On Monday, 24 May, members of the Foreign Affairs Committee and European Affairs Committee of the Saeima and cadets of the United States Military Academy at West Point met to discuss how Latvia’s national interests are represented in the European Union and NATO.

When reporting on Latvia’s involvement in the work of international organisations, Mrs. Vaira Paegle, Chairperson of the European Affairs Committee and Head of the Latvian delegation to the NATO PA, stressed that currently the focus is on NATO-related subjects because the Spring Session of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly will begin in Riga on May 28. In order to jointly discuss the future of the Alliance and new global security threats, hundreds of parliamentarians from NATO member states and associate countries will convene in Riga.

At 9:00 this morning temporary border control was reimposed on the borders of Latvia with Schengen Area countries. Border guards carry out minimal security checks of all people entering Latvia.

No cars have lined up in queues to enter Latvia from Estonia or Lithuania.

Officers of the immigration units of the State Border Guard have intensified monitoring of the areas close to Latvian borders with Estonia and Lithuania.

During the Riga Session of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, foreign guests will receive special gifts which in various ways will reflect our county’s history.

“Delegates to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly will stay in Riga for only five days, and we wish during this short time to acquaint them with at least a small part of our history,” reports Mrs. Vaira Paegle, Head of the Latvian delegation to the NATO PA. “This year we celebrated the 20^th anniversary since the Declaration on the Renewal of Latvia’s Independence was promulgated, and we plan to present our guests with symbolic gifts which tell about 4 May 1990, a date that is very significant for Latvia,” continues Mrs. Paegle.

On Sunday, 23 May, the winners of the Saeima-organised photo contest My Secure Latvia went on a tour aboard the warship Varonis of the Latvian Naval Forces in the Bay of Riga.

The staff and logistics ship Varonis took on board for the trip seven young photographers from Riga, as well as from Talsi, Aknīste, Zilupe, Dundaga, and Limbaži. Contest winners were pleasantly surprised to find out that they could sail on a real warship. The young people were unanimous in stating that taking part in the contest was not hard and that their own initiative and creative thinking were needed for that.

In order to be on time for the trip, Violeta Bule, a 10^th-grade schoolgirl at Zilupe Secondary School, woke up at 3 a.m. She was happy to acknowledge that taking part in the contest gave her a wonderful chance not only to sail on a warship but simply to visit Riga, which she does not manage to do more often than a couple times a year.