Latvia
A combined view of Latvia's UN General Assembly speeches, treaty commitments, and voting record.
The narrative paragraphs below are AI-generated syntheses of the data shown — the tables and figures themselves come directly from the underlying records, not from the AI.
Compare with another country →Speech history
Latvia's General Assembly rhetoric has evolved from institutional reform focus in the mid-2000s toward increasingly forceful moral and legal condemnation of Russian aggression, particularly after 2014. While multilateralism has remained a consistent priority throughout (ranging from 74–88 on the rhetorical scale), emotional intensity and concrete self-commitments surged noticeably from 2014 onward, especially in 2022–2025, coinciding with Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The country's addresses have shifted from calls for systemic UN reform backed by modest national pledges to more direct, pointed criticism paired with increasingly specific Latvian commitments—including its presidency of the Arms Trade Treaty and its incoming Security Council role.
| Session | Multilateralism | Emotional intensity | Concreteness | Self-accountability |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Very High | High | Low | Low |
| 2007 | Very High | Medium | High | Medium |
| 2008 | High | Medium | Medium | Medium |
| 2009 | High | Low | Medium | Medium |
| 2010 | High | Low | Medium | High |
| 2011 | High | Low | Medium | Medium |
| 2012 | High | Low | High | Medium |
| 2014 | High | Medium | High | Medium |
| 2015 | Very High | Low | High | Medium |
| 2016 | Very High | Low | High | Medium |
| 2018 | Very High | High | High | Medium |
| 2019 | Very High | Medium | High | Medium |
| 2021 | High | Medium | High | High |
| 2022 | High | High | High | High |
| 2023 | High | High | High | High |
| 2024 | Very High | High | High | High |
| 2025 | High | High | Medium | High |
Treaty status
Full treaty record →Latvia demonstrates a strong commitment to environmental protection and human rights, having ratified all tracked instruments in both categories. Its arms control posture is notably selective: while supporting the Arms Trade Treaty and Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty, Latvia has notably withdrawn from the Anti-Personnel Mines Convention and taken no action on the Nuclear Weapons Prohibition Treaty, suggesting alignment with Western arms control frameworks but distance from certain disarmament initiatives. Across trade governance and international justice, Latvia shows consistent engagement, having ratified the Rome Statute and key UN conventions on corruption and organized crime.
Arms control & security
- Arms Trade TreatyRatified
- Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban TreatyRatified
- Convention on the Prohibition of the Use, Stockpiling, Production and Transfer of Anti-Personnel Mines and on their DestructionWithdrawn
- Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear WeaponsNo action
Environment & climate
- Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their DisposalRatified
- Convention on Biological DiversityRatified
- Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone LayerRatified
- Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate ChangeRatified
- Minamata Convention on MercuryRatified
- Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone LayerRatified
- Paris AgreementRatified
- Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides in International TradeRatified
- Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic PollutantsRatified
- United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification in those Countries Experiencing Serious Drought and/or Desertification, Particularly in AfricaRatified
- United Nations Framework Convention on Climate ChangeRatified
Human rights
- Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or PunishmentRatified
- Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against WomenRatified
- Convention on the Rights of Persons with DisabilitiesRatified
- Convention on the Rights of the ChildRatified
- International Covenant on Civil and Political RightsRatified
International justice
- Rome Statute of the International Criminal CourtRatified
Trade & governance
- United Nations Convention against CorruptionRatified
- United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized CrimeRatified
- United Nations Convention on the Law of the SeaRatified
Voting record
Full voting record →Latvia votes affirmatively in the General Assembly majority of the time (60% yes votes), with a pattern of dissent concentrated on disarmament and Middle East resolutions in the early 1990s and 2000s—all instances where Latvia voted no against overwhelming consensus (93–98% yes elsewhere). These outlier votes align with Western positions on nuclear disarmament framing and Palestinian-Israeli questions, marking Latvia as occasionally willing to stand apart from UN consensus on geopolitically sensitive matters rather than pursuing consensus at all costs.
Notable dissents from consensus
Status of the International Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid : resolution / adopted by the General Assembly
1992-12-16 · voted N · 98% voted yes
Accelerating implementation of nuclear disarmament commitments : resolution / adopted by the General Assembly
2004-12-03 · voted N · 96% voted yes
Report of the Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices Affecting the Human Rights of the Palestinian People and Other Arabs of the Occupied Territories : resolution / adopted by the General Assembly
1991-12-09 · voted N · 95% voted yes
Promotion of multilateralism in the area of disarmament and non-proliferation : resolution / adopted by the General Assembly
2005-12-08 · voted N · 94% voted yes
Promotion of multilateralism in area of disarmament and non-proliferation : resolution / adopted by the General Assembly
2004-12-03 · voted N · 93% voted yes
Human development
Full HDI record →Human Development Index: 0.889 (Very High), ranked #41 globally in 2023.
Combines life expectancy, education, and income into one comparable score, 0 to 1. Source: UNDP Human Development Report 2025 — deterministic figures, not AI-generated.
1990–2023