate the collaborative, fundamental research budget to applied research and deployment activities. Researchers also need predictability for which research areas will be funded for the next few years. The Strategic Direction Forward should be co-created between the European Commission and the Member States, and the solution must contain these elements. Programme committees need to be composed of experts with a background in research funding. The budget for low technology readiness level research must be ring fenced, and safeguards are needed to prevent pillar two from being used as a so-called piggy bank for implementing other EU policy priorities. The Spanish proposal of splitting the work programmes could be a way forward. We are also open to exploring other solutions provided they address our underlying concerns regarding other issues requiring political guidance. We support an ambitious widening participation instrument which will contribute to closing the research and innovation gap in Europe. We support allowing dual use research across the framework programme, as well as the funding of defence projects under the European Innovation Council, and the primary beneficiaries of simplification should be applicants, not the European Commission. We would like to see a reduction of the number of partnerships by introducing a quantitative cap in the regulation, and we should also expand the use of lump sum funding. Thank you.”
Research priorities within the EU
- “I would like to thank our German colleague for timely bringing up this [00:17:00] matter. I fully agree with you and can confirm that Latvia will pay close attention to these issues. In these times of geopolitical uncertainty and socio economic challenges, it is important to bear in mind that culture is not only a sector, but also a vector for change, resilience and prosperity. Colleagues culture is helping to achieve the EU's green social and digital transformation goals. The cultural sector will be able to achieve these goals even more effectively if [00:17:30] EU support for culture is better tailored to its specific needs. To conclude, in the context of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, I call for the strengthening of the EU's common position on the inclusion of culture in the UN's summit of the future documents, including by considering the possibility of singling culture out as a separate development goal. Thank you.”
EU and national cultural identities
- “54:32 – 17:56:15): Dear colleagues, Latvia thinks that ETS and Corsia mechanisms are essential tools to facilitate the decarbonization of the aviation sector. At the same time, we would like to highlight the specific geographic and current geopolitical situation of the Baltic States.
For our region, aviation is not only a matter of economic development, but also a question of mobility, connectivity, and security. Following Russia's full scale invasion of Ukraine, the air connectivity of the Baltic States with Europe has become more complicated due to the closure of airspaces of Russia, Belarus and Ukraine and due to increased safety requirements, route extensions and higher operating costs.
In addition to that, the aviation sector is negatively affected by rising fuel prices following the escalation of conflict in The Middle East. As a result, many airlines are already canceling connections with the Baltics or at least they are reducing the frequency of flights.
In such circumstances, additional costs resulting from ETS may disproportionately affect peripheral and geopolitically sensitive areas. Therefore, Latvia calls for the following courses of action. 1st, to continue working on the harmonization of ETS and CORSIA in order to minimize distortions and preserve the competitiveness of European industry.
2nd, provide targeted and temporary support mechanisms for the EU's external border and peripheral regions to ensure the connectivity is maintained and at the same time, policy objectives are, pursued. Thank you for attention.”
Extension of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme · Decarbonisation of aviation sector
- “Thank you. We agree with Germany. The regulation does not seem like simplification and it does not reduce administrative burden. We're talking about the digitalization and simplification. But instead of that we only have more burden for the authorities. The time that will be spent on weighing the fish will also impact the quality of the fishing products. It will be lost resources and these requirements are not adequate when it comes to small scale fishing. It is not this. It is not proportionate and a good use of resources. We would like to emphasize that this is the last time, last minute, where we can correct these issues while we're still discussing everything. We must avoid the situation where the requirements cannot be implemented. In practice, it will create risk for the whole sector, and the fishers might be in the end, not able to fulfil the requirements. The Commission has to act now. Thank you.”
