Latvian President's Rating Drops Due to His Support of US-led War in Iraq

Ratings of Latvian President Vaira Vike-Freiberga and other top officials dropped due to their support of the American war in Iraq, according to an opinion poll held in March by Latvijas Fakti (Latvian Facts) sociology firm. Its results were made public on Wednesday.

The poll revealed that Vike-Freiberga's rating fell by 18.8 points within a month. In January, her rating was 69.9 points, 62.1 points in February and only 46.3 points in March.

Vike-Freiberga's popularity has never been so low over the four years of her presidency.

The rating of Saeima (parliament) speaker Ingrida Udre dropped too, while that of Prime Minister Einars Repse has not changed and remains low. The popularity of Foreign Minister Sandra Kalniete and Defence Minister Girts Kristovskis, advocates of Latvian participation in the Iraq war, declined too.

Sociologists believe the drop in ratings of the country's leaders is not unexpected. "The top officials' support for the United States and the war, which contradicts the public opinion, could not remain without consequences," head of Latvijas Fakti Aigars Freimanis believes.