The Latvian Consulate in Vitebsk will not be closed - Consul M. Šteina

October 23, Vitebsk / Diana Kurilo - BELTA /. The Consulate of Latvia in Vitebsk will not be closed in the near future. This was stated today to journalists, answering a question from a BELTA correspondent, by the newly appointed Consul of the Republic of Latvia in Vitebsk, Margarita Šteina. The diplomat explained that rumors about the closure of the consulate arose in connection with the public discussion in the Saeima commission on foreign affairs of the proposed reduction of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs budget and, in this regard, the possible closure of these foreign relations bodies in Belarus and Russia. "I hope that the consulate in Vitebsk will continue to operate," emphasized Margarita Šteina. The consul has been appointed to Vitebsk for 3 years. At a meeting with the Chairman of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee, Alexander Kosinets, she outlined the priority areas of the consulate's activities: developing relations between the local governments of the districts of the Vitebsk region and Latvia, promoting interregional contacts in the fields of culture, education, environmental protection, and supporting small and medium-sized businesses. In the Vitebsk region, 14 agreements have been concluded between the regional executive committee, district and city executive committees, and regions of Latvia. Since 1998, several districts of the region have been part of the Euroregion "Lake Land", which also unites border regions of Latvia and Lithuania. Within the framework of the Euroregion, 6 projects have been implemented with the participation of Latvian partners. Since 2005, the Vitebsk region, together with the Daugavpils district of Latvia and the county of Gotland (Sweden), has been implementing a joint project in the field of tourism and culture "Panorama Dvina/Daugava". -0-