In the conversation following the presentation ceremony, the ambassador recognised the excellent relations between the two countries. The ambassador and the president discussed the diverse cooperation of Estonia and Latvia, European security, energy security, the economy, Rail Baltic and culture. They noted that Estonia and Latvia had similar views on the security situation in the region and the defence cooperation between the two countries would increase in the coming years. In light of the second cooperation report for Estonia and Latvia, set to be published in September, they spoke about possibilities for joint action.
“Estonia and Latvia have similar interests in security, energy, economic relations and cross-border cooperation, and there are close contacts between ministries, agencies and parliaments, and on the grass root level. Latvia is a neighbour we can count on and we have decades of understanding in various areas, which can serve as the basis for expanding our cooperation in the future,” Ambassador Marmei said.
Photo: Office of the President of Latvia
Ambassador Marmei was born on 6 May 1970 in Tartu. He graduated from the University of Tartu in 1993 with a degree in history, and in 1996, he received a master’s degree from the Notre Dame University in the United States. Marmei joined the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1993. He has held various positions in the Foreign Ministry and at Estonia’s representation to NATO, and at the embassies in Washington and London. Between 2008 and 2010, Marmei was the Director of the NATO and EU Department at the Ministry of Defence. In 2013-2014, he represented Estonia as the Ambassador to Poland and Romania, and from 2014 to 2017, he was the Estonian Ambassador to the United States. He was a senior researcher at the International Centre for Defence and Security from 2017 to 2018, and from 2018 to 2022, he was the Director General of the Policy Planning Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.