The President of Latvia Edgars Rinkēvičs stated that the Saeima may vote for a new government led by Andris Kulbergs as early as this week. According to the head of state, negotiations are progressing faster and more constructively than expected.
After a meeting with the candidate for the post of Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs, President Edgars Rinkēvičs announced that he sees real chances for the approval of a new government in the coming days.
According to the president, Kulbergs presented a draft government declaration, the distribution of responsibilities among the parties, and the general outlines of the future coalition. Rinkēvičs noted that significant progress had been made in a short time.
The president acknowledged that he had previously been skeptical about the prospects of forming a new Cabinet of Ministers, but now considers the results of the negotiations commendable. Especially given how limited the time was to reach agreements.
“I do not see significant obstacles,” Rinkēvičs stated, speaking about the possibility of soon announcing all candidates for ministerial positions.
At the same time, the president emphasized that the work of the future government will take place under difficult conditions — effectively simultaneously with the election campaign ahead of the Saeima elections.
This means that the coalition will have to combine daily governance of the state with increasing political competition among the partners in power.
Rinkēvičs specifically noted that it is important for him to obtain a viable government as soon as possible, capable of making decisions on issues of security, budget, economy, and organizing elections.
The president also indicated that special attention was paid to issues of access to state secrets and the ability of future ministers to work with classified information.
Currently, the coalition is formed by four political forces: the “United List,” the National Alliance, the Union of Greens and Farmers, and “New Unity.”
The preliminary distribution of ministries among the parties is already known. The “United List” is expected to receive the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Justice, the National Alliance will get the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Education, the Union of Greens and Farmers will retain the economic block, while “New Unity” will keep defense, foreign affairs, and health.
Particular attention is now focused on the Ministry of Defense. Kulbergs has not yet confirmed whether the current Prime Minister Evika Siliņa can take this position, although such an option is actively discussed in political circles.
It is expected that specific candidates for ministerial positions will be named as early as Tuesday.
In fact, Latvia is currently trying to form a transitional government as quickly as possible, which should maintain the governance of the country until the parliamentary elections and avoid a new protracted political crisis.
