OREANDA-NEWS. October 05, 2012. While on a working visit to the United States, Latvian President Andris Berzins met with managers at the Fortress Investments Group, with John Paulson from Paulson & Co., Inc., and with representatives of the international Standard & Poor’s credit rating agency to talk about Latvia’s economic growth, as well as to exchange views about the economic situation and the financial markets of the world. During all of the meetings, President Berzins insisted that Latvia is sustainably fulfilling its goals and convincingly drawing closer to satisfying the Maastricht criteria so as to join the euro zone on schedule.
 
All of the participants in the discussion praised Latvia’s achievements in overcoming the crisis and achieving economic growth. They also demonstrated much interest in our country’s future plans when it comes to facilitating economic growth. President Berzins confirmed that this is an important period of time – one which is forcing Latvia to choose its path toward economic development while also taking into account mistakes that have been made in the past, lessons learned from other European Union member states, and the true economic situation in those countries which are of importance to Latvia as export markets. Mr Berzins particularly focused on the importance of regional co-operation during a crisis, saying that this has been and will continue to be important to Latvia. He added that this includes not just the decisive importance of co-operation among the Baltic States, but also a far broader regional aspect in that the positive scenario for Latvian economic growth is largely determined and influenced the fact that 70% of Latvia’s foreign trade relates to countries that are in the Baltic Sea region, as well as to Russia. In comparative terms, he said, the economic situation in those countries is far more stable than is the case in other parts of Europe. Even more, the ability to overcome the crisis proves that countries must engage in far tighter regional integration.
 
At the same time, President Berzins emphasised the fact that the economic situation in Europe and the world remains unstable, which means that Latvia must seek out new partners in Central Asia, as well as in other regions which demonstrate an interest in our country as a partner for contacts with the EU.
 
“I always point to Latvia as an example of a country that can return to growth by reducing its budget deficit and implementing reforms. Your country’s achievements have truly been impressive,” John Paulson told the President.
 
Participants in the meetings agreed that Latvia’s achievements in overcoming the crisis since 2008 represent vivid proof of the successive nature of the policies that have been implemented irrespective of changes in the country’s government. They also insisted that the true achievements in stabilising the country’s financial system are far more capacious than had been expected. President Berzins also noted that positive economic growth in Latvia has largely been based on the successful exports of manufacturing companies, but at the same time, however, key issues which must be addressed urgently include unemployment and economic migration which endangers the country’s development in the future.
 
Turning to the situation in Latvia’s banking system at this time, President Berzins said that it is one of the best capitalised systems in the EU and that it has the highest level of liquidity in the Union. Latvian banks have returned to profits, he said. In the area of taxes, the President added, Latvia is one of the few countries in the EU which can afford to plan future tax cuts, as opposed to most countries, which are thinking about ways of increasing taxes.