LNAK President meets with Canada’s Ambassador to Latvia in Rīga

On February 16, LNAK President Dr. Fritz Traugott Kristbergs met with Brian Szwarc, Ambassador of Canada to Latvia and with First Secretary David Pooler in Rīga, to discuss cooperation with the Latvian diaspora in Canada, and to promote even closer ties between Canada and Latvia.

The meeting took place at the Embassy of Canada to Latvia at 20/22 Baznīcas (“Church”) street, near the stately Old Evangelical Lutheran Church of St. Gertrude. Kristbergs had also invited the World Federation of Free Latvians (PBLA/WFFL) Executive Director Raits Eglītis to participate in the discussions, to help inform Ambassador Szwarc about the work of PBLA.

The main topics were Canada’s leadership of the NATO “Enhanced forward presence battle group” in Latvia, which is being expanded from a battalion to a brigade. On the occasion of the 20th anniversity of Latvia’s accession to NATO, PBLA, as part of their executive committee meetings in June, is organizing a special seminar on June 13 on the subject of Latvia and NATO. PBLA invited Ambassador Szwarc to participate in the seminar.

Other topics discussed were the Latvian diaspora in Canada, and how to further promote productive communications and cooperation between PBLA and the Embassy in both cultural and economic spheres.

LNAK President Kristbergs presented Ambassador Szwarc with the CD “Canadian Amber”, a compilation of Latvian Canadian composers’ works, as well as two CDs of Tālivaldis Ķeniņš’ works, which had been provided by Juris Ķeniņš, Chairman of the Board of the Cultural Foundation and Council of the World Federation of Free Latvians.

Fritz Traugott Kristbergs
LNAK Executive Committee President