News & Events

November 18, 2008

Dear Friends,

It is a pleasure to welcome everyone to the independence celebrations hosted by the Latvian Consulate in New York City.

Shortly after the First World War, Latvian men and women declared their nation’s independence from Russian and Bolshevik rule.  Here in New York, our City’s Latvian community was already growing by leaps and bounds; families had been immigrating to the Big Apple since the turn of the 20^th century, and their contributions to our economic, cultural, and civic life had already begun to have a significant impact on our great City.  Today, that impact remains stronger than ever, and I am proud to join everyone gathered at this National Day celebration to recognize the committed hard work and indomitable spirit of our City’s Latvian community.

On behalf of the City of New York, I commend Honorary Consul Daris G. Delins and everyone involved with today’s celebration for sharing Latvian history and culture with all New Yorkers. Please accept my best wished for an enjoyable celebration and continued success.

Sincerely,

Michael R. Bloomberg

Mayor

The City of New York, Office of the Mayor, New York, NY 10007

Seen here from the right, Mayor Michael R Bloomberg, Daris G. Delins, Honorary Consul for Latvia in New York, and Marjorie B Tiven, Commissioner, Office of the Mayor, Commission for the UN, Consular Corps and Protocol, at Gracie Mansion, New York City, October 22, 2008

To see the full article/note, please download here

On October 25 and 26, "Defenders of Riga" screened at the 23rd annual Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival. The film was seen by close to 200 festival attendees. Attending at the premiere screenings, seen here in the picture were from the left, Daris G. Delins, Hon. Consul for Latvia in New York, the film's director Aigars Grauba, the film's producer Andrejs Ekis, and Barry Mowell, Hon. Consul for Latvia in Florida.

The film will next screen at the AFI European Film Showcase in Silver Spring, Maryland on November 16 and 18, 2008 http://www.afi.com/silver/new/nowplaying/EUshowcase/riga.aspx. Further screenings of the film are planned for Los Angeles, California.

Between November 11 and November 18, 2008 the film will be screened at over 200 locations in Latvia as part of Latvia's 90th Anniversary National Day celebrations.

By the end of 2008, the film will have been seen by close to 300,000 people around the world, cementing its position as Latvia's most successful film release ever.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced on October 17 that "Defenders of Riga" (Rīgas sargi) has been nominated as Latvia's official entry in the Foreign Language Film category for the 81st Academy Awards® (www.oscars.org).

Released in November 2007, "Defenders of Riga" is not only the most ambitious feature-length production in the history of Latvian cinema but also the highest grossing box office film to be released in Latvia, seen already by close to 300,000 viewers.  To date in 2008, the film has been seen by over 2,000 viewers in the U.S.

On October 25 and 26 the film will premiere at the 2008 Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival (www.fliff.com) and on November 16 and 18 it will premiere at the 2008 AFI European Film Showcase in Silver Spring, Maryland http://www.afi.com/silver/new/nowplaying/EUshowcase/riga.aspx.

Nominations for the 81st Academy Awards will be announced on Thursday, January 22, 2009, at 5:30 a.m. PT in the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater.

Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2008 will be presented on Sunday, February 22, 2009, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center®, and televised live by the ABC Television Network. The Oscar presentation also will be televised live in more than 200 countries worldwide.

On Friday, October 17 President George W. Bush invited ambassadors of the 13 candidate countries (Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Poland, Romania, Bulgaria, South Korea, Greece, Cyprus and Malta) of the Visa Waiver Program (VWP) to a White House ceremony to announce the US Administration’s decision to admit seven of these 13 countries to the Visa Waiver Program. Latvia was represented by Ambassador Andrejs Pildegovics (see here in the picture being congratulated by President George W.Bush).

President Bush officially announced the addition of Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and South Korea to the Visa Waiver Program. Most likely in approximately one month, travelers from these countries will no longer require a visa to enter the United States.

The program currently includes 27 countries. The President stated that the seven countries agreed to share information about security threats to the U.S. and that their citizens would use a new system that requires travelers to register online ahead of their visits to the United States.

President Bush emphasized that Latvia and the other 6 countries have fulfilled all requirements related to admission into the US VWP. Admission to the VWP will open new possibilities for interpersonal contacts, tourism and business development. The removal of US visa requirements is yet another example of the dynamic development of the Latvia-US strategic partnership.

Latvia’s admission to the VWP was due to the successful cooperation with the National Security Council, the US Department of State, the Department of Homeland Security, Congress, and various research institutes. The American Latvian Association has also played a significant role for Latvia to reach this goal.

Link to President George W. Bush's White House announcement

On March 12, 2008 in Riga, Maris Riekstins, Acting Minister for the Interior, and Michael Chertoff, US Secretary of Homeland Security, signed a Memorandum of Understanding between the Ministry of the Interior of Latvia and the Department of Homeland Security of US regarding the US Visa Waiver Program and related enhanced security measures.

Latvia has now fulfilled all of the technical requirements regarding the VWP.