Environmental regulation of fisheries
- “Dear ministers. Dear Commissioner. Let me just start with a small personal experience [00:28:30] to illustrate the resilience and adaptability of the cultural sector. When the Covid 19 crisis started, I was the curator of the Riga International Film Festival, and literally overnight we had to adapt to the restricted format. We had to transition overnight from a full audience filled cinema halls to alternatives that would meet the strict bans and distancing rules. This was extremely challenging, but our success again, again demonstrated that creative people are problem solvers in the most [00:29:00] efficient way, and this capacity should not be abused. Hence, I would like to use this opportunity to thank the Spanish Presidency for having included this topic on our agenda. Covid pandemic outlined social and economic challenges faced by those working in our sector, and I'm here today to share Latvia's responses and plans that have helped us to learn and thrive in order to combat efficiently labour market inequalities in creative professions. Latvia, [00:29:30] already back in 2018, adopted the law on the Status of Creative Persons and Professional Creative Organisations. This law defines the status of creators and professional creative organisations. It also outlines the respective support programme which provides for support for creators in the event of temporary absence of income during sick leave, and support for retired cultural workers to cover medical costs and electricity and heating payments. We are working [00:30:00] intensively to develop a social protection of those creative persons that have been employed under royalty schemes. We are trying to build uniform understanding that would be resilient towards future crisis, and therefore we need to review the EU level, the definitions of creative and cultural professionals. We also need to have comparative data to stimulate facilitated mobility [00:30:30] of creative professionals. It is necessary to assess whether there are obstacles to the cross-border recognition of cultural and creative skills, qualifications and diplomas. This is also relevant in the context of the professional pathway of artists fleeing Ukraine in the EU member states. Finally, I would like to express Latvia's support for a specific status of European artists by providing a common framework for the working conditions of workers in the cultural and creative sectors and setting minimum common [00:31:00] standards. Even though we are not fully aware of how AI can transform culture and its workers, one thing is clear this will happen. Therefore, the Multiannual Budget post 2027 must be designed so that we would empower artists to develop and develop, to develop their skills for a digital age while preserving the value of creativity. We must preserve this. We must preserve royalties. We must preserve [00:31:30] and stimulate contribution of artists for the diversity of European identity. In order to ensure well-being of cultural and creative workers, we must preserve what Europe has gone through hundreds of years. This is our diversity and creativity. Thank you.”
EU and national cultural identities
- “Thank you, Madam Chair. Dear colleagues, Commissioner Latvia appreciates the proposal of the Commission on the recast. It is really in line with the Green Deal. As regards the ambition level, Latvian principle agrees that it is necessary to reduce pollution from the sources currently not covered by the directive agglomerations, collecting systems, overflows, emerging pollutants and individual systems. At the same time, we are concerned that meeting of the new requirements will demand much larger costs than indicated in the impact assessment. That especially concerns extension of the scope to smaller agglomerations and the requirements to collect all domestic wastewaters centrally to reduce collecting systems, overflows and rainwater management, as well as more stringent requirements for nitrogen and phosphorus removal. Therefore, it will be necessary to include national and municipal long term development development measures in the plans, and it will be not possible to meet these new requirements within the timeline foreseen by this proposal. We should take also into account the differences between the climatic, geographic and socio economic situations in different Member States. Therefore, we believe that risk assessment should be provided even even wider also for the solutions regarding this particular directive in sport. In um, it is necessary to um illustrate more clearly the mechanisms, management and scope of the new system. Also, for the creation of a quaternary system and the require it will be difficult to meet the timelines. As regards energy efficiency and energy audits, we are positively inclined towards that, but we are concerned that energy neutrality targets will not be reachable. Therefore, Latvia does not support the target for the large wastewater treatment plants. To be able to produce 100% of energy they need by themselves. That is not realistic in Latvian climatic circumstances. And finally, uh, thank you for this exchange of views. Thank you.”
Water pollution
- “The costs are too high for the private sector. Sufficient public funding and support intensity are necessary Since new energy transition technologies are cross cutting, the transition is most likely to occur simultaneously with other sectors, adapting the new technologies to the specific needs. It is important that any barriers hindering the energy transition are eliminated within the CFP. Adequate public support must be ensured for both innovation, development and knowledge transfer, especially for replacement of old fishing vessels and adaptation of port infrastructure. Regarding the third question, member states can only assume appropriate responsibility if adequate funding is provided. Unfortunately, the current MFF proposal for 2034 does not reflect this. Therefore, I believe that the primary focus at this time should be on ensuring sufficient financial and administrative support for the sector to address the challenges of the coming period, including energy transition. In conclusion, I would like to thank our Italian colleagues for the document. Latvia certainly supports and endorses it. We urge the Commission to take immediate steps to stabilize the very complex situation we find ourselves in. Thank you.”
