The Latvian government will extend the period for Russian citizens residing in the country to pass a Latvian language examination, LETA reports. The government instructed the Ministry of Interior to prepare amendments that would allow Russian citizens to apply for temporary residence permits for two years, during which time they would have to take the…
New electric trains in Latvia will not start carrying passengers before November 2023, state-owned passenger train operator Pasazieru Vilciens (PV) announced, LSM reports. Initially, the trains were supposed to be running in January 2023. Representatives of Czechia’s Skoda Group explained that the coronavirus pandemic and the war in Ukraine had disrupted the production and delivery…
Latvia’s greenhouse gas emissions rose by 7.5% in the first quarter of 2023, compared to the same period of 2022, according to Eurostat data, LSM reports. The increase was the second highest in the EU. Overall greenhouse gas emissions in the whole EU decreased by nearly 3% over a year.
The European Commission (EC) demands hundreds of thousands of euros in fines from Estonia for late implementation of two EU directives, ERR reports. Estonia has failed to transpose the so-called whistleblower directive into national law by December 2021. Also, the EC has initiated infringement procedures against Estonia over the European Competition Network (ECN+) directive, which…
The three Baltic States have joined the G7’s Declaration of Support for Ukraine, ERR reports. The declaration aims to provide Ukraine with sustained political, military, financial, and economic assistance through bilateral agreements. Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas, Latvian Prime Minister Krisjanis Karins, and Lithuanian Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte expressed their “unwavering support” for Ukraine until…
The prime ministers of the three Baltic States have signed a joint declaration to speed up the synchronisation of the Baltic power grids with the continental European network, ERR reports. Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas said that the Baltic States would disconnect from the Russian-controlled BRELL system as soon as it was technically possible. She…
The Baltic electricity transmission system operators have signed an agreement on the synchronisation of the Baltic power grids with the continental European system, The Baltic Times reports. Under the agreement, Estonia’s Elering, Latvia’s Augstsprieguma Tikls (AST), and Lithuania’s Litgrid will disconnect from the Russian-controlled BRELL system and connect to the continental European grid in February…
The European Commission (EC) has criticised Estonia and Lithuania for failing to transpose an EU directive on the rights of child suspects properly into national legislation, BNS reports. The EC opened an infringement procedure by sending a formal notice for failure to transpose the EU directive on procedural safeguards for children suspected or accused of…
Latvia’s State Security Service (VDD) is investigating whether the decision of Latvian gas company Latvijas Gaze’s shareholder meeting to pay dividends to one of the company’s owners, Itera Latvija, violates EU sanctions on Russia, LETA reports, citing TV3. VDD stressed that providing financial resources to sanctioned entities, directly or indirectly, was prohibited. Latvijas Gaze insisted…