The Keys ep50 Latvia joins the European Union and NATO
After 100 years of statehood – most of which we did not even have our own state – Latvia became a member of the European Union and NATO. It was a significant step towards achieving national security and ensuring development. Latvia has been ravaged by history, many have even considered its existence an accident, but we finally managed to take our place at the world’s negotiating table.
In 1918, it took nearly three years for the world to recognise the state of Latvia. Moreover, other countries did so only because it happened align with their own political agendas at the time. In 1939 and 1940, we lacked support from allies to prevent an occupation. In 1944 and 1945, we had nobody to turn to in order to stop a second occupation. In 1990 and 1991, we needed to convince the world to recognise our restored independence. Yet again, the Baltic states were only recognised once favourable political conditions had set in, namely, the collapse of the USSR.
Starting from 1991, it took 12 years for Latvia to recover from the devastation Soviet Union had wrought upon it and become a full-fledged member of the most influential political and military alliances in the world.
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