the latvian institute of international affairs was founded in 1992 by founder/former director atis lejiņš (1992-2011). dr andris sprūds became director of the latvian think thank in 2011, whilst karlis bukovskis is the current deputy director. the liia consists of 10 or more research fellows with expertise in varying fields such as; foreign policy and security issues, the dynamics of the european union and eu external relations, transcontinental interconnectivity initiatives, including those of the new silk road. and latvia's membership in the eu. there are also a number of associate research fellows at the institute.