5m
22 Jan 2025

World’s first openly-gay president on Trump’s LGBTQ stance

Presenter

President Trump’s threat to hit Russia with taxes, tariffs and sanctions if it doesn’t end the war in Ukraine, will be music to the ears of many people in Davos.

Ukraine and its backers are hoping the US President’s unpredictability will force Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table and end three years of carnage.

We spoke to Latvia’s President, Edgars Rinkēvičs, who told us he has long advocated for increased defence spending by the nations of Nato.

Edgars Rinkēvičs: My country has long time advocated for more defence spending. We are currently discussing to reach 4-5 per cent. We were discussing that already before President Trump made this announcement.

Cathy Newman: And you already have 3 per cent of GDP?

Edgars Rinkēvičs: We are at 3.4 per cent at this time.

Cathy Newman: Whereas the UK hasn’t even said when it will get to 2.5  per cent. So what do you say to Keir Starmer about that?

Edgars Rinkēvičs: I do believe that when we meet at the Nato summit in the Hague in June, we must make a common decision that we should increase – 2.5 probably is not the ceiling anymore, it’s a floor. I would say that there are going to be countries like Latvia, like Baltic countries, that would spend more because simply it’s an existential issue for us.

Cathy Newman: When you talk about the existential threat to Latvia from Russia, how important is it that Russia is punished for war? Because Donald Trump’s come in saying he wants to end the war in Ukraine. Does Ukraine have to make compromises to secure peace?

Edgars Rinkēvičs: I think that we should change this kind of narrative. It’s not about Ukraine that should make peace. We should keep pressing Russia, and what I’m hearing from President Trump when he was talking about Russia and its economy and Mr Putin actually putting Russia into a very risky position. Those are very good signals. We need to keep pressing Russia in two ways. So sanctions, number one, and also through supplying Ukraine with all military equipment Ukraine is asking for. If we see the strategy that we want to force Russia to sit at the table, not at the expense of Ukraine, with Ukraine present, then maybe we can reach some agreement. Where my biggest worry is that even by reaching an agreement, we lift sanctions or we stop arming Ukraine or we push Ukraine to make unnecessary concessions, then Russia regroups and it may continue to be present and clear danger to all of us.

Cathy Newman: Given how robust Latvia has to be about defending your borders from Russian aggression, are you troubled by Donald Trump’s rhetoric about Greenland, about Panama? Even if it is just rhetoric, we don’t really know.

Edgars Rinkēvičs: I do hope that this is the rhetoric. I do understand American concerns about security of Greenland, about also the Arctic as being the next playground when it comes to China, when it comes to Russia. I very much hope that the United States and Denmark will resolve that within the spirit of being allies and within the spirit of international law. And let’s not forget also…

Cathy Newman: Donald Trump’s no great respecter of international law, is he?

Edgars Rinkēvičs: I do believe that there is still a role of making a good deal and respecting international law.

Cathy Newman: Finally, you made history, the first openly gay president in the world.

Edgars Rinkēvičs: That was a long time ago.

Cathy Newman: But I wonder then how you view what you’re hearing from Donald Trump on LGBT rights.

Edgars Rinkēvičs: Of course, it’s up to the American congress and people and the president to decide about if they respect those rights or not, but I do hope that we are not going to see backsliding. I think that there is a big difference here, and that is where I have also had the discussion back home about how far do you respect transgender people’s rights. I do see that probably at some point this discussion went probably too far to one extreme. Now, I do hope it’s not going to go too far to the other extreme.

Cathy Newman: So ‘woke’ was a problem?

Edgars Rinkēvičs: I think that for many people, they have felt that some things went too far. That’s where American people have made quite a clear choice. I do hope that we will respect basic rights everywhere. But I think that also when you get quotas and when you get some kind of affirmative actions, then other people believe that they are discriminated. So I think that those things are very sensitive. I know that myself, from my own experience. But I know many Republicans, I know some appointees in the administration that are gay people. So I think that we should not also exaggerate.

Cathy Newman: All is not lost?

Edgars Rinkēvičs: There is a balance.