On Wednesday, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis met with Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics, who is on an official visit to Greece, at Megaros Maximos.

During the meeting, they discussed strengthening bilateral relations and addressing common challenges faced by Greece and Latvia, such as immigration and its instrumentalization. They emphasized the importance of protecting European borders and managing migration flows effectively.

The leaders also discussed European and international issues, focusing on the latest developments in Ukraine, in preparation for the upcoming NATO Summit in Washington (July 9-11), which marks the 75th anniversary of NATO’s founding.

Strengthening European Defense

In this context, Mitsotakis and Rinkevics highlighted the need to bolster European defense. Mitsotakis informed the Latvian president about his joint initiative with Polish counterpart Donald Tusk to create a European air defense shield, to be funded with European resources. He reiterated the necessity of strengthening the European defense industry.

“Mr. President, it is my pleasure to welcome you to Athens. I have fond memories of my visit to Riga last summer. I am particularly pleased that we have built stronger and more meaningful bilateral relations in recent years. The geopolitical challenges we face in Europe today require stronger cooperation on many fronts. I look forward to identifying additional areas of cooperation during this visit,” said Mitsotakis at the beginning of the meeting.

Warm Hospitality and Mutual Cooperation

“Thank you very much, Mr. Prime Minister. It’s great to be here in Athens. As I joked with the President of the Republic and the President of the Parliament, we enjoy not just warm, but really warm hospitality. Our two countries have very good and friendly relations both bilaterally and in terms of EU and NATO issues. Next week, we will be in Washington for the NATO Summit to discuss security, regional security, both east and south, and support for Ukraine. I believe that all EU and NATO member countries should work together to address serious security challenges, continue to support Ukraine, and address security challenges in the Middle East. Our two countries face similar challenges in their neighborhood, including immigration used as a tool of hybrid warfare. There are many issues to discuss, but in terms of bilateral cooperation, we must increase trade transactions and deal with the economy and trade relations,” noted the President of Latvia.