Honourable guests!

I am gratified that Latvia has undertaken to organise the NATO Parliamentary Assembly’s 2010 Spring Session in Riga. It is a great honour for our country to welcome representatives of the world’s strongest military alliance and its co-operation partners from all around the world. Hundreds of influential politicians will visit Latvia; NATO officials, accompanying persons and journalists will come to Riga. I am confident that in carrying out this task, we will acquit ourselves honourably; moreover, it will be a wonderful opportunity for Latvia to show itself as a reliable ally, successful organiser and, of course, hospitable country.

We have drafted the programme of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly’s 2010 Spring Session in such a way that our guests, after intense work, discussions and adoption of serious decisions, can also familiarise themselves with Latvia. We have planned to show our guests not only Riga but also other cities in Latvia and to acquaint them with our most remarkable and beautiful sites, as well as with Latvian culture and traditions. We will try to do our best to ensure that participants of the NATO Session will leave our country not only with a feeling of satisfaction after work well done but also with knowledge of Latvia’s history and first-hand experience of our country’s beauty, cultural richness and people’s sincerity.

On 29 March 2009, Latvia marked the 5^th anniversary of being a full-fledged NATO member state. It is a genuine pleasure that during these years our partners in the North Atlantic Alliance have evaluated Latvia as an ally that can be trusted and that is capable of carrying out responsible tasks. Latvia’s successful membership in NATO is confirmed both by the fact that Latvian soldiers responsibly fulfil tasks entrusted to them in the international mission in Afghanistan and by our ability to organise the Meeting of NATO Heads of State and Government in Riga in 2006.

I am convinced that the NATO Parliamentary Assembly’s Spring Session in Riga will be an important event in the development of this organisation and that it will help to strengthen security and stability in Europe and the rest of the world.

Welcome to the website of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly’s 2010 Spring Session!

Welcome to Latvia!