Funding for fisheries and aquaculture
- “Uh, dear colleagues, Latvia continue to support the ambitious work programme to accelerate the progress on the market integration and supervision package. We are open to consider targeted changes to supervision of Europe's capital markets, where they would add value, promote market consolidation, and reduce Fragmentation. Latvia supports a proportionate approach that maintains a balance of power between national authorities and the ESM, which should focus primarily on promoting supervisory convergence. Any proposals for direct supervision at the European level should be carefully assessed in terms of proportionality and cost efficiency, and compared with alternative solutions such as stronger role for supervision supervisory colleges. While we see the merit in centralised supervision for certain significant cross-border entities, the supervision of smaller entities such as non significant crypto asset service providers should remain at national level for small and medium sized enterprises, proximity, decision making, speed and access to the local market remain crucial. Regarding significant criteria, we suggest defining significance based on volume and asset value rather than relying on group and governing law criteria as a stand alone condition for a European Union level. Significance. The role and involvement of national competent authorities in information sharing and decision making process should be clearly defined within SMEs governance framework. In conclusion, Latvia looks forward to continue discussions and support the ambition to make swift progress in both political and technical levels. Thank you.”
Financial regulation
- “Thank you. Dear Commissioner. Ministers, colleagues, we would like to begin by expressing your gratitude to the presidency for reiterating Re-initiating discussions on the chemical strategy of sustainability. We also extend our appreciation to previous presidencies and commission for their dedicated efforts towards implementing this crucial strategy, particularly the progress made on the CLP regulation, which is soon to be adopted, and the advances with the one substance, one assessment package. The chemical strategy is vital for achieving a high level of protection for both human health and the environment from hazardous chemicals. At the same time, it supports EU strategic autonomy in key sectors of chemical industry and fosters research and innovation. However, it is crucial to review and update strategy's roadmap in light of the global developments since 2020. It includes addressing the related challenges such as rising costs and increasing dependency on external external sources which have become more prominent. We believe it is equally essential to align and coordinate the strategy with other key policies, such as the Zero Pollution Action Act, the European Industrial Industrial Strategy and the Pharmaceutical Strategy, along with EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030. Such coordination is necessary to manage risks effectively and optimise resources as we walk towards a toxic, free environment. Recognising that each strategy is not only important but also feasible to implement. Furthermore, Latvia considers the ongoing reach review to be a critical step forward. Simplifying reach and reducing the administrative burden for all stakeholders should be a priority, ensuring the process is more streamlined and accessible. We would also like to emphasize the strong linkage between the strategy's actions and its supporting mechanisms. Simplified regulatory processes, enhanced collaboration and the use of digital tools will be critical for EU institutions and member States to mitigate delays, accelerate implementation, and ensure the effective delivery of the new tasks. In conclusion, continued collaboration and commitment from all parties will be key to successful implementation of the chemical strategy and sustainability, ultimately safeguarding a sustainable future for us all. Thank you.”
Chemicals regulation
- “Colleagues, first of all, I'd like to welcome the new commission and congratulate them on their new work. I wish you resilience. I will be brief. I'd like to stress that Latvia fully supports the new recommendation and believes that it's sorely needed. Taking into account the account negative trends as regards smoking of the tobacco products and using electronic vaping devices. These problems can be seen not only in Latvia but in the whole EU. I'd like to remind everybody who might question the need for this recommendation that every person has the right to health and to live in clean air and unpolluted environment. Therefore, we believe that it's necessary to act at the EU level to protect the rights of non-smokers, especially vulnerable groups whose health might be endangered. But they are particularly supports extending the recommendation to include restrictions not only on tobacco smoke, but also on vapes coming from heated tobacco and electronic cigarettes. We are proud of our tobacco restriction policy, and we are ready to continue work to protect society from the negative impact of these addictive products. Thank you.”
