RIGA, Feb. 22 (Xinhua) -- Defending national interests might become more difficult for Latvia after Brexit, given the external issues the European Union (EU) currently facing, Latvian Prime Minister Maris Kucinskis told members of the parliament's public expenditure and audit committee on Wednesday.
But Kucinskis assured the committee that the EU had no plans to end its payments to member states.
Although Britain's departure from the bloc is expected to reduce the EU budget by approximately 7 percent, funding will be provided to Latvia during the next programming period, starting after 2020. This, however, will require more targeted investing.
Representatives of the finance ministry, meanwhile, indicated in their presentation to lawmakers that the Brexit-related net reduction of the EU budget was estimated at around 6 percent. Talks on the EU's multiannual budget period after 2020 have only just begun, the ministry's representatives said.
On Tuesday, Kucinskis met with the British Secretary of State for Exiting the EU David Davis, who visited the three Baltic states this week in preparation for the upcoming Brexit talks.
