Latvia's Defence Minister has resigned following incidents involving Ukrainian drones
The news of Andris Spruds’ resignation was reported by the Latvian public broadcaster LSM. Andriy Sybiga’s statement regarding Ukrainian drones is contained in the minister’s post on X.
Latvian Defence Minister Andris Spruds has resigned following a series of incidents involving drones in the country’s airspace.
According to LSM, he made the decision following a request from Latvian Prime Minister Evika Silina. She stated that counter-drone systems had not been deployed quickly enough. Latvian Army Colonel Raivis Melnis has been appointed as the new defence minister.
Spruds stated that he was stepping down to avoid dragging the Latvian army into a political campaign.
“I have decided to resign from my post as defence minister to protect the Latvian army from being drawn into a political campaign,” he said.
According to Spruds, Latvia has faced serious incidents involving drones in recent days and weeks. He emphasised that foreign drones must not pose a threat to people’s safety.
What happened in Latvia
On the night of 7 May, several drones violated Latvian airspace. They flew in from Russian territory.
According to Reuters, two drones crashed in eastern Latvia, one of them hitting an area near an oil depot in Rēzekne. Four empty tanks were damaged; no reports of casualties or injuries were reported.
The Latvian authorities had previously explained that the drones were not shot down as this could have endangered civilians.
Following the incident, several opposition parties called on the Saeima to demand Spruds’ resignation.
The minister himself stated that he respected the opposition’s initiative and the parliament’s decision. He acknowledged that the drones should have been shot down, and attributed this to the responsibility of the military leadership and himself as the political head of the Ministry of Defence.
Ukraine’s position
On 10 May, Ukraine’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Andriy Sibiga stated that the drones were Ukrainian.
According to him, the incidents were the result of Russian electronic warfare systems, which affected the drones’ flight path. Sibiga said that Ukraine had informed the Latvian side of the investigation’s findings and was in contact with them.
Reuters also reports that Ukraine is considering sending experts to the Baltic states to help strengthen airspace security.
According to ERR, Ukraine has already contacted the Estonian embassy regarding this proposal. Estonian Defence Minister Hanno Pevkur stated that he still needs to clarify exactly what the Ukrainian initiative entails. He also noted that the simplest way to prevent Ukrainian drones from entering Estonian territory is to exercise better control over them.
Incidents in the Baltic states
This is not the first time that Ukrainian drones have, according to media reports, strayed off course whilst striking targets in Russia.
In March, Ukraine launched a series of strikes on Russian ports near St Petersburg. On that occasion, several drones strayed into the territory of the Baltic states and Finland.
In particular, during a strike on the night of 25 March, several drones lost their course, and two crashed in Latvia and Estonia.
Following these new incidents, Latvia and Lithuania have appealed to NATO to strengthen air defences in the Baltic region.
As reported by ThePublic, two drones from Russia flew into Latvia (VIDEO)
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