Latvia's broadcast regulator, the National Electronic Mass Media Council (NEPLP), said August 14 that a May 30 broadcast by the Russian "Rossiya - 24" channel, disseminated in Latvia by numerous cable operators, contained hate speech concerning views expressed about new Latvian President Egls Levits.
In order to solve the current problems at Latvian Radio and Latvian Television, the country's broadcast watchdog, the National Electronic Mass Media Council (NEPLP) is asking that more than 10 million euros be allotted to the public media, the LETA newswire learned from the council.
The Cabinet of Ministers on August 13 approved citizenship for 58 individuals who have gone though the naturalization process, including two children who gain citizenship alongside parents.
The government has approved the Defense Ministry’s plan to organize two major multinational military exercises in Latvia this fall, LETA reported on August 13.
Around 100 Latvian soldiers are currently in Germany taking part in the US Army's "combined Resolve XII" international military training exercises, the Ministry of Defense said August 12.
Baltic states Lithuania and Latvia have significantly more drownings each year than other European Union member states, according to the latest statistics from Eurostat.
Tick activity levels have changed little since last year, concludes the Latvian Center for Infectology on August 11. Approximately 25% of the ticks tested so far in the center’s laboratory have been identified to carry Lyme disease. In contrast, only about 1% of ticks carried encephalitis.
Three people have died of suspected methanol poisoning in Bauska Region, the State Police told the LETA newswire August 7.
It sounds like the plot of a classic nineteenth-century novel, but Latvian police say they are ready to bring to justice people involved in a plot to gain land via means of a forged will.
The Corruption Prevention and Combating Bureau (KNAB) is asking the prosecutor's office to bring charges against eight persons, including Ugis Broza, an official at the Riga City Council's Transport Department, for various crimes and violations allegedly committed during reconstruction of Salu (Island) Bridge in Riga, the LETA newswire reported August 6.
For the third consecutive year, the Latvia-based language technology company Tilde has won the “Olympics” of the machine translation technology – the WMT 2019 competition. This year Tilde's team participated with its machine translation technology for the English-Lithuanian language pair, outperforming online translation platforms such as Google, Microsoft, and others.
At the end of 2017, Latvian was the mother tongue of 60.8% of Latvia’s population, according to data released by the Central Statistical Bureau, published on August 2.
The number of unmanned aerial vehicle operator permits issued in 2019 has exceeded significantly the number of permits issued in 2018. There has also been a slight fall in the number of registered offences, according to the data from the Civil Aviation Agency (CAA), reported LSM.lv on August 4.
Members of Rucava regional council has decided at an extraordinary meeting to call on the central government to declare a state of emergency over a prolonged drought the southwestern region of Latvia has witnessed this summer, reported LETA on August 2.
For the first time, Riga has been included in the annual list of the world’s best student cities compiled by the British Quacquarelli Symonds company, reported LETA on August 2.
The study of the Svalbard glaciers using the methods available to Latvian scientists may provide answers to questions about the impact of climate change on glaciers, said the participants of the next Latvian polar expedition in an interview with Latvian Television on August 2.
Spring frost, drought, and hail caused major damage to a significant part of Latvia's fruit and berry crops this year, according to Māris Narvils, a gardening expert at the Latvian Rural Advisory and Training Center, reported LSM.lv on July 31.
National Electronic Mass Media Council (NEPLP) chairwoman Dace Ķezbere considers stepping down from her position, as she herself confirmed to LETA on July 31.
Hospitals in Latvia will not be closed, but from now they will be able to provide only the services that are of sufficient quality, said Health Minister Ilze Viņķele in an interview with Dienas Bizness on July 31.
Local-grown watermelons have begun appearing in Latvian stores and markets, and the watermelon growers Maija and Andrejs Kondratjuks have emphasized that the harvest this year will be plentiful, reported LSM.lv on July 30.
Baiba Broka (National Alliance), suspected of involvement in corrupt practices, has decided to leave her post at the University of Latvia, according to information from LETA, July 30.
The State Fire and Rescue Service (VUGD) has already lifted 60 drowning victims from various waters since the beginning of 2019, reported LSM.lv on July 30. The actual number of drowning victims, however, is higher, according to VUGD.
Expert-led workshops for building solar panels are being held in Latvian towns, reported LSM.lv on July 26.
The pedestrian bridge over the Zunda channel will be closed while a technical inspection is being carried out to determine its condition, Rīga mayor Oļegs Burovs (Honor to Serve Rīga), reported LSM.lv on July 29.
In the first half of 2019, the number of counterfeit money detected in Latvia decreased compared to the same period last year, according to the Bank of Latvia.
Demography is becoming one of Latvia's chief economic problems, and if it will not be solved quickly it will prevent Latvia from reaching a level of well-being similar to that of Western Europe.
Experts say that the remains found during repair works at the Brasas bridge in Rīga are of Russian Army soldiers, who had been patients at the nearby Rīga Military Hospital. While the burial ground does not have identification markings, it is now clear that the Brasas bridge was built over part of the Rīga Garrison Cemetery, reported Latvian Radio July 26.
Latvian officials are mulling over participation in a mission at the Strait of Hormuz after the UK government said it will provide a Royal Navy escort for British-flagged ships passing through the strait.
On Wednesday, July 24, a driver fleeing police struck a police motorcycle in Ogre, according to LETA. Two more policemen have been injured as well as the fleeing driver, who is now in custody, said Andrejs Sozinovs, Chief of the Criminal Police Department of the State Police, in an interview on Latvian Television.
Ilze Juhansone, a former Latvian diplomat and current deputy secretary-general of the European Commission, has been appointed the European Commission’s acting secretary-general, LETA was told at the European Commission.