Smoking regulation
- “(10:47:15 – 10:47:56): You, president. Thank you for giving me the floor. Commissioner colleagues, it's the 1st time I'm participating in a council, so I would like to recall that we have a our work is based on a common responsibility, which is to guarantee effective respect of children's rights throughout the European Union beyond technical and legal considerations, we have to bear and always keep in our minds the fundamental objective. We must always ensure that the child's well-being is the is the overriding in, compass for us. And I would now like to change to Latvian.”
EU policy on victims' compensation rights
- “Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you to Finland for raising this issue for discussion. Latvia has also been facing a sharp rise in the populations of large carnivores of the Eurasian lynx, the grey wolf. Also, brown bears are coming back and reproducing. Also as an invasive species, golden jackals are appearing. Therefore, Latvia supports the prepared document and its contents, which join [00:24:00] the contents of the document, especially the call to review the Habitats Directive. Thank you.”
Nature protection and restoration in the EU
- “Thank you. We agree with Germany. The regulation does not seem like simplification and it does not reduce administrative burden. We're talking about the digitalization and simplification. But instead of that we only have more burden for the authorities. The time that will be spent on weighing the fish will also impact the quality of the fishing products. It will be lost resources and these requirements are not adequate when it comes to small scale fishing. It is not this. It is not proportionate and a good use of resources. We would like to emphasize that this is the last time, last minute, where we can correct these issues while we're still discussing everything. We must avoid the situation where the requirements cannot be implemented. In practice, it will create risk for the whole sector, and the fishers might be in the end, not able to fulfil the requirements. The Commission has to act now. Thank you.”
Environmental regulation of fisheries
- “Thank you, Mr. President. We strongly support the presidency's approach and ambition to accelerate the Council's work on the market integration and supervision package. This will allow for decisive and balanced progress, while maintaining momentum and ensuring that sufficient time is devoted to comprehensive technical discussions. Given the extensive in and interconnected nature of this issue Within the package, we emphasize the importance to focus on those areas and provisions where the targeted adjustments can deliver the most meaningful impact on the proposal's overall objective. We have to create a true single market. We see clear benefits from measures that boost innovations and facilitates the use of DLT solutions, and ensure consistent applications of single rule book, promote supervisory convergence and are in line with simplification, costs and burden reduction agenda. At the same time, further discussions and clarifications are needed to ensure a balanced approach on the supervisory architecture, the governance and resources of the European Securities and Markets Authority and the division of competences between asthma and national competent authorities. When streamlining the European trading venue provisions, it is important to ensure that small and medium sized enterprises can access local financial markets. In conclusion, Latvia shares the ambition to make swift progress on both political and technical level. Thank you very much.”
EU Single Market harmonisation
- “22:59 – 11:24:52): Chairman, thank you very much. Commissioner, colleagues, thank you for giving me the floor. Latvia welcomes reaching the partial general approach on the new justice program for 2028 to 2034, and we look forward to the swift adoption of the MFF at the level of the European Union while respecting the needs and geopolitical reality of the member states. I would like to especially thank my Lithuanian colleague, the esteemed Rita Tamasunie, and her team for bringing forward the updating of historical memory within the justice program as an indispensable part of the single EU area of freedom, security, and justice. Latvia fully agrees on the need to promote a common European historical memory and to prevent the falsification of historical facts that undermine the union area of justice. Our neighboring countries, Russia as well as Belarus, especially in the context of recent history, carried out a blatant distortion of historical facts. As an example, the most controversial date, if not in the world, then surely in the European history, the May 9, when some celebrate the Victory Day, some the Europe Day, whereas in the case of the Baltic states, the 05/09/1945 marks the start of the occupation by the Soviet Union that lasted nearly 50 years. Does the history, go in circles? Is it cyclical? In my view, history will not repeat itself if we will work towards freedom, security, and justice, and respect of rights of all people. Thank you. Safariso?”
