Kulbergs apologizes to Dombrava for his remarks
Translated from Latvian and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.
At a glance
- Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs apologized to Interior Minister Jānis Dombrava for harsh comments about Dombrava’s immigration proposal.
- The coalition discussed the proposal but did not advance it for government consideration.
- Kulbergs said politicians would discuss immigration restrictions on Sept. 4, including illegal migration and unauthorized employment, while avoiding a blanket ban on foreign students.
Latvian Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs apologized to Interior Minister Jānis Dombrava after attacking him and his National Alliance party over an immigration proposal.
The coalition discussed Dombrava’s proposal at its weekly meeting on Aug. 31 but did not send it forward for consideration by the government. Kulbergs later criticized Dombrava on social media, accusing him of staging a loud but ineffective fight over migration and misleading voters.
Dombrava’s staged MIGRANT fight. The National Alliance’s hysteria over immigration sometimes looks like a grumpy kindergartner. Here is everything you need to know about Jānis Dombrava’s theatrical fight over immigration. Apparently, real results on restricting migration do not matter to Dombrava, only loud and pointless shouting. It is very sad that voters are being fooled in this way.
At a news conference after a government meeting on Sept. 1, Kulbergs apologized for those remarks. He also said he was tired of the pre-election period, when too much time goes to discussion and too little to work. He said he believed his colleagues could pull together.
We cannot cut it off with a knife and say no to foreign students.
Kulbergs said a political discussion scheduled for Sept. 4 would produce decisions on immigration restrictions, but warned against making policy too bluntly. He expects Dombrava to propose how to address foreign students, saying Latvia cannot simply reject all foreign students while it also tackles illegal migration allegedly facilitated by several educational institutions.
The prime minister also wants a solution to illegal employment. He said some sectors lack workers, so restrictions cannot be applied indiscriminately.
We cannot cut it off with a knife.
Originally published by Delfi Latvia in Latvian. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.