Latvia's former prime minister Aigars Kalvītis is being criticized at home for dropping diplomatic protocol by having lunch with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday during an investment forum in Moscow.

RIGA – Former Prime Minister Aigars Kalvītis has defended his impromptu luncheon with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, calling his detractors “jealous.”

In an interview Friday with the “900 Seconds” morning television program, Kalvītis said he and the Russian leader met on the sidelines of an investment forum in Moscow and that the two discussed developing Latvian-Russian relations, particularly the need to hammer out an agreement on avoiding double taxation.

News of their luncheon was first reported in the Russian-language daily Chas on Wednesday, and surprised many in Latvia. Economy Minister Artis Kampars said in a TV interview on Thursday that he was shocked when he first heard of the meeting and wanted an explanation of what Kalvītis and Putin spoke about. Kampars chided Kalvītis for neglecting diplomatic protocol.

Kalvītis shot back, saying that, as an individual, he doesn’t owe anyone an explanation and that Kampars should instead ask why there hasn’t been any noticeable improvement in the economy.

He said Friday it was perfectly normal if both current and former government heads hold talks.

Kalvītis, who recently resigned his seat in Parliament, is still a ranking member of the People’s Party, which is a bitter rival with New Era, to which Kampars belong.

Analysts slammed Kalvītis. “It’s a remarkable example of haughtiness on the part of Kalvītis,” political commentator Karlis Streips told Baltic Reports. “He says it’s nobody’s business, but it is very much Latvia’s business,” he said, explaining that Putin is a public figure and that Kalvītis himself is still a member of the People’s Party, a senior member of the ruling coalition.

“Kalvītis has always been about doing whatever he wants and not caring what anyone else thinks. He was like that when he was prime minister, and he’s like that now. Nothing’s changed,” said Streips.

The luncheon is reminiscent of a similar event in 2002, when former Foreign Minister Jānis Jurkāns met with the President Putin in the Kremlin. At the time Latvia was in pre-parliamentary election campaign mode, so Jurkāns, who represented the center-left Harmony Center, received a hailstorm of criticism for trying to garner political dividends through a tête-à-tête with the Russian leader.

And though the chat with Putin ultimately worked for Jurkāns in the poll, it is unlikely that the meeting with Putin will endear the center-right People’s Party – which has a very low ranking and was battered in municipal elections earlier this year – to many Latvians, who continue to regard with suspicion any demonstration of Russian interests in the Baltics.