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The National Coordination of EU Policy in Latvia 83
legislation, the government of Guntars Krasts (7 August 1997–26 November
1998) increased the responsibilities of the EIB and made it subordinate to the
PM. The EIB was charged with preparing and updating the Latvian National
Programme for membership — the principal planning, management and
monitoring tool — as well as for coordination of institutional capacity
building activities, public information and evaluation of conformity between
national laws and the acquis.
In this new phase, the MFA was involved in coordination as far as it
was necessary to ensure external functions. These included preparation of
regular reports on Latvia’s progress, preparation for the Association Council
and Committee, the conduct of EU accession negotiations, as well as the EU
Accession delegation and the Permanent Representation (PR) in Brussels.
The EU policy department within the MFA had a key policy role, and, in
conjunction with the task force for negotiations, it coordinated and led the
“external” elements of the pre-accession process. The Deputy State Secretary
of the MFA headed the task force for negotiations.
This dual system lasted for some time, with rivalry between the PM
and the MFA, especially during 1997 and 1998, when the organization of
the coordination system was established for the period up to the end of
2003. Ministries received competing requests for information, for example,
from the EIB, MFA and EC, as coordination responsibilities for monitoring
the Association process and preparing for the Association Council and
Committee tended to overlap. The decision to abolish the EIB was intended
to rationalise these systems, but how its functions were to be distributed
was a source of tension. A European Affairs Bureau (EAB) was created as
the re placement body and located in the State Chancellery, where, from
1 December 2003, it was directly answerable to the PM. 5 However, this
arrangement lasted for little longer than a year. The decision was taken in
2004 to reorganize the EAB and, after January 2005, to return its functions
to the MFA. 6 The decision was taken on the basis that the Bureau could work
more effectively from within the MFA, as the latter had key resources and
diplomatic instruments at its disposal.
5
On Coordination of EU issues after accession of Latvia to the EU and Reorganization of
European Integration Bureau. Regulation No. 654, Cabinet of Ministers, 2003d.
6
On Reorganization of European Affairs Bureau. Regulation Nr. 207 (3155), Cabinet of
Ministers, 2004d.