On 20-21 May, the European Union's Eastern Partnership (EaP) Civil Society Conference will be held in Riga and attended by over 300 civil society representatives and experts from the EU Member States and EaP countries – Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine.

During the conference, recommendations will be drawn up for the EU institutions and EU and EaP member state governments to propose more effective ways of achieving the Eastern Partnership's objectives.The goal of the Conference is to help strengthen civil society and involve it in the planning and implementation of the Eastern Partnership policy.

The staging of this event in Latvia, the country currently holding the EU Council Presidency, continues the practice initiated during the Lithuanian Presidency of organising a broad-scale Civil Society Conference in parallel with the Eastern Partnership Summit to discuss issues closely related to the themes of the Summit. The Civil Society Conference provides a platform for representatives of civil society, non-governmental organisations and think tanks to debate Eastern Partnership issues.

Politicians and experts from EU and EaP countries will speak at the conference, which will be opened by the Prime Minister of the Republic of Latvia, Laimdota Straujuma.

Organisers:

The Latvian Institute of International Affairs (LIIA) provides decision-makers, experts, and the wider public in Latvia with analysis, recommendations and information about international developments, regional security issues, and foreign policy strategy and choices. It is an independent research institute that conducts research, issues publications, and organises lectures, seminars and conferences related to international affairs.
More:  https://www.facebook.com/LIIA.lv / @LIIA_LV

The Centre for East European Policy Studies (CEEPS) is a non-governmental organisation which aims to contribute to the development of Latvian foreign policy by carrying out research into the politics, history and economics of East European countries; to develop cooperation with Latvian and foreign research institutes and other organisations; to identify and explain Latvia’s interests to foreign countries. 
More: https://www.facebook.com/CentreForEastEuropeanPolicyStudies / @APPC_LV

The Latvian Transatlantic Organization(LATO) is a non-governmental organisation that aims to inform Latvian society about NATO and Latvia`s membership of the Alliance, to promote cooperation with other countries in order to inform the citizens of these countries about Latvia as a NATO member state, and to organise public information events about topical Latvian and Euro-Atlantic security policy issues.
More: https://www.facebook.com/LatvianTransatlanticOrganisation / @LATO_LV

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