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“Dear Mr. Kariņa, this year marks 10 years since we joined the Eurozone. I congratulate you! Huge successes! “After all, we are in last place according to the statistics just published by the European Central Bank, which annually publishes the wealth of households in the countries of the Eurozone,” Kiršteins told Foreign Minister Krišjānis Kariņš. “Of course I don’t want to say that we should have 740,000 in Latvia like in Luxembourg [eiro – red.] per average household, or as the average wealth of the European Union – 150,000, or as the poor, indebted Greece with 98,000, but why does Estonia have an average wealth of 86,000… the total number of household assets? Why does Lithuania have 69,000? And why is Latvia in last place with 37,000? Of course there is still something to strive for.”
Kiršteins asked how Latvia managed to successfully finish in last place. “Well, in my opinion, the Foreign Ministry knows best, Mr. Kariņa. “By coincidence, you have been prime minister for the last four years, and these last four years have been decisive,” he explained, pointing out that the roots of the problems go back to 2011 – in connection with the current disastrous situation in passenger rail transport.
“It must be said here that it all started in 2011, when a strange organization won the elections, which dissolved on the first day [bijušā Valsts prezidenta Valda Zatlera — red.] Zatler’s Reform Party with 26 votes and Vienotība with 23. Well, then they took a few farmers with them. Immediately, on the same day and the next, the so-called was formed [toreizējā Saeimas deputāta Klāva Olšteina — red.] The Olstein Six, which was in charge of rail traffic. And the first task was to break the contract with the company “Stadler”, which had already certified the trains for the northern climate (you know, in the Alps down to minus 40 degrees). These trains had already been developed, tested and certified for Estonia. Then this contract was terminated, a legal dispute lasting several years followed and a contract was concluded with Škoda Vagonka, which had not designed anything for this region and did not know at all which trains should run there in the climatic conditions of minus 30 degrees or minus 20 degrees , and the result is what it is.”
The “organization” of the financial sector took its toll. “But to reach the last place, honorable members, ladies and gentlemen, you must try desperately. So the first blow after that, as we know, was the so-called financial “renovation”, right, Mr. Karin? We have provided twice as many financial services to thousands of people as Estonia or Lithuania. So, after this financial “renovation”, we have reached a point where most companies think they can open their accounts in Lithuania, Cyprus or Malta within a day or two, but this is not possible in Latvia. “Of course you, Mr. Kariņa, have nothing to do with this,” Kiršteins added ironically.
Interest rate increases are inextricably linked to the financial sector. “Well, we know that joining the Eurozone has caused Latvia to lose its internal ability to influence economic development through monetary policy, like the Poles and Swedes do.” As a result, Latvian retail chains fell into the hands of foreigners, so-called oligopolies were formed – a form of trading in which a small number of owners, bypassing competition, agree on the price of the service that they impose on buyers. The owners of foreign banks show extreme shamelessness by charging the highest lending rates in the European Union, paying depositors the lowest interest rates, increasing lending rates destroying small and medium-sized businesses and justifying themselves by increasing EURIBOR rates, while concealing the fact will mean that Latvian banks do not have to borrow money from the European Central Bank – the deposits of Latvian citizens exceed the amount of loans issued. The economic inability of the European Union, Mr. Kariņa, to implement the thoughtless ideas of left-wing fantasists was most clearly demonstrated by the recent energy crisis. Latvia, with its Inchukalnas gas storage facility, three hydroelectric power plants, two powerful TECs, millions of cubic meters of unused wood and peat, could keep the lowest electricity and heat prices, if not in the world, then in Europe, but receive the largest price increase. The Swedes, on the other hand, probably smarter people, dissolved the climate ministry and announced that they would mine uranium and build nuclear power plants. Well, it was drawn up together with the European Commission, and also with the Commissioner [Eiropas Komisijas izpildviceprezidentu un Eiropas Savienības komisāru Valdi Dombrovski — red.] Dombrowski. But I’m assuming you won’t give in, right? After this nonsense…”
The well-being of the Latvian population was also affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, which occurred directly during Kariņš’s term in office. “The next blow was Covid, where of course we signed millions of contracts, borrowed money and bought medicines from abroad that no one needed. At the same time, Swedish companies worked, and the result is what it is,” Kirstein said.
