Latvia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs was able to save EUR 180 000 by closing its general consulate in St. Petersburg, the consulate in Pskov, the embassy’s consular office in Moscow and chancellery in Kaliningrad. This money will be diverted towards covering costs of missions.
The government in Latvia approved the ministry’s proposal to divert state budget appropriations «in order to cover the rapidly growing costs of missions and official visits and to reasonably use funding provided by the state budget».
To explain the increase of costs, the ministry stresses that
the ministry’s representatives now meet with experts and officials representing security policy and other topics related to foreign policies more often.
According to the ministry, this is necessary so that the institution is able to secure Latvia’s interests in foreign and defence policy during the Russian-Ukrainian war. This means establishing and maintaining contacts in Europe, North Africa, as well as African, Middle East, Asian and Latin American countries, where opinions about the situation are often formed under Russia’s influence.
The ministry also explains that it is necessary to expand missions to far-away regions in order to «reduce Russian disinformation and increase support for international community’s push against the Russian aggression».