Latvia’s centre-right Prime Minister Evika Siliņa has resigned after sacking her Defence Minister over the army’s failure to shoot down stray Ukrainian drones. Two Ukrainian drones aimed at Russia accidentally crashed in Latvia last Thursday (7 May), with one exploding at an oil storage unit.
The drones were not detected as they flew in from Russia, the head of the Latvian army said. Siliņa blamed Defence Minister Andris Sprūds for failing to develop anti-drone systems quickly enough and demanded his resignation.
Sprūds resigned on Sunday (10 May) and Siliņa appointed Latvian army colonel Raivis Melnis as the new Defence Minister.
However, in response, Sprūds’ Progressives Party withdrew its support from Siliņa’s coalition government, leaving her without a parliamentary majority.
“I am resigning, but I am not giving up,” Siliņa, who has served as Prime Minister since 2023, said in a televised statement.
Siliņa’s resignation came just months before an election due in October. Right-wing populist party Latvia First is currently leading in the polls, while Siliņa’s New Unity party is trailing in third or fourth place in recent surveys.
Her government will remain in office in a caretaker capacity until a replacement is sworn in. Latvian President Edgars Rinkēvičs, who is tasked under the constitution with selecting a new head of government, is due to meet all parliamentary parties on Friday.
Latvia and Lithuania called on NATO to strengthen air defences in their countries following last week’s drone incident, in which four empty oil tanks were damaged at a storage site in the Latvian city of Rēzekne, about 40 km (25 miles) from the Russian border.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha blamed “Russian electronic warfare” for “deliberately diverting Ukrainian drones " from targets in Russia.
Ukraine is considering sending experts to help strengthen air security over the Baltic states, Sybiha added.
Several stray Ukrainian military drones struck Latvia and its Baltic NATO neighbours Estonia and Lithuania in late March. One hit a chimney at a local power station, while another crash-landed in a frozen lake before exploding.
As leaders from across Eurasia gather in Kyrgyzstan for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit, the...
Iran has reached an understanding with Oman on transit arrangements through the Strait of Hormuz, but the waterway will remain closed until the U.S...
At least 37 people were killed after a Russian drone strike hit an ammunition depot in the Kyiv region, triggering powerful secondary explosions&nb...
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi accused U.S. government and Israel-aligned actors of manipulating energy markets to promote the war with Iran.
Iran has reached an understanding with Oman on transit arrangements through the Strait of Hormuz, but the waterway will remain closed until the U.S. fulfils its commitments, a senior Iranian diplomat said on Saturday.
Russian strikes on the Kyiv region overnight killed 37 people, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said. Zelenskyy added that the Ukrainian capital was under "virtually nonstop attack" from drones.
At least 37 people were killed after a Russian drone strike hit an ammunition depot in the Kyiv region, triggering powerful secondary explosions President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Saturday, vowing to punish suspected negligence in the second such incident in two months.
Icelanders will vote on Saturday, 29 August, on whether to resume negotiations with the European Union, in a referendum that could reopen the country’s long-debated membership question.
As leaders from across Eurasia gather in Kyrgyzstan for the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit, the meeting is bringing together countries with very different interests, from China and Russia to India, Iran and Azerbaijan.
At least 37 people were killed after a Russian drone strike hit an ammunition depot in the Kyiv region, triggering powerful secondary explosions President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Saturday, vowing to punish suspected negligence in the second such incident in two months.
The death toll from last week's catastrophic floods in Nepal and