The nations of

Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lithuania to the south. It borders Russia to the east and Belarus to t ...

and

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

established diplomatic relations in 1991. Both nations are members of the

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD; , OCDE) is an international organization, intergovernmental organization with 38 member countries, founded in 1961 to stimulate economic progress and international trade, wor ...

and the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

History

In November 1918, Latvia declared its independence from the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

after

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. In May 1927, Mexico recognized Latvia's independence.Relaciones México-Letonia (in Spanish)
/ref> During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, Latvia was occupied by both

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

and the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

and after the war, Latvia was forcibly annexed by the Soviet Union in 1944. In May 1990, Latvia obtained its independence after the

dissolution of the Soviet Union The Soviet Union was formally dissolved as a sovereign state and subject of international law on 26 December 1991 by Declaration No. 142-N of the Soviet of the Republics of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union. Declaration No. 142-Н of ...

. Mexico recognized the independence of and re-established diplomatic relations with Latvia on 27 November 1991. In September 1993, Latvia opened an honorary consulate in

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

. In 2000, Mexico opened an honorary consulate in

Riga Riga ( ) is the capital, Primate city, primate, and List of cities and towns in Latvia, largest city of Latvia. Home to 591,882 inhabitants (as of 2025), the city accounts for a third of Latvia's total population. The population of Riga Planni ...

. In June 2000, Mexican Foreign Undersecretary, Juan Rebolledo Gout, paid a visit Latvia and met with President

Vaira Vike-Freiberga Vaira is a feminine Latvian given name. Notable people with the name include: * Vaira Paegle (born 1942), Latvian politician * Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga (born 1937), sixth President of Latvia The president of Latvia ( ) is head of state and comm ...

Jūrmala Jūrmala (; "seaside") is a state city in the Vidzeme region of Latvia, about west of Riga. Jūrmala is a resort town stretching and is sandwiched between the Gulf of Riga and the Lielupe River. It has a stretch of white-sand beach and is the ...

. In March 2004, Latvian President Vaira Vike-Freiberga paid a visit to Mexico to attend the

European Union, Latin America and the Caribbean Summit The European Union, Latin America and the Caribbean Summit (EU–LAC) is a biennial meeting of heads of state and government of Latin America, the Caribbean and the European Union. History In the first EU–LAC summit, held in Rio de Janeiro bet ...

Guadalajara Guadalajara ( ; ) is the capital and the most populous city in the western Mexican List of states of Mexico, state of Jalisco, as well as the most densely populated municipality in Jalisco. According to the 2020 census, the city has a population ...

and met with President

Vicente Fox Vicente Fox Quesada (; born 2 July 1942) is a Mexican businessman and politician who served as the 62nd president of Mexico from 2000 to 2006. After campaigning as a Right-wing populism, right-wing populist, Fox was elected president on the Nat ...

.Vaira Vike-Freiberga at the summit of La Unin Europea, Amrica Latina y el Caribe Guadalajara
/ref> In 2007, Mexican Foreign Undersecretary Lourdes Aranda Bezaury paid a visit to Latvia to attend the third political consultations between the Ministries of Foreign Affairs of both nations.Cronología de la política exterior de México: mayo a agosto de 2007 (in Spanish)
/ref> During the third political consultations, Latvia and Mexico discussed current issues related to domestic and foreign policy activities and exchanged views on global issues such as the UN reform, climate change and environmental protection, disarmament, and weapons of mass destruction. In recent years, Foreign Ministerial meetings of both countries have been held in different international forums such as the meeting between Mexican Foreign Minister

Patricia Espinosa Patricia Espinosa Cantellano (born October 21, 1958) is a Mexican diplomat who served as the executive secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change from 2016 to 2022. She was Secretary of Foreign Affairs in the cabinet ...

and Latvian Foreign Minister

Ģirts Valdis Kristovskis Ģirts Valdis Kristovskis (born 19 February 1962) is a Latvian politician. He is a member of the centre-right Unity party. Kristovskis has served in Latvian cabinets, as the Minister for the Interior from 3 August 1993 to 28 October 1994, when h ...

, held in the framework of the 66th General Assembly of the United Nations in September 2011. Both Foreign Ministers discussed the presence of Mexican multinational company

CEMEX CEMEX S.A.B. de C.V., known as Cemex, is a Mexican multinational building materials company headquartered in San Pedro, near Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico. It manufactures and distributes cement, ready-mix concrete and aggregates in more than ...

in Latvia and discussed climate change and the prospects for cooperation within the United Nations. In April 2013, Latvian Foreign Vice-Minister

Andris Teikmanis Andris Teikmanis (29 November 1959; Riga, Latvia) is a Latvia Latvia, officially the Republic of Latvia, is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, along with Estonia to the north and Lit ...

paid a visit to Mexico and met with his counterpart Foreign Undersecretary Carlos de Icaza.Teikmanis urges support for Latvia's OECD membership during visit to Mexico
/ref> In 2023, Latvian Deputy State Secretary Andžejs Viļumsons co-chaired the Fifth Meeting for Political Consultations between Mexico and Latvia in Mexico City, along with his counterpart Foreign Undersecretary Carmen Moreno Toscano.Fifth meeting for Mexico-Latvia political consultations
/ref>

High-level visits

High-level visits from Latvia to Mexico * President

(2004) * Deputy State Secretary

Edgars Skuja Edgars Skuja (born 20 February 1966) is a Latvian diplomat who has been serving as Ambassador of Latvia to Azerbaijan since 2023. Previously, he served as Ambassador of Latvia to Estonia from 2002 to 2005, to Russia from 2009 to 2013, and to Au ...

(2006) * Foreign Vice-Minister

(2013) * Deputy State Secretary Andžejs Viļumsons (2023) High-level visits from Mexico to LatviaPolitical consultations between Ministries of Foreign Affairs of Latvia and Mexico (in Latvian)
/ref> * Foreign Undersecretary Juan Rebolledo Gout (2000) * Foreign Undersecretary Miguel Marin (2002) * Foreign Undersecretary Lourdes Aranda Bezaury (2007)

Bilateral agreements

Both nations have signed a few bilateral agreements such as a Memorandum of Understanding for the Establishment of a Mechanism of Bilateral Political Consultations in Matters of Common Interest (2000); Agreement on the suppression of visas for diplomatic and official passport carriers (2002); Agreement of Cooperation in the areas of Education, Culture and Sports (2005); and an Agreement to Avoid Double Taxation and Prevent Tax Evasion on Income Tax and its Protocol (2012).

Trade

In 2023, trade between both nations totaled US$181 million.Data México: Latvia
/ref> Latvia's main exports to Mexico include: telephones and mobile phones, electrical equipment, peat, alcohol, fiberglass, chemical based products, motor vehicles for special uses, wires and ropes, and plastic articles. Mexico's main exports to Latvia include: lead minerals and their concentrates, fiberglass, alcohol (beer), pepper, fruits and nuts, and coffee. Latvian company

Zabbix Zabbix is an open-source software tool to monitor IT infrastructure such as networks, servers, virtual machines, and cloud services. Zabbix collects and displays basic metrics. Characteristics Zabbix is designed primarily as an IT infrastruct ...

operates in Mexico.

Diplomatic missions

Neither country has a resident ambassador. * Latvia is accredited to Mexico from its embassy in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and maintains an honorary consulate in

. * Mexico is accredited to Latvia from its embassy in

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

and maintains an honorary consulate in

.Embassy of Mexico in Sweden
/ref>

References

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