EU political integration
- “Thank you. Dear presidency, Latvia welcomes the proposed regulation and its objective to enhance circularity in recycled design and end of the life cycle management. We support the extension of the regulation scope, as well as the measures aimed at improving the quality and increasing the reuse. Reuse of materials. Recovery from cycles. These steps are important for advancing the circular economy and reduction of environmental impact. As a constructive compromise, Latvia endorses the broad definition of post-consumer recycled plastic, regardless of whether its proceed with EU or in third countries if it meets high quality standards. It is essential for us that regulation remains fully aligned with World Trade Organization rules, while ensuring the quality of recycled materials. These contents Latvia can accept the latest proposal from the Polish presidency, allowing for a comprehensive evaluation with two years. We also support the gradual increase in the use of recycled plastic and recycled design, as proposed in the compromise solutions. However, we stress the importance of a realistic transition period to ensure material quality, availability and sufficient time for market adaptation adaptation. While we understand the rationale rationale behind using technical inspection of ownership transfer checkpoints to assess the recycle conditions, we are concerned that mandatory assessment during ownership change could impose an undue administrative burden on EU citizens and businesses. As a compromise, Latvia is prepared to support the general approach while emphasising the need of continued work at this provision in cooperation with the European Parliament. Thank you.”
Energy (green transition)
- “Well thank you chairman. Commissioner. [00:32:30] We would like to thank the Commission for the proposals. We welcome the publication of the proposal on welfare of dogs and cats and their traceability. We are pleased that the EU will have harmonised requirements in this area. As for the new proposal for transport of animals, we hope that it will provide for a sufficiently clear and unambiguous legal framework without hampering the functioning of the EU's internal market. Latvia is skeptical, though, about the prohibition of long journeys. We believe that the use of introduction of new technologies, also clear and science based requirements and criteria, is the right solution to maintain this mode of transport for countries that are far away from their export markets. We are ready to start working on the examination of this proposal in the Council. Thank you.”
EU requirements on animal welfare for farmers
- “Thank [00:25:00] you. And we thank the Commission for the draft regulation. The new genomic techniques globally are on the rise. We can safely assume that in the future there will be more and more products that are created by using this method. Actually, this these methods are the future of agriculture and food industry. We're speaking about real benefits, plants that are more disease resistant plants with higher nutritional value and less susceptible to [00:25:30] the environmental and climate change. Now, plants cultivated by using such methods could also significantly contribute towards the Green Deal with their cultivation will be more efficient, reducing the use of PCBs as well as water and fertilizers. And simultaneously it will ensure food security for the ever growing population. So naturally that in view of these considerations, the EU cannot sit this one out and we need our own appropriate regulation. It's a matter of our competitiveness, especially now that some of [00:26:00] our trade partners already are using these techniques and products. Having said that, we also need to be mindful of the risks. We need to be absolutely certain that the plants produced with those methods pose no threat to the environment, ecosystems and human health. And to be 100% certain that the best approach would be the principle of precaution by individually assessing each newly created plant. We will be able to fully prevent the possible risks. In conclusion, the draft regulation [00:26:30] is quite complex and will require the expert involvement and after that, also at the ministerial level. We are ready for more in-depth discussions here. Thank you.”
New Genomic Techniques
- “Thank you Commissioner. Thank you president. Dear colleagues. Let me begin by thanking the presidency for this discussion. We share the deep concerns for the future of the EU's fisheries sector. Regrettably, we must express our disappointment with the Commission's proposed approach to include elements of the CFP and maritime policy into a single EU fund, alongside other policy areas. We cannot support this. Integrating these distinct sectors under one financial instrument with other resource intensive policies, poses a significant risk of insufficient resources being allocated for vital support programmes of the fisheries and maritime policies. We also believe that the administrative burden will increase. We firmly believe that the CFP must remain a separate targeted support policy dedicated to the sustainability of fisheries, aquaculture and other aquatic sectors. The CFP must have clearly earmarked allocations with the EU budget. The financial envelope should be at least equivalent to the current one. Only then can we meet the ambitions of the CFP and honour our commitments, including under initiatives like the Ocean Pact. We also urge the Commission to provide a clear timeline for the development of the CFP regulation. References to a future CFP already appear in published proposals, which suggests a new legal framework is being planned. This work should begin without delay. Finally, let me underline one more essential point. Alongside enhancing the competitiveness of the fisheries sector, it's important to develop coastal communities and areas. Support measures should cover broader development needs of these communities. Thank you.”
