Latvian Diplomatic Service
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The Latvian diplomatic service in exile was the only governmental body of the
Republic of Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...
which continued its activities during the Nazi and Soviet occupation of Latvia during 1940–1991. Latvian diplomats who were stationed in embassies and consulates at the moment of the occupation in 1940, refused to recognize the occupation and return to Soviet Latvia. They continued to formally represent the interests of Latvia in countries that did not recognize the Soviet annexation. After the restoration of Latvian independence in 1991, the diplomats started reporting to the restored Latvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.


Background

Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...
was occupied on June 17, 1940, by
Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic and, after ...
troops and officially annexed to the
Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
on August 5, 1940 in the form of the
Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic The Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic (Latvian SSR), also known as Soviet Latvia or simply Latvia, was a federated republic within the Soviet Union, and formally one of its 16 (later 15) constituent republics. The Latvian Soviet Socialist Rep ...
. One month before the occupation, on 17 May 1940 the Cabinet of Ministers granted extraordinary powers to Kārlis Zariņš, Latvia’s Ambassador to the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
. Mr. Zariņš was authorised to defend Latvia’s interests, supervise the work of Latvia’s representations abroad and handle their finances and property. This created a legal basis for the functioning of the diplomatic service in the absence of a legal government in Latvia."ON GUARD FOR LATVIA'S STATEHOOD" Latvia's Foreign Service Staff in Exile During the Years of Occupation June 17, 1941 - August 21, 1991
- Official website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Latvia
The United States never recognized the forcible and illegal annexation of the
Baltic States The Baltic states, et, Balti riigid or the Baltic countries is a geopolitical term, which currently is used to group three countries: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. All three countries are members of NATO, the European Union, the Eurozone, ...
in conformity with the principles of the
Stimson Doctrine The Stimson Doctrine is the policy of nonrecognition of states created as a result of a war of aggression. The policy was implemented by the United States government, enunciated in a note of January 7, 1932, to the Empire of Japan and the Repub ...
(US Under Secretary of State
Sumner Welles Benjamin Sumner Welles (October 14, 1892September 24, 1961) was an American government official and diplomat in the Foreign Service. He was a major foreign policy adviser to President Franklin D. Roosevelt and served as Under Secretary of State ...
’s Declaration of July 23, 1940), and more than 50 countries followed this position. The work of the diplomatic service was financed from Latvian gold reserves in foreign banks.


