Māris Riekstiņš

Māris Riekstiņš ( born April 8, 1963 in Riga) is a Latvian diplomat and politician. From 2007 to 2010 he was Minister of Foreign Affairs of his country.

Biography

After school, he studied from 1982 to 1985 at the Latvian Education Sports Institute and then worked as a teacher. He was also from 1987 to 1991 Deputy Chairman of the Committee of the Latvian youth organizations. Between 1989 and 1993 he completed a degree in law at the University of Latvia and finished this with the admission to a lawyer.

While still a student, he joined in January 1992, shortly after the country's independence in the diplomatic service and was quick succession Director of Western Europe, Director of Europe as well as desk officer in the Political Division of Europe. In November 1992, he was Under-Secretary in the Foreign Ministry.

Less than a year in August 1993 on, he was appointed State Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This office he held for more than eleven years until November 2004. At the same time he was between 1995 and 2004 and Chairman of the Audit Strategic Goods and multiple heads of delegations of Latvia in international organizations and conferences.

On 9 December 2004 he was sent to surrender his credentials to U.S. President George W. Bush 's ambassador to the United States and held that post until January 2007. He was also accredited as Ambassador to Mexico from March 2006 to January 2007. After his return to Latvia, he was from January to November 2007 Chief of Staff of Prime Minister Aigars Kalvītis.

Despite the announcement by Prime Minister Kalvītis on 5 December 2007 to withdraw was endorsed his appointment as Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Parliament ( Saeima ) nor on November 7, 2007. The Office of the Secretary of State he has since held in the subsequent cabinets of Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovskis and stop the Crisis. In November 2008, he moved to Georgia and Ukraine, connecting the MAP Action Plan ( Membership Action Plan) NATO in December 2008 in doubt. After the kidnapping of the "Arctic Sea" demanded both he and the Foreign Minister of Estonia, Urmas Paet, the Russian government on the same day to give out information on the current situation. Shortly after these appeals both countries by the Russian Prosecutor General's Office received a list with the names of the alleged hijackers.