The Latvian American Business Association of California (LABACA) has opened an office in Silicon Valley, the group announced Jan. 31.

The office, located in the Plug and Play Tech Center in Sunnyvale, Calif., is part of the association’s efforts to link technology-related businesses in Silicon Valley and Northern Europe, especially Latvia.

LABACA is a non-profit organization formed in August to foster cooperation between U.S. and Latvian intellectual and financial resources to form a high-tech “ecosystem.” It particularly aims to popularize Latvia’s information and communication technology sector.

“I am confident that the Plug and Play Tech Center community is the right place to initiate exposure and networking for Latvian startups,” Richard Grant Gailums, a LABACA board member, said in a press release. “I anticipate that the Plug and Play community and its valued partners, like Silicon Valley Bank, Greenberg Traurig, Berger Lewis and others will help create long-term relationships for successful high-growth young businesses from Latvia.”

The Sunnyvale facility is one of a half-dozen locations run by the Plug and Play Tech Center. Formed in 2006, Plug and Play now hosts more than 200 start-up companies in California. It also works with the companies to secure funding.

The office in Silicon Valley will help LABACA accomplish a number of goals, according to the press release. They include:

• Creation in Silicon Valley of a base of Latvian high tech companies, projects and ideas.
• Bringing innovative ideas from Latvia and Northern Europe to Silicon Valley, enabling transformation and exchange between economies.
• Using the Silicon Valley ecosystem, “business angels” and venture capital for launching Latvian startups.
• Transferring Internet security solutions to the United States from Europe and particularly Latvia.

In addition to opening the Silicon Valley office, LABACA in recent months met with Jared Cohen, head of Google’s think tank, and co-sponsored a conference in Rīga for Latvian iPhone application developers.

Further information about LABACA is available on the association’s website, www.labaca.org.