Latvian Radio has a weekend of centenary celebrations to broadcast

All this year, Latvian Radio (Latvijas Radio) has been marking the centenary of its establishment in 1925 and the cycle of celebrations reaches something of a crescendo this weekend. Highlights this weekend include a history of the acclaimed...

Latvia's parliament votes to quit treaty on preventing violence against women

Latvia’s parliament voted on Thursday to withdraw the Baltic country from a treaty on preventing violence against women, saying that it promotes “gender” theories. Latvia’s parliament voted on Thursday to withdraw the Baltic country from a treaty...

Latvia quits Istanbul Convention despite government opposition

Published on: October 31, 2025 10:29 AM RIGA — Latvia’s parliament voted on Thursday to withdraw from the Istanbul Convention, a key international treaty aimed at preventing violence against women, after a ruling coalition partner sided with the...

Latvian parliament votes to withdraw from Istanbul Convention opposing violence against women

By&nbspJerry Fisayo-Bambi&nbspwith&nbspAP Published on 31/10/2025 - 7:10 GMT+1 •Updated 9:59 Following a day-long heated debate, the Latvian Parliament decided Thursday to withdraw from the Istanbul Convention, a human rights treaty opposing...

Latvian Parliament Votes to Withdraw from Istanbul Convention

Latvia has voted to withdraw from the Istanbul Convention, a treaty designed to protect women from violence, after a 13-hour parliamentary debate on Thursday. The decision comes amid growing political divisions and widespread public protests,...

China Extends Unilateral Visa-Free Policy to December 31, 2026, Adds Sweden to Growing List of Eligible Nations

Beijing, November 3, 2025 – In a landmark announcement that underscores China’s accelerating push toward global openness and economic revitalization, the Chinese government declared on Monday a full one-year extension of its unilateral visa-free...

Latvia votes to quit treaty on preventing violence against women

Latvia votes to quit treaty on preventing violence against women RIGA, Oct 31, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - Latvia's parliament voted on Thursday to withdraw the Baltic country from a treaty on preventing violence against women, saying that it promotes...

Latvia votes to withdraw from Istanbul Convention

The Latvian Parliament on Thursday voted to withdraw from the Istanbul Convention, an international treaty aimed at supporting women who are victims of violence. The tally from the ballot was 56 to withdraw from the treaty, 32 to remain, and two...

Latvian parliament votes to exit Istanbul Convention

After a marathon day of debates lasting more than 13 hours deputies voted to quit the international treaty by 56 votes to 32, with 2 abstentions. Last week, after lengthy debates, the Saeima supported withdrawal from the Istanbul Convention in its...

Latvia: President must reverse parliament’s appalling and dangerous decision to leave Istanbul Convention 

Responding to the Latvian parliament’s vote to leave the Council of Europe convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence, also known as the Istanbul Convention, Amnesty International’s Senior Campaigner on...

Latvia Denounces Istanbul Convention Amid Political Crisis and Protests

After lengthy debates in the Latvian Parliament (Saeima), the bill to denounce the Istanbul Convention – the Council of Europe’s international treaty aimed at preventing violence against women and domestic violence – was approved in the second,...

Latvian parliament votes to quit convention protecting women

By Andrius Sytas and Janis Laizans RIGA (Reuters) -Latvia’s parliament voted on Thursday to quit an international treaty aimed at combating violence against women, after a conservative partner in the ruling coalition broke ranks to support the...

Latvian Parliament

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — The Latvian Parliament voted Thursday to withdraw from the Istanbul Convention, a treaty aimed at supporting women who are victims of violence, after a 13-hour session of intense debate. The Council of Europe treaty entered...

Government submits energy sector development plan to Riigikogu

The government has submitted the draft Energy Economy Development Plan 2035 (ENMAK) to the Riigikogu for debate. The plan aims to guarantee energy security, increase Estonia's competitiveness and contribute to the transition to a clean energy...

Screen Grabs: Arab Film Fest kicks off with ‘Palestine 36’

This week brings three medium-scaled festivals to the Bay Area. The longest-running, having started nearly 30 years ago, is the Arab Film Festival—the nation’s oldest such event. The entire western hemisphere’s oldest film festival, SFFilm fka the...

Latvia adds big batteries to complete grid sync with Europe, two major Estonian projects secure finance

Latvia’s transmission system operator Augstsprieguma tīkls (AST) has commissioned two utility-scale battery energy storage systems (BESS) in Rēzekne and Tume, describing the milestone as the final step in synchronizing the Baltic power grids with...

Latvia’s and international leaders in security, technology, and investment to gather in Liepāja for the first Latvian Dual-Use Export Forum

On November 11–12, the Latvian Dual-Use Export Forum 2025 will take place in Liepāja (concert hall “Great Amber”) for the first time, bringing together entrepreneurs, investors, and representatives from public administration and the security...

We need to reconnect with our antifascist values and defend them

A JEF protest against border controls. Copyright: Visvaldis Knuts Berzins - JEF Latvia The article presented here is part of the Open Platform, an initiative of The New Federalist, allowing candidates in the Young European Federalists (JEF)...

Territorial Defense Forces – Increasing importance and future prospects within the Czech Armed Forces

With the changing security environment in Europe, dictated mainly by Russia's expansionist ambitions, European armies are once again focusing on conventional warfare on the continent against a technologically and numerically superior enemy that...

“I am ashamed!” Vīķe-Freiberga condemns Saeima’s Istanbul Convention decision – “Backwards crawl that will weaken Latvia”

Former President of Latvia Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga has sharply criticised the Saeima’s decision in a social media post, calling it an example of “backwards crawling” that damages Latvia’s reputation as a modern European democracy. She stresses that...