FM: Iran willing to increase ties with Latvia

Tehran, April 23, IRNA – Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said here on Wednesday that Iran is willing to promote bilateral ties with Latvia as the next rotating president of the European Union Council. Latvia will hold the Presidency of the Council of the European Union in the first half of 2015. Zarif made the remarks in a joint press conference with his visiting Latvian counterpart Edgar Rinkevich who arrived in the Iranian capital Wednesday morning. This is the first visit to Tehran of a Latvian foreign minister, Zarif said referring to the long history of Iran-Latvia relations. The two capitals began their political ties in 1920s. Latvia became an independent country after the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. It locates in the Baltic region of Northern Europe and is a member of the European Union Council as well as the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. The country joined the Eurozone on 1 January 2014.