As part of a trade mission to Poland and Ukraine organized by the Investment and Development Agency of Latvia (LIAA) and led by Minister of Economics Viktors Valainis, three memoranda of cooperation were signed in Kyiv on April 24. These agreements will provide a practical framework for Latvian companies’ export and cooperation opportunities in the fields of defense, technology, and energy, making a practical contribution to both strengthening Ukraine’s resilience and its future development. Meanwhile, the business forum in Warsaw confirmed that Poland is one of the most promising cooperation partners for Latvian companies, particularly in the fields of technology and energy.
Minister of Economics Viktors Valainis emphasizes:
“Trade volumes between Latvia and Ukraine and the dynamics of mutual investment clearly demonstrate that there are significant growth prospects here that must be seized upon now. The signed memorandums, particularly in the defense sector, together with the planned exchange of analytical information and corporate participation in projects, create a practical foundation for realizing this potential.”
The memorandums signed in Kyiv cover both institutional cooperation and practical business support
The memorandum between the Ukrainian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Latvia, the Ministry of Economics of the Republic of Latvia, and the LIAA provides for cooperation in the defense industry, including the development of joint projects, technology exchange, and the attraction of European Union (EU) funding. The agreement strengthens institutional coordination and ensures access for Latvian companies to projects in Ukraine’s defense sector.
Meanwhile, the memorandums between the LIAA and the Ukrainian trade and business development platform “Trade House Ukraine,” as well as between LIAA and the European-Ukrainian business development platform “Trade House Europe,” are aimed at providing practical support to companies—including partner search, market entry, the development of logistics solutions, and project implementation in Ukraine.
The agreements provide for cooperation in the development of infrastructure and investment projects, the creation of logistics corridors, attracting EU funding, as well as supporting companies in entering the market and implementing pilot projects. A key role is assigned to the exchange of analytical information, the organization of business missions and individual B2B meetings, as well as the involvement of Latvian companies in Ukraine’s reconstruction projects.
Ieva Jāgere, Director of the LIAA, explains:
“With these memorandums, we are significantly simplifying the entry of Latvian companies into the Ukrainian market, as they provide coordinated support, ranging from identifying potential partners and gathering market intelligence to implementing export projects. In practical terms, this means that companies no longer have to navigate this path on their own — a structured institutional framework is provided, where the LIAA, together with Ukrainian and Latvian partner institutions, helps to find cooperation partners more quickly and accurately, understand market specifics, and advance specific projects to the implementation phase. This significantly reduces barriers to entry and accelerates the path from a business idea to actual deals and investments.”
The results of the mission to Poland confirm that Poland is one of the most promising cooperation partners for Latvian companies, particularly in the technology and energy sectors. There is significant potential for joint project development in the defense industry, as well as in digital solutions and smart energy. This is confirmed by meetings and discussions with representatives of the Polish Dual-Use Chamber and the organization Digital Poland, as well as with the company WB Group, which is one of the leading companies in Poland’s private defense industry specializing in unmanned systems, battle management solutions, and modern military technologies.
The companies and organizations included in the Latvian delegation represent a broad spectrum of Latvia’s economic sectors, including defense and security—Brasa Defence Systems; energy and green transition solutions—Latvenergo, EcoHeat Technologies, and Stiga RM; information and communication technologies, digitalization, and artificial intelligence solutions – Latvijas Mobilais Telefons, Tet, Tilde, Belam-Rīga, and Exonicus R&D; pharmaceuticals and health technologies – Olpha; in industry and engineering solutions – Rīgas dīzelis DG, Lesjofors Springs LV LSEZ, and Easywood; in the finance and business support sector – Rietumu Banka, the Latvian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and the Latvian Exporters Association “The Red Jackets”; as well as in the field of the environment and the circular economy – Eco Baltia vide.
Business forums in Warsaw and Kyiv, with significant interest from local companies, demonstrated high international interest and the competitiveness of Latvian companies. The signed memorandums, in turn, provide the necessary institutional framework for this cooperation to translate into concrete projects and deals.
Artūrs Vasiļevskis, Chairman of the Board of the technology company “Tilde,” notes:
“Following this LIAA trade mission to Poland and Ukraine, we clearly see significant potential for the development of digital solutions in the region, as well as for the development and use of our language technology solutions. Particularly significant are the opportunities to collaborate on EU-level projects in the fields of artificial intelligence and multilingual technologies, which could become the next step in our growth in the European market.”
The trade mission is part of the LIAA’s targeted efforts to strengthen the export capacity of Latvian companies, expand their operations in international markets, and promote participation in high-value-added projects.
The LIAA organizes participation in trade missions abroad as part of the EU-co-financed Innovative Entrepreneurship Development Program for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs), with support from the European Regional Development Fund and state funding.
