Child agency Latvijas Institūts | Website www.mfa.gov.lv | |
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Jurisdiction Latvia and its diplomatic missions worldwide Headquarters K. Valdemara street 3, Riga Agency executives Edgars Rinkēvičs, Minister of Foreign Affairs
Andrejs Pildegovičs, State Secretary
Zanda Kalniņa-Lukaševica, Parliamentary Secretary | ||
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Latvian: Latvijas Republikas Ārlietu ministrija) is responsible for maintaining the Republic of Latvia's external relations and the management of its international diplomatic missions. The actual Minister of Foreign Affairs is Edgars Rinkēvičs, a member of the Reform Party and former State Secretary within Latvia's Ministry of Defence.
Diplomacy
The ministry directs Latvia's affairs with foreign entities, including bilateral relations with individual nations and its representation in international organizations, including the United Nations, European Union, Council of Europe, NATO, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, the International Monetary Fund, the World Trade Organization, and its participation in the Schengen Area. It oversees visas, cooperation with expatriates, international human rights policy, transatlantic defense policy and various global trade concerns. The ministry also contributes to Latvia's international trade and economic development, in collaboration with the Ministry of Economics (Latvia) and the Investment and Development Agency of Latvia.