Funding for fisheries and aquaculture
- “Madam president, the presidency. Colleagues, I would like to thank the presidency for your determined efforts in finding solutions and compromises in order to reach a balanced outcome. The presidency has carefully listened to our concerns, and we appreciate the amendments made, [00:51:30] the concerning extensions of deadlines which are justified by national implementation programmes. We also sympathise with the Member States, which have welcomed additional flexibilities regarding the scope of the new requirements. Regarding articles nine, eight, nine and ten, Latvia in general can support the creation of extended producer responsibility system. However, neither Latvia nor other countries have previously established the EPR system in the field of wastewater management. We would like to get [00:52:00] more information regarding the implementation, financing and operation of such system. Therefore, we are looking forward to the exchange of information, experience and best practices to be organised by the Commission. We share the concerns of other Member States regarding the application of the EPR system to medicinal products for human use, and the possible impact on prices and accessibility of these products. We understand that Member States want extra flexibility here. In addition, we have serious [00:52:30] concerns about the amount of investments that will be necessary for the implementation of this directive without prejudging the next MFF post 2027. We must keep in mind the enormous future costs that will be needed to ensure that the infrastructure can fulfil the requirements of this directive.
[00:52:48] It is very important that the Commission considers national implementation programmes of the Member States when preparing the next Multiannual Financial Framework, as [00:53:00] indicated in recital 31. To conclude, we would like to draw your attention to the most crucial remaining issue, which is causing us great concerns. The current provisions in article 11 para two, stipulating that only a maximum of 30% of energy may be purchased from external sources. These provisions are very difficult for Latvia to accept. We have repeatedly expressed support to increase the energy efficiency of wastewater management sector and to the use of renewable [00:53:30] energy resources. However, we still believe that energy neutrality provisions regarding the energy to be produced by urban wastewater plant operators and energy to be purchased from external sources, these should be based on energy audits rather than a fixed percentage. We understand the importance of this proposal, which should guide the development of the wastewater management sector in the coming decades, and also in the spirit of compromise, we can accept presidency's proposal [00:54:00] and agree on the general approach. At the same time, please take note that we will issue a statement outlining our position and remaining concerns regarding energy neutrality provisions. We are looking forward to inclusive and constructive discussions in the Trilogues with the European Parliament. Thank you and good luck.”
Water pollution
- “And dear chair, dear colleagues. Latvia. Support balanced and pragmatic EU industrial policy that strengthens both traditionally strong sectors as well as new industries. Eu policies must be better aligned with diverse economic and industrial structures of the member states and their regions. We call for pragmatic and regionally tailored approach that builds on local strengths, especially in areas such as agriculture, forestry, food sectors where Latvia sees strong bioeconomy and biotechnology potential. To fully unlock the twin transition, we need targeted investments in infrastructure, clean technologies, skills and affordable energy. At the same time, decarbonisation goals must remain realistic and flexible, ensuring that industry industry transformation does not undermine economic resilience. Latvia supports competitiveness roadmap, but calls for simpler and more coordinated EU funding instruments, as well as reduction of administrative burden and in addressing missing infrastructure and supply chain challenges is also crucial. Thank you.”
Energy (green transition)
- “Thank you. We agree with Germany. The regulation does not seem like simplification and it does not reduce administrative burden. We're talking about the digitalization and simplification. But instead of that we only have more burden for the authorities. The time that will be spent on weighing the fish will also impact the quality of the fishing products. It will be lost resources and these requirements are not adequate when it comes to small scale fishing. It is not this. It is not proportionate and a good use of resources. We would like to emphasize that this is the last time, last minute, where we can correct these issues while we're still discussing everything. We must avoid the situation where the requirements cannot be implemented. In practice, it will create risk for the whole sector, and the fishers might be in the end, not able to fulfil the requirements. The Commission has to act now. Thank you.”
