Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09RIGA104
2009-02-26 11:48:00
UNCLASSIFIED
Embassy Riga
Cable title:  

President Zatlers asks Dombrovskis to form government

Tags:  PGOV PINR PREL LG 
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UNCLAS RIGA 000104 

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PINR PREL LG
SUBJECT: President Zatlers asks Dombrovskis to form government

UNCLAS RIGA 000104

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PINR PREL LG
SUBJECT: President Zatlers asks Dombrovskis to form government


1. President Zatlers has asked current MEP and former finance
minister Valdis Dombrovskis of the New Era party to try and form a
new government to replace the one led by Ivars Godmanis.
Dombrovskis does not have a time limit on when he needs to present
his program and ministerial slate to parliament for approval, but he
has said that he wants to move quickly. Dombrovskis has said that he
wants to try to work with New Era, People's Party, Greens and
Farmers, Civic Union, Fatherland and Freedom and the three
independent members to form a new coalition. If he succeeds in
getting all these parties, he could have as many as 67 votes in
parliament. If Dombrovskis were unable to form a government, an
unlikely situation in our view, the President could tap another
individual to try.


2. The main topics of negotiation in coalition formation are
expected to be economic issues and budget cuts needed by March 31,
selection of a new anti-corruption chief, and the size of the
cabinet and allocation of ministerial portfolios within it. The
foreign policy orientation of the government is unlikely to change
from what Latvia has been pursuing for many years and responsible
NATO membership and strong ties with the US are likely to feature
prominently.


3. Bio notes: Valdis Dombrovskis was born August 5, 1971. His early
career was in science and he holds advanced degrees in physics and
studied in a PhD program in electrical engineering at the University
of Maryland. In 1988, he switched to economics and joined the Bank
of Latvia as a macroeconomic analyst. At the Bank, Dombrovskis
progressed rapidly, first to Senior Economist in 1999, and then
Chief Economist in 2001. Dombrovskis was a founding member of the
New Era Party when then Bank of Latvia head Einars Repse established
the party in 2002. Dombrovskis was the head of the working group
that drafted New Era's Budget and Tax program for the 2002 election
and served as Finance Minister in Repse's government from November
2002 to March 2004. In 2004, he was elected to the European
Parliament. In 2007, he earned a Master's degree in Economics from
Riga's Technical University. Dombrovskis is fluent in Latvian,
English, German, and Russian, and has a basic understanding of
Spanish. He is married.

Rogers