Valdis Birkavs
Encyclopedia
Valdis Birkavs is a Latvia
n politician. He was born in Riga
. He was first elected to the Latvian parliament in 1990 and helped to found the Latvian Way
party. After Latvian Way won the 1993 parliamentary elections, Birkavs became the prime minister, leading a coalition government of Latvian Way and Latvian Farmers' Union
. He resigned after Farmer's Union left the government in the summer of 1994. He then became the deputy prime minister and foreign minister
in the next government. He remained the foreign minister for five years under four different prime ministers, eventually resigning in 1999. In the presidential elections of 1999 (Latvia's president is chosen by the Parliament) he was nominated as a candidate and received second place. He was then appointed as minister of justice, and served in that position until 2000.
Birkavs is a member of the Club of Madrid
, an independent non-profit organization composed of 81 democratic former Presidents and Prime Ministers from 57 different countries.
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
n politician. He was born in Riga
Riga
Riga is the capital and largest city of Latvia. With 702,891 inhabitants Riga is the largest city of the Baltic states, one of the largest cities in Northern Europe and home to more than one third of Latvia's population. The city is an important seaport and a major industrial, commercial,...
. He was first elected to the Latvian parliament in 1990 and helped to found the Latvian Way
Latvian Way
Latvian Way was a centre-right liberal party in Latvia. It merged with Latvia's First Party to form the Latvia's First Party/Latvian Way in 2007.It described itself as "a liberal party defending people's freedom to shape their own lives"...
party. After Latvian Way won the 1993 parliamentary elections, Birkavs became the prime minister, leading a coalition government of Latvian Way and Latvian Farmers' Union
Latvian Farmers' Union
The Latvian Farmers' Union is a centrist agrarian political party in Latvia. Founded in 1917, it was the most influential right-wing political party between the two World Wars, during the period of Latvian independence from the Russian SFSR in 1918 until its annexation by the Soviet Union in 1940,...
. He resigned after Farmer's Union left the government in the summer of 1994. He then became the deputy prime minister and foreign minister
Foreign minister
A Minister of Foreign Affairs, or foreign minister, is a cabinet minister who helps form the foreign policy of a sovereign state. The foreign minister is often regarded as the most senior ministerial position below that of the head of government . It is often granted to the deputy prime minister in...
in the next government. He remained the foreign minister for five years under four different prime ministers, eventually resigning in 1999. In the presidential elections of 1999 (Latvia's president is chosen by the Parliament) he was nominated as a candidate and received second place. He was then appointed as minister of justice, and served in that position until 2000.
Birkavs is a member of the Club of Madrid
Club of Madrid
The Club de Madrid is an independent non-profit organization created to promote democracy and change in the international community. Composed of 80 former Presidents and Prime Ministers from 56 countries, the Club de Madrid is the world’s largest forum of former Heads of State and Government.Among...
, an independent non-profit organization composed of 81 democratic former Presidents and Prime Ministers from 57 different countries.