VIDEO | Meeting in Rome between the President of Latvia Rinkevics and the Grand Master fra’ John Dunlap
At the center of the talks are the war in Ukraine, the reception of Ukrainian refugees, as well as the crisis in Gaza and humanitarian cooperation
ROME – Great satisfaction forthe excellent state of diplomatic relations with Latvia, established in 1995, of which 30 years will be celebrated next year, was expressed by the Grand Master of the Sovereign Order of Malta, Fra’ John Dunlap, who this morning at the Magistral Palace received the President of the Republic of Latvia, Edgars Rinkevics. This is President Rinkevics’ second visit to the Order , where he had already been in 2022 as Foreign Minister. His predecessor as president, Egils Levits paid an official visit to the Order of Malta in 2021.
During the meeting, the Grand Master also expressed his will to further increase the humanitarian activities of the Order of Malta in the Baltic country.
Here, in 2021, a corps of volunteers was established thanks to the support of the Order’s embassy in Riga.
The Latvian president thanked the Order of Malta for the many social activities carried out in the country. Today volunteers carry out a wide range of programs in Riga and Saldus for the benefit of the population in need and Ukrainian refugees, counting on a team made up of 15 Latvians and 15 Ukrainians: charity events, canteens for poor, psychological assistance, language courses, integration activities, distribution of food and hygiene items. The war in Ukraine, the reception of Ukrainian refugees, as well as the crisis in Gaza, were among the other topics discussed during the talks.
Also present at the meeting were the Latvian Ambassador to the Order of Malta, Elita Kuzma, as well as the Order’s ambassador to Latvia, Alberto Bertoldi.