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2nd LD Writethru: Latvian PM resigns

Xinhua, December 7, 2015 Adjust font size:

Latvian Prime Minister Laimdota Straujuma announced her resignation on Monday after meeting with the country's president Raimonds Vejonis.

"I have informed the president of the government's resignation," Straujuma told reporters.

"Today the prime minister informed me about the government's resignation. I have to say that the voters in the last elections gave the Latvian parliament and the ruling coalition a chance to work for the good of the country. Regretfully, they passed up this chance due to internal political squabbles," Vejonis said.

He thanked the outgoing prime minister, saying it had been a courageous step on her part "to take charge of the government when no one else wanted to do it."

The president praised the government's performance during the Latvian presidency of the Council of the European Union (EU) in the second half of 2014 and thanked the outgoing ministers for having worked as one team.

"I call on all political parties represented in the parliament to review their performance and to come forth with proposals for the new coalition," Vejonis said.

The current crisis was caused by the internal policy but the country has foreign policy problems to think about, including security challenges in Europe, asylum seekers and all other things, Vejonis said.

The new government will have to deal with outstanding issues such as teachers' wages, accessibility of health care, and the absorption of EU funds, he said.

The resignation spelled the end of Latvia's current coalition government, which consisted of Straujuma's center-right Unity party, centrist Greens and Farmers Union ZZS and nationalist conservative National Alliance.

In early November, Straujuma sacked Transport Minister Anrijs Matiss, who is not a member of the Unity, but was originally appointed to the post as a candidate of the Unity. The dismissal triggered rumors about the instability of the government and its eventual collapse.

Straujuma had been prime minister since January 2014. Her current cabinet was formed in November 2014 after the Unity won parliamentary elections. Endit