The Latvian parliament has ratified the European Union constitution as expected despite the proposed treaty being rejected by voters in France and The Netherlands.
The 71-5 vote in Latvia's 100-member parliament was widely expected after the charter was approved in a first reading May 19th.
Latvian legislators ratified the treaty to show the rest of Europe the way ahead, said Janis Lagzdins, chairman of the government coalition People's Party's faction.
"This was a symbolic step . . . that shows that Latvia and other new member states are for the new united Europe and its fundamental law," Mr Lagzdins said. "It was also a gesture of good will and a symbolic invitation to other countries to follow Latvia's example, and not France's."
Latvia is the 10th EU member country to approve the constitution.
On Sunday, 55 per cent of French voters said "no" to the disputed charter in a referendum; yesterday Dutch voters rejected it by an even wider margin.
After Latvia's vote, Prime Minister Aigars Kalvitis emphasised the importance of the constitution but also blamed EU leaders for not providing a clear vision of the future.
"The negative attitude shown toward the treaty can be explained not so much by its content, but due to the unclear vision of the European future that doesn't give clear answers to questions that are of interest to every European," he said.
AP