Riga  - The economic crisis battering Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania could lead to a fresh wave of emigration from the Baltic states to Western Europe, Latvian Prime Minister Valdis Dombrovskis warned Friday.

Speaking at the Baltic Economic Forum in the Latvian capital, Dombrovskis said that because Western Europe has not suffered as much as Eastern Europe from the economic downturn and is expected to return to growth sooner, Balts would likely pack their bags and take jobs in the West once again.

"It is a huge problem. Once the economy picks up in western Europe, we will have this problem again," Dombrovskis said.

Building a more sustainable economy with increased productivity would help, but would not completely solve the Baltic brain drain, Dombrovskis said.

Wage cuts are commonplace across the recession-hit Baltics at present, widening further the gap between East and West.

A first wave of economic emigration after the three countries joined the European Union in 2004 saw thousands leave their homelands for jobs mainly in the UK and Ireland.

That created a labour shortage at home which drove up wages rapidly, sending inflation into double digits.

But with unemployment now exceeding 10 per cent across the region and little prospect of any immediate relief, thousands more could depart.

Lithuanian Prime Minister Andrius Kubilius, who was also attending the event, said that wages were not the only factor driving Balts away from their homelands.

"They do not have a clear vision and dream of what the situation will be in two or three years," Kubilius said.

Governments needed to show that the crisis would last for the next year and a half or two years and then the situation would improve, he said.(dpa)