Very soon, from 28 May to 1 June, Latvia is going to welcome the participants of the Spring Session of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly (PA). Once again hundreds of prominent foreign politicians will convene in Riga, and Latvia’s name will resound in the international arena. Hosting such an international event will raise Latvia’s international prestige and confirm our organisational ability. The event will also help to boost our economy.

More important than the benefits for Latvia in terms of economy and prestige will be the expected contribution of the NATO PA Riga Session to further development of the Alliance. During more than 60 years of its existence, as an added value to the military defence, NATO has also developed a powerful and value-based security dimension. In the course of years, reports at the Parliamentary Assembly and related debates have become more multifaceted and research based. One might say that the NATO PA has become NATO’s think tank.

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.

Participants of the Riga Session of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly (PA) at the end of May will donate valuable books on NATO and defence as a gift to our state and the Latvian National Library.

“The contemporary world is facing numerous threats; however, educated individuals, those who understand the situation and can take care of themselves, will always be more secure. The more informed one is, the more security one has. Therefore, sharing information on the largest global security organisation, which has been protecting us since 2004, is a symbolically powerful idea. This information includes the military aspects of NATO, as well as its civilian dimension – cybersecurity, energy and economics issues. Many people don’t even know that these subjects constitute a significant part of NATO’s daily agenda,” points out Mrs. Vaira Paegle, head of the Latvian delegation to the NATO PA.

Mrs. Vaira Paegle acknowledges that it will be a significant contribution to the stock of the Latvian National Library, which currently has more than 100 books devoted to NATO. According to the information provided by the Library, the majority of these books have been acquired after the renewal of Latvia’s independence, namely in the 1990’s. The Library has a larger number of books on the history of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation than on the organisation’s current development.

Media representatives wishing to report on the NATO Parliamentary Assembly (PA)  Riga Session will need special accreditation. Application forms will be accepted until 10 May 2010.

In order to apply for the accreditation, media representatives must electronically fill in the application form and send it, together with their digital photograph by e-mail to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . After the application forms have been examined, the Secretariat of the NATO PA Riga Session will inform the applicants about the further procedure.

We kindly ask media representatives to familiarise themselves with the information on accreditation and security and internal rules during the NATO PA Riga Session.

The NATO PA 2010 Spring Session in Riga will be held from 28 May to 1 June at the Kipsala International Exhibition Centre.