Activity

During the occupation, Latvian diplomatic missions continued their work in
Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
,
Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
,
Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
,
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
,
Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...
,
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
,
West Germany West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...
,
Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
, the
Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
,
Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...
,
Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...
,
Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
,
Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
, the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
and the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
. The Latvian diplomatic service regularly issued official statements regarding the illegality of the Soviet occupation and annexation of Latvia as well as regarding Latvia’s right to restore its national independence. It was also protecting the interests of Latvian citizens abroad and the Latvian property abroad. In 1947 a joint communication on the occupation of Baltic states to the UN was sent by the Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian diplomats abroad. The
Baltic Appeal to the United Nations The Baltic Appeal ( et, Balti apell, lv, Baltijas harta or ''Baltiešu memorands'', lt, 45 pabaltijiečių memorandumas) was a public letter to the general secretary of the United Nations, Soviet Union, East Germany, East and West Germany, and s ...
(now "Baltic Association to the United Nations") was formed in 1966. On March 26, 1949, the US State Department issued a circular stating that the Baltic states were still independent nations with their own diplomatic representatives. In 1969, the Latvian Counselor to the US
Anatols Dinbergs Anatols Dinbergs (, 1911 – November 9, 1993) was one of the preeminent career diplomats of Latvia. He entered service in Latvia's Foreign Ministry in 1932. Dinbergs remained abroad when the Soviet Union occupied Latvia, serving in the Latvia ...
, among leaders of 73 countries around the world, signed the
Apollo 11 Goodwill Messages The Apollo 11 goodwill messages are statements from leaders of 73 countries around the world on a disc about the size of a 50-cent piece made of silicon that was left on the Moon in 1969 by the Apollo 11 astronauts. The disc also carried name ...
on behalf of the Latvian nation. Nevertheless, Latvia was not allowed to establish a
government-in-exile A government in exile (abbreviated as GiE) is a political group that claims to be a Sovereign state, country or semi-sovereign state's legitimate government, but is unable to exercise legal power and instead resides in a foreign country. Govern ...
in any Western country or sign the
Declaration of the United Nations The Declaration by United Nations was the main treaty that formalized the Allies of World War II and was signed by 47 national governments between 1942 and 1945. On 1 January 1942, during the Arcadia Conference, the Allied " Big Four"—the Unite ...
(1942), as Latvian diplomats wished. The Soviet Foreign Ministry issued formal protests against the Baltic diplomatic missions remaining open in Washington DC and elsewhere.Hiden, pp. 63–64
/ref> In Canada the official list of diplomats included the offices of the Baltic states: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. In the early 1960s that caused the Soviet Embassy in Canada to refuse to receive the lists distributed by the
Canadian Department of External Affairs Global Affairs Canada (GAC; french: Affaires mondiales Canada; AMC)''Global Affairs Canada'' is the applied title under the Federal Identity Program; the legal title is Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development (). is the department ...
. Eventually, the UK excluded the Baltic diplomats from the Diplomatic List, but as a compromise Baltic diplomats continued to be accepted as possessing a diplomatic character by His/Her Majesty's Governments.James T. McHugh, James S. Pacy, p.101
/ref> The Latvian diplomatic service in exile actively co-operated with organizations of the
Latvian diaspora The Latvian diaspora refers to Latvians and people of Latvian descent residing outside Latvia. According to estimates by the Latvian Foreign Ministry, as at 2012, about 370,000 Latvian citizens permanently resided outside of Latvia, most of ...
in joint efforts to keep Western countries from formally recognizing Latvia’s annexation by the USSR. The existence of the exiled diplomatic service was another demonstration of the illegality of the annexation.


Transition of mandate after restoration of independence

The exiled diplomatic service of Latvia played an important role during the restoration of independence of Latvia in 1988 - 1990 and in ensuring the legal continuity between the newly independent Latvian state and the interwar Latvian Republic. Latvia's parliament officially restored the country’s full independence on the 21 August 1991 in the aftermath of the failed
Soviet coup attempt The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen national ...
. Wide international recognition of restored independence started after that, and the legations and consulates of the exiled diplomatic service were transferred to the Latvian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Anatols Dinbergs, the last head of the diplomatic service in exile, was promoted to the rank of
Ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or sov ...
and
Permanent Representative A permanent representative is a diplomat who is the head of a country’s diplomatic mission to an international organisation. Organizations that receive permanent representatives from their member states include the United Nations, the World Tr ...
to the
United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...
(September - December 1991) as well as Ambassador to the United States (1991–1992).


Heads of the Latvian diplomatic service in exile

* Kārlis Zariņš (Charles Zarine) (1940–1963) *
Arnolds Spekke Arnolds Spekke (or ''Arnolds Speke''; born 14 June 1887, Vecmuiža parish, Russian Empire — died 27 July 1972, Washington, D.C., USA) received a doctorate in philology from the University of Latvia in 1927. In 1932 he received a Rockefeller Fou ...
(1963–1970) *
Anatols Dinbergs Anatols Dinbergs (, 1911 – November 9, 1993) was one of the preeminent career diplomats of Latvia. He entered service in Latvia's Foreign Ministry in 1932. Dinbergs remained abroad when the Soviet Union occupied Latvia, serving in the Latvia ...
(1971–1991).


See also

*
State continuity of the Baltic states The three Baltic countries, or the Baltic states – Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania – are held to have continued as legal entities under international law Ziemele (2005). p118. while under the Soviet occupation from 1940 to 1991, as well as dur ...
* Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Latvia) *
Latvian Central Council The Latvian Central Council (LCC, lv, Latvijas Centrālā Padome, LCP) was the pro-independence Latvian resistance movement during World War II from 1943 onwards. The LCC consisted of members from across the spectrum of former leading Latvian po ...


References

{{Latvia topics Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic Baltic diplomatic missions Diplomatic services Former governments in exile Government of Latvia Occupation of the Baltic states Anti-communist organisations in Latvia