The resignation of the Minister of Foreign Affairs Krišjānis Kariņas (JV) will not have a significant impact on the work of the government, this was the assessment expressed by the partners of the ruling coalition.
Harijs Rokpelnis, chairman of the faction of the Union of Greens and Farmers (ZZS), said that the decision on Kariņas’ resignation was the responsibility and competence of Prime Minister Evikas Silinas (JV) and “Jaunās vietības”.
In Rokpelņi’s opinion, the resignation of Kariņš shows that the government is ready to take responsibility and do what needs to be done, respectively, if mistakes have been made, to admit them. “This will not create any obstacles for the government, we will continue to work as efficiently as before,” said the politician.
Andris Shuvejevs, the chairman of the “Progressive” faction, is also sure that the work of the government will not be affected.
“You could already see that this saga around the used private planes began to have a potentially greater impact on the government,” said the politician, assessing that Kariņa’s decision was “respectable and correct”.
At the same time, Shuvajevs believes that Kariņš will remain a respectable politician in the eyes of the public.
As reported, Kariņš announced on Thursday after a meeting with Prime Minister Siliņa that he has decided to resign from the position of Minister of Foreign Affairs.
Kariņš leaving the position of Minister of Foreign Affairs on April 10. He explained that this date was chosen because the next regular session of the Saeima is expected on April 11, when the parliament will be able to elect a new foreign minister.
For several months now, the scandal regarding the private flights used by the delegations led by Kariņš during his premiership has been relevant in the public space, which has drawn criticism from a part of society.
From 2021 to September 2023, according to the information gathered by the State Chancellery, 613,830 euros were spent on private flights for the business trips of Kariņas and his employees, but together with the part of the costs covered by the European Union, the expenses reach 1.36 million euros.
Last week, the General Prosecutor’s Office announced that it had opened criminal proceedings for the possible waste of funds related to the use of charter flights for these business trips.
