On May 15, Vitebsk / Diana Kurilo - BELTA /. Over 4.4 thousand citizens of Latvia, residents of territories bordering Belarus, have received permits for local border traffic. This was announced today at a briefing by Oleg Matskevich, Deputy Chairman of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee, as reported by a BELTA correspondent. In accordance with the agreement between the governments of Belarus and Latvia on a simplified procedure for mutual travel of residents of border territories, dated August 23, 2010, consular institutions began accepting documents for the issuance of permits for local border traffic from February 1 of the current year. Initially, about 200 people were included in the lists from the Belarusian side, and about 4 thousand from the Latvian side. As of May 1, when new lists were submitted to the consulates, they contained, according to Oleg Matskevich, about 1 thousand and 5 thousand people, respectively. As the Deputy Chairman of the Regional Executive Committee noted, out of more than 4 thousand citizens of Latvia who applied for a permit for local border traffic, only three were refused due to issues with the criminal code. "This testifies to the good-neighborly relations between our states and the established friendly, constructive contacts," he emphasized. Although family ties most often serve as the basis for issuing permits for local border traffic (accounting for about 70%), business meetings are also a valid argument for participating in small border traffic. Active business processes involving Belarusian and Latvian entrepreneurs are underway in the Verkhnedvinsk and Braslav districts, which is greatly facilitated by the simplified border crossing procedure. In addition to visiting relatives and regular business contacts, the grounds for issuing permits include organizing or participating in cultural, educational, scientific, and sports events held by the authorities and institutions of Belarus and Latvia, owning real estate, visiting relatives' burial sites, receiving medical care, and participating in events related to local traditions and religious ceremonies.