Environmental regulation of fisheries
- “In practice, it duplicates mechanisms that already exist in response to the second question. Under the proposed financing financing system, this will only partially protect Cap funding. It will be impossible to clearly foresee ability to achieve Caps objectives. Implementation of all Caps measures on maintenance of the conditions for the level playing field. The Cap proposal sets ambitious goals, but there is no corresponding budget for countries with a small cap financial envelope such as Latvia. Under the current conditions, even at the minimum average debit rate, 61% of the Ringfenced budget would have to be devoted solely to Derby's support. This would significantly reduce the funds available for other Cup interventions. On the one hand, it's possible that there is no longer mandatory ring fencing for member states regarding Cup environmental and climate targets, but instead a common 43% target for the national reform plan. This gives flexibility. However, there are concerns about maintaining a level playing field for competition. It's not clear how the commission intends to determine each member state's contribution to the environmental and climate target. The co-financing conditions also pose additional risks to maintaining equal competitive conditions. Taking all this into account, we view critically the Cap's planned broad list of mandatory measures and requirements to be implemented. We believe that, as before, member states must retain flexibility to choose the support measures that best fit their national circumstances. And finally, I would like to emphasise that we are critical of the proposed mandatory nature of Cap recommendations. They should remain recommendations as before.”
Agricultural funding
- “I also believe it is necessary to ensure a consistency between the Cap and the recommendations of the European Semester, avoiding duplication and guaranteeing consistency. Unfortunately, we are not convinced that the Scip recommendations will be sufficient tool to help us nationally secure the necessary resources from the Non-distributed funds to the plan, such as rural development and food processing, in competition with other policies. Rural areas should also be strengthened in the framework of the six priority. As regards the third question, the timeframe is confusing in that regard. On the other hand, we appreciate timely work on the preparation of recommendations. On the other hand, also, there are still too many unknowns pending agreement on the substance and financial aspects of the MFF. The recommendation should therefore only be approved after the final decisions on Multiannual Financial Framework, which can have a significant impact on the outcome. We look forward to the first discussion with the Commission on the recommendations. We expect structured involvement of Member States throughout the process, and we are open to the consecutive dialogue. We, um, we support The specific conditions of the Cap and the CFB must be quantitatively discussed and designed in line with the objectives of the policies. Furthermore, the transfer of articles should take place in a more comprehensible and transparent manner. Thank you.”
Agricultural funding
- “Sorry. Thank you. Stephanie. Dear colleagues, I would like to express my gratitude for the Danish presidency for this dedicated work as well as to the previous ones, for their efforts in moving the negotiations forward. The negotiations on this proposal have taken several years. However, this time was necessary to strike a reasonable balance between environmental objectives and economic realities, as well as between the needs of our people and industries and the requirements of public revenue. In Latvia, we apply limited tax exemptions to energy products and electricity. Therefore, the issue of rates and exemptions, together with the proposal approaches to future challenges and harmonisation has been particularly sensitive for us. We welcome the constructive support during the negotiations on the compromise proposal, particularly in shaping appropriate solutions for biomass. At the same time, it may be worth recalling that during the negotiations, Latvia expressed concerns about exemptions on certain products, as well as about the mechanism for the automatic indexation of the minimum level of rates. We acknowledge that the latest compromise proposal represents an effort to address Latvia's concerns regarding indexation mechanism, alongside the diverse concerns raised by other member states. Allow me to briefly recall the Latvia expressed concerns about potential impact on consumers in 20, 38 and years to come. The indexation mechanism may have a significant impact on member states, particularly when its economic situation prevents rates from being raised above the minimum levels. Concerns have been further amplified by the implications of EST, ST2 regulation and unpredictable future, as we need to approach the conclusion of our work in the spirit of compromise. Latvia supports the latest compromise text. Thank you.”
