Latvia - Foreign policy

Because of its size and location, Latvia places great faith in multilateral organizations to preserve its independence and increase its prosperity. Latvia joined the EU in April 2003 and is a member of the United Nations (UN), the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank, the Council of Europe, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE), and the Nordic Council. Latvia was one of the founding members of the Council of Baltic Sea States. Close economic and political cooperation with the West, particularly the Scandinavian countries, is a major goal. Long-term policy goals shared by all major political parties includes full membership in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

Russia will always have a significant influence on Latvia by virtue of its political, economic, and military presence. Although Russia completed its troop withdrawal in August 1994, relations between the two nations remain strained. Despite repeated findings by impartial investigations that the human rights of ethnic Russians are not being violated, the Russian government continues to accuse Latvia of committing such violations. The repeated accusations have tarnished Latvia's international reputation. The two countries signed a border treaty in October 1997 once Latvia dropped its claim to land annexed by the USSR in 1944. However, that treaty has not been ratified by the Russian Parliament and thus not yet implemented.

Latvian governments in the post-Soviet era have consistently sought admission to NATO. Russian leaders object strenuously, however, and Western leaders fear offending Russia. Though, it appeared that all of the former Soviet republics, including Latvia, faced difficulty in receiving an invitation to join, Latvia did receive an invitation to join in November 2002 at the Prague Summit.

The three Baltic states have ceased to cooperate as they did in their struggle to leave the Soviet Union. They have not coordinated their foreign policies to a beneficial degree and have fallen into disputes amongst themselves. Latvia and Estonia have quarreled over fishing rights in the Baltic Sea. While a significant sea border dispute between Lithuania and Latvia has been resolved, questions about possible oil exploration rights remain.

There have, however, been some areas of cooperation. In 1993, all three Baltic States signed a free trade agreement, abolishing tariffs on most nonagricultural goods and establishing common customs and visa regulations. In 1994, the three countries declared a free trade area for industrial goods effective in the Baltic States.