The delegation of Latvian Saeima deputies led by opposition politician Ainārs Šlesers to China, which was paid for by this country, was also accompanied by multiple businessmen that have close ties to Šlesers family business, as reported by LTV programme De facto.
According to the programme, the visit was not approved by the Saeima or coordinated with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This is why there is confusion as to whether or not this trip could be considered a prohibited gift from the Chinese government. Some of the businessmen that travelled to China with the delegation from the Latvian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LTRK) have close ties to Šlesers family business.
The delegation included five members of Šlesers’ political party Latvia in First Place (LPV), two members of the National Alliance (Aleksandrs Kiršteins and Edmunds Teirumnieks), as well as Viktorija Pleškāne from For Stability political party.
The delegation of businessmen for which, according to politicians, “China opened its doors” included Ainārs Šlesers’ son Edvards Šlesers, who represented Riga Port. The company was also represented by its board member Miķelis Lapše. The trip to China also included Riga Port Group company Baltijas tranzīta serviss board chairman Ivars Sormulis, who is also the company’s co-owner and a business partner to Šlesers family.
In total LTRK organised a 17-person delegation. From the very beginning the organisation has said that Šlesers was the one who approached LTRK President Aigars Rostovskis with the idea. However, it was later clarified that Rostovskis was approached by the Chinese ambassador.
Šlesers also previously mentioned that the 11-day trip was paid for by the Chinese government.
Šlesers did not submit an official application to the Saeima Praesidium with a request to support this visit. Participating Saeima deputies did not submit requests for a mission either.
Šlesers also approached other Saeima deputies to go on this trip to China to promote cooperation with this country’s parliament, but they refused. “I’m not against maintaining contacts and, perhaps, visiting countries that are not our allies, because we need to maintain diplomatic channels. But they have to be appropriately organised, their goals have to be clearly presented and they have to go through the cooperation group, the praesidium, they have to be discussed with security services and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This would be the correct way,” Ervins Labanovskis explains his refusal to participate in the visit to China.
“The riskiest and the most confusing factor in this is the conflict of interests, because, I believe, it is rather unacceptable for Latvian parliamentarians to visit a country at the expense of other countries,” said Saeima deputy Līga Kļaviņa (Union of Greens and Farmers).
It is likely the Corruption Prevention and Combating Bureau will look into this case and whether or not participants of the trip accepted any gifts from the Chinese government.
While members of Šlesers’ political party are united in their support of this trip, members of the National Alliance are divided on this. NA representative in the Saeima Praesidium Jānis Grasbergs stresses that his faction colleagues will not be able to justify their absence. Saeima Foreign Affairs Committee’s Chairman Rihards Kols adds – if members of the party had informed their colleagues of their intent to travel to China, the faction would have turned them down, but the party knew nothing about it.
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