Mārtiņš Ziemanis, Deputy CEO of the Freeport of Riga, participated in the meeting and business conference of transport ministers from China and 16 Central and Eastern European countries (16+1 format) The 16+1 format activities took place on October 25–26 in Warsaw, the capital of Poland, with an aim to facilitate cooperation between countries involved in the field of transport and logistics.
During the business conference, participants discussed waterways as an effective and environmentally friendly part of the transport system, as well as the significance of sea ports in the economic development of the country. Mārtiņš Ziemanis, Deputy CEO of the Freeport of Riga, familiarised those present with the Port of Riga as well as presented its cooperation and investment opportunities. The presentation particularly emphasised investment opportunities in new projects, the status of a free economic area and other advantages of investments in the Port of Riga.
The presentation also emphasised the role of the Port of Riga in the development of Eurasian transport services between Latvia and China, as a result of which container trains Yiwu-Riga and Riga-Kashgar are received and dispatched via the port of Riga, as well as effective processing of freight carried out within the framework of the first combined maritime/railway container freight route from Ürümqi to Rotterdam, Netherlands, via the Port of Riga.
The 16+1 format envisages facilitating China’s cooperation with 16 European countries (Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Croatia, Poland, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina) in different areas, including logistics and transport.