Baltic, Education and Science, Forum, Investments

The goal of the fund is to offer financial support to students and young professionals from Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia to enable them to gain work experience or study in the United States, and to make a contribution to the development of the Baltic States through the knowledge and experience obtained.

The Foreign Ministry notes that the opening of the foundation bears witness to the long-term investment by the U.S. in the development of the Baltic States, as well as to the close cooperation between the allies.

A meeting will take place today in Riga between Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovskis (New Era), Foreign Ministry State Secretary Andris Teikmanis, and a delegation from the foundation's board.

In addition, the opening of the Baltic-American Freedom Foundation will be announced at the U.N. General Assembly in New York, where U.S. Deputy Secretary of State James Steinberg will meet with the foreign ministers of the three Baltic States. An announcement will also be made at the meeting of the three Baltic States presidents in Riga.

The foundation's homepage can be found at www.balticamericanfreedomfoundation.org. Funding for the organization has been acquired from the former Baltic-American Enterprise Fund, which operated from 1994 to 2008.