Latvian Ambassador presents credentials to international organisations in Vienna

Nils Jansons, Latvian Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the UN, the OSCE and other international organisations in Vienna, concluded his accreditation visits to these institutions on 22 January.

On 15 January, the Ambassador presented his letters of credence to Antonio Maria Costa, the Executive Director of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime. At their meeting, Mr Jansons emphasised that in the UN Latvia has gradually shifted from being a relief recipient to a state that offers experience and assistance to its partners. 

During the introductory meeting with Marc Perrin de Brichambaut, the OSCE Secretary General, on 17 January, both officials assessed the role of the OSCE as a forum for political dialogue between its member states which gives the opportunity to discuss difficult and controversial issues as well, for example, the significance of the Kosovo solution or the future of the Conventional Armed Forces in Europe Treaty (CFE). The Ambassador accentuated Latvia's support for an active OSCE role in conflict resolution in Georgia, Moldova, and elsewhere.

On 21 January, Ambassador Jansons presented his letters of credence to Tibor Toth, the Executive Secretary of the Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty Organisation. In his conversation with the Ambassador, Mr Toth highlighted the crucial role of the treaty in limiting the distribution of nuclear weapons and noted the previous exemplary co-operation with Latvia.  

The last of the series of accreditation visits was the Ambassador's meeting with Mohamed ElBaradei, Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency, on 22 January. Dr ElBaradei introduced the Ambassador to the agency's involvement in solving current issues in international policy. During the conversation, both officials noted the previous successful co-operation between Latvia and the agency in the dismantlement of the Salaspils nuclear reactor, and in other projects of technical co-operation, as well as the potential role of the agency in the future development of the Ignalina nuclear power plant.

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