Energy (green transition)
- “Thank you. Chair. Latvia recognizes the rapid growth of e-commerce and e-commerce introduces new risks and supervisory challenges, particularly in monitoring individual shipments, which can be resource intensive and inefficient. We believe that solutions must be effective, risk based, and leverage leverage digital tools, including automated checks, enhanced laboratory capacities, and rapid testing methods to ensure safe and informed use of e-commerce. We need targeted measures to strengthen staff expertise, enhance digital skills and educate consumers. Latvia considers that the current EU regulatory framework, including the DSA and the Market Surveillance, Regulation and General Product Safety Regulation, is sufficient if fully applied. Any new legislation should only be developed after thorough impact assessment to avoid overregulation and to maintain the EU competitiveness in a global market. Thank you.”
Liability for online marketplaces
- “Thank you. What matters? The coastal fishing sector is very important to us, as it is closely linked to the development and sustainability of life in our coastal regions. This is why we oppose excessive requirements for this sensitive low impact fleet segment, which are often disproportionate. It is clear that at the regulatory level, the administrative burden must be significantly reduced so that our fishermen can actually fish instead of thinking about complying with the myriad of requirements. Similarly, small scale coastal fishing requires public support that stimulates development. Unfortunately, the current MFF proposal for 2034 is absolutely insufficient for the sector to thrive and survive. We must make serious investments in increasing the added value of catches and in innovative solutions, as well as devote greater attention to addressing the long standing seal and cormorant problems, including promotion, promotion of popularity of fishing. Only in this way will we preserve coastal fisheries for future generations as a sustainable and viable sector. Thank you.”
Funding for fisheries and aquaculture
- “Thank you. Marcus. Latvia welcomes the objective of the supplementary pension package. Both the commission recommendations and the legislative changes. This is an opportunity to channel more savings into productive long term investments. Our national framework already broadly complies with the recommendations. We are continuing to improve pension tracking systems and pension dashboards. New pension products and strengthened prudent person principle could facilitate sustainability of pension systems in the face of demographic change. When it comes to amendment of European Union legislative acts, we welcome the objectives to increase competition, improve the availability and returns of pension products that provide value for money. At the same time, when discussing issues of direct taxation, the legislative procedure under which the Council adopts decisions unanimously must be respected. Thank you.”
EU policy on aging workforce and pensions
- “Madam president, madam Commissioner, colleagues, today I have only one message. I would like to emphasise the critical need for an agreement on electricity market design reform. Our [00:39:30] energy landscape is rapidly evolving and the transformation to a decarbonised system is a goal we all share. It is imperative that we take urgent action on elements within this reform to ensure a sustainable future for our energy sector. It is time to introduce reforms that support transition to decarbonised systems. These reforms should serve dual purpose benefiting consumers while protecting them from price spikes and creating more efficient, sustainable and competitive electricity market that [00:40:00] benefits both consumers and the environment. Current proposal addresses both of these issues. I am also pleased to see that the proposal reflects current market conditions, allowing for a favourable environment for investment in renewables. This means that the introduction of state support should be a voluntary measure. Moreover, we must be mindful of the state aid mechanisms we apply to energy sector. The market signals should be allowed to drive sustainable and economically logical green transformation. The [00:40:30] deduction of any market intervention, even at the consumer level, must be done with a clear plan on how we will return to unhindered market environment. In conclusion, our common goal is to create electricity market that fosters renewable energy objectives, benefits consumers and respects the market itself. So today, it is a great opportunity to finalize negotiations and make meaningful progress towards our shared vision. With this, I want to reiterate Latvia's support for the proposed [00:41:00] compromise, as well as our readiness to cooperate to achieve common agreement. Thank you.”
EU approach to electricity market and prices
- “Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Lady Commissioner colleagues. We are grateful to the Portuguese colleagues for raising this important issue. The revision of the Legislative Act has to aim for a high level of animal welfare. It has to promote trade. It should not be aimed at banning. Or limiting certain type of transport. The animal transport requirements already now are quite high in Latvia. Transportation is only allowed if no breaches are detected. I am convinced that within the scope of the revision of the legislation, we will manage to come up with requirements that help maintain the competitiveness of EU farmers. The rules have to envisage clear and strict requirements for organisers of transport for the whole duration of transport, including for export to third countries. Thank you.”
EU requirements on animal welfare for farmers