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Truman-Reagan Medal of Freedom

H.E. Sandra Kalniete

Her Excellency Sandra Kalniete is a Latvian politician, author, diplomat, and independence movement leader. She served as Foreign Minister of Latvia from 2002 to 2004, and as European Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development, and Fisheries in 2004. Since 2009, she has served as a member of the European Parliament, representing the European People’s Party. After her re-election in 2014, she became Vice-Chair of the European People’s Party group in the European Parliament. Kalniete has also served as Ambassador to the United Nations, France, and UNESCO. Having been born into a family who were the victims of Soviet crimes, Sandra Kalniete is involved in many human rights causes pertaining to totalitarian crimes. She chairs Reconciliation of European Histories Group, an all-party group in the European Parliament aimed at coming to terms with the totalitarian past of many countries in Europe.