Visit Riga: Europe lecture on Europe Day

  • May 9, 2016
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On "Europe Day" Minister-president Geert Bourgeois gave a lecture on the European ambitions of Flanders at the Riga Graduate School of Law. The Minister-president is currently in Latvia to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the cooperation between Flanders and the Baltic States. All three Baltic capitals will be visited. First stop: Riga.

On 9 May, Europe celebrated the anniversary of the historical Schuman Declaration. In 1950, French Minister Robert Schuman presented his ideas about a new political cooperation in Europe. These ideas shaped the start of what was to become the European Union. The perfect occasion for Minister-president Bourgeois to talk about his vision on the role of the European Union. "The EU should unite the people of Europe. Not by becoming a super-state, but, based on shared values and traditions, by being a vehicle to achieve their collective aspirations," Bourgeois said.

Also during his meetings with Latvian Prime Minister Maris Kucinskis, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs Edgars Rinkevics, European issues such as migration and the TTIP treaty were discussed.

The next days the Flemish delegation travels on to Vilnius and Tallinn.