Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkēvičs.

(Retrieved from Linkeviches Facebook)

[Reporter Yang Chengyu/Taipei Report] Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkēvičs recently attended the joint meeting of the Foreign Affairs Committee and the European Affairs Committee of the Latvian Parliament and explained the "Foreign Minister's Annual Report" to members of Congress.

Linkevichs, who has been in office for more than 11 years, pointed out that China's continuous show of force in the South China Sea, especially targeting Taiwan, poses risks to regional stability.

Regarding Russia's aggression against Ukraine, Linkevichs also pointed out that China's avoidance of condemning the incident is another "worrying signal."

According to the relevant regulations of the Latvian Congress, the Minister of Foreign Affairs must submit an annual work report approved by the Prime Minister before January 16.

In December last year, Linkevichs proposed a draft of the "Annual Report of the Minister of Foreign Affairs on the Completed and Planned Activities of the National Foreign Policy and EU Affairs in 2022" and reported it to members of Congress.

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In the section "Prospects for China-China Relations", Linkevichs pointed out that China is constantly trying to strengthen its global political and economic influence and criticizes the West's position based on universal values; in addition, China continues to show its force in the South China Sea, especially against Taiwan, a risk to regional stability.

China's avoidance of condemning Russia for its aggression in Ukraine was another "worrying signal".

The Chinese government is also increasingly authoritarian internally, including systematic violations of human rights, especially in Xinjiang.

Linkeviches believes that under the above circumstances, it is very important for Latvia to continue to adopt the EU approach, regarding China as a cooperative partner, economic competitor and systemic opponent; in addition, it is also necessary to defend the EU's economic interests and achieve equal access to China Market rights, and oppose China's use of economic coercion as a political tool against individual EU member states, which in turn affects the EU common market as a whole.

In addition, call on China to take a firmer and more responsible stance on the war waged by Russia.

Latvia agrees with the need to develop a constructive relationship with China, especially in addressing climate change, non-proliferation of nuclear weapons and promoting stability in the Indo-Pacific region, Linkevices said, but is also aware of the growing gap between Chinese and EU values expand.

Latvia will work with NATO allies to review China's influence on international security and the development of China's strategic partnership with Russia.

Linkeviches also mentioned that Latvia will withdraw from the "China-Central and Eastern European Countries Cooperation" mechanism in 2022 (Note: the original abbreviation is 17+1, Lithuania will take the lead in withdrawing in May 2021 and then become 16+1. On August 11, 2022, Latvia and Estonia withdrew one after another, leaving 14+1) because it did not meet the strategic goals of Latin America.

At the same time, however, Latvia is also ready to develop a constructive and open bilateral relationship with China, evaluate bilateral cooperation opportunities based on the principle of mutual benefit, and does not shy away from talking about issues where the two sides have fundamentally different positions.

Linkevices said that in view of China's growing ambitions to change the world order by offering different security and global development models, from the perspective of Latvia's interests, the common denominator for the EU to find the best cooperation model with China will be essential; and such a model must be based on solidarity, defense of fundamental universal values, ability to ensure economic independence and defense of self-interest, and a willingness to seek consensus on issues in which China must participate.

Russia launched a war against Ukraine on February 24 last year and has continued to this day. Regarding the issue of arms control, Linkevichs criticized Russia for a long time in ignoring the international trust mechanism and its obligations.

And China continues to develop strategic weapons systems while avoiding arms control, disarmament and non-proliferation mechanisms.

Latvia, together with its allies and like-minded countries, emphasized that China must shoulder the same responsibilities as nuclear powers and fully participate in the arms control mechanism, and will continue to advocate for this.