However, even that wasn’t enough to push Latvia to last place. “But then we still couldn’t take the last place, so we needed one more attempt – the green course.” And then, Mr. Kariņa, your minister [toreizējais vides aizsardzības un reģionālās attīstības ministrs Artūrs Toms Plešs – red.] Pleš went to Brussels without agreeing with the Saeima or the voters of Latvia and signed an agreement that we will ban peat in 2030 and received a few pennies, no, sorry, some kind of compensation of 150 euros. When peat is exported abroad, Latvian farmers receive about 270 million per year. So if we multiply by 10…between the two and a half billion there should be reparations and the three billion if. Is it treason or not? Or is it nonsense? Or is it simply due to the inability to do mathematical calculations? Well, Mr. Kariņa is a linguist (I checked), of course mathematics is involved…”
Kirstein sharply criticized the so-called “green policy”, under which the European Parliament decided to ban the production of cars with internal combustion engines in 2035. “It turns out that they didn’t think that the Chinese had started producing electric cars 20 years ago and we couldn’t match their technology.” And what happens? We were just in China and saw… Such an interesting company that produces parking systems for Mercedes-Benz, parking systems for BMW, parking systems for Audi, Volkswagen – poor Volkswagen spits that they can’t do anything and bought the Chinese stock Car manufacturer “Xpeng” itself. We pay fines… Now we will pay… Are we making small diesel farmers pay fines… for not buying an electric car? What is it? Is it treason or not? Or is it nonsense?”
In connection with the recent controversial visit of Latvian MPs to China, Kiršteins emphasized the enormous importance of economic cooperation
“A little bit about world politics and Latvia. I totally agree, this is I think the only place where I agree that the State Department did the right thing – when you talk about China, they say it’s a difficult partner. We must communicate with them so that they do not spy here, that they do not deceive us, that they do not buy something there, as has happened in some countries. And then I look at India’s GDP growth of 72 percent last year. China – 5.2, well there is a complete collapse in China. Understand it for yourself. USA – 3.5, and great Europe as always – about zero, maybe 0.5, or not… or minus 0.5, so it’s about zero right now. So – what will we trade with? With India? But your misfortune! They trade terribly with Russia. Well, that won’t work! Well then with the USA. But I see that the US ranks first in purchasing goods from China and third in exports. Come on, how’s that? Well, then that leaves China. Let’s take a look: Latvia’s turnover last year was almost one and a half billion, while that of the European Union was about one trillion. The port of Ningbo has a throughput of one billion 350 million tons, but that’s all for us, isn’t it? One million 35. We ourselves have about 60 million, that was in the heyday, now I’m looking at about 40 million in the port of Riga. Oh, there’s something like a billion 350 million. And this city hosts an event at the International Exhibition Center, which is ten times larger than Ķīpsala, where businessmen from companies with a capital value of 50 to 100 billion come, and the Latvian ambassador in Beijing says: “Let’s give them a bargain!” ” And he doesn’t even send one of his deputies to this exhibition. Well, it’s good that our deputies came there with businessmen, which somehow saved the situation. But I understand that this is forbidden. I just don’t understand that this “Small Estonia, which has only 1.3 million inhabitants, exported about 28 percent more to China last year than Latvia.”
Kiršteins expressed confusion as to why the Latvian Foreign Ministry is not paying due attention to one of the world’s leading economies. “I support what Mr. Dombrowski said, who was in China recently, that we really have to act, we have to take their money and put every yuan, every dollar, every euro that the Chinese give to Estonians, Poles or Lithuanians into our money in the bag. So even from the International Monetary Fund [bijusī Starptautiskā Valūtas fonda izpilddirektore, tagadējā Eiropas Centrālās bankas prezidente Kristīne Lagarda — red.] Lagarda, tour [Eiropas Komisijas prezidente Urzula fon der Leiena — red.] Letter from the European Commission, German Foreign Minister [Annalēna Bērboka — red.]there the President of the United States [Džo — red.] Biden, but our State Department is quietly spitting out,” Kirstein concluded his speech, while several lawmakers impatiently shouted “Time!”
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