There is currently no military threat to Latvia, but the situation can always change over time, State President Edgars Rinkēvičs told journalists on Wednesday after a meeting with Prime Minister Evikas Siliņu.
Retired US Army Lieutenant General Ben Hodges, who was once the commander of US Army units in Europe, has said that in case of a Russian attack, Lithuania must be ready to defend itself for at least two weeks.
Asked how accurate such forecasts are for other Baltic states, Rinkēvičs emphasized that there are things on which there is no particular disagreement with military experts – any NATO member state must be able to defend itself from the first minute.
He drew attention to the fact that there is an extended presence battle group led by Canada in Latvia, Germany’s in Lithuania, and Great Britain’s in Estonia. Also, Latvia has its own defense plans, which foresee resistance to any invasion from the first moment.
The president explained that these plans delegate some responsibility to NATO’s supreme commander in Europe. He noted that plans and mandates are refined as the geopolitical situation and threat level evolves.
“Our life message is that we like to drive in ditches and not in the middle of the road. In the discussion that is happening in Latvia, we have two extremes. One is that there is no need to worry, NATO will help and we will not have to do anything ourselves, the other is that for two weeks [būs jānoturas] and must go on the run almost today. Both of these extremes, in my opinion, are not correct,” Rinkevičs said.
He emphasized that there are specific NATO procedures, there are allied forces in Latvia, training is taking place, but we have to do many things ourselves, for example, we have to invest in strengthening the military infrastructure. The President stated that this issue is also discussed with the Prime Minister every week.
“The Ministry of Defense has prepared an offer, the government is discussing, additional funding is being sought. I would not like to tell you in detail, because it is a matter of military security. I can say that the government is seriously working on it. We also talk about these issues regularly at the level of the National Security Council. We we clearly understand that we will also have to do it ourselves, but I will not speculate about time, detailed plans,” said the President.
He called to approach this issue as rationally as possible – Latvia has allies who will help, but we ourselves must understand that security is a process. In a changing environment, something will constantly have to be improved, improved, we must also be ready to fight, but it will not be the case that we will be the only ones fighting for a day, two or five.
“Of course, sending additional capabilities takes some time. There must be a readiness to resist. Many people ask me about actions in the event of a crisis or war. I invite everyone who is interested and who wants to help the national defense to join the National Guard, national defense reservists. Young people who, perhaps thinking about what to do after graduating from school and who are interested, can voluntarily join the National Defense Service,” Rinkēvičs said.
According to him, the more we learn ourselves, the more we understand what to do in the event of a crisis, the less the feeling of anxiety. The President stressed that public sentiment is understandably anxious at the moment, but he called for finding a middle ground between complete calm and complete anxiety, and to work rationally to strengthen the country’s defense and security.
2024-02-28 16:37:29
#Rinkēvičs #reassures #public #military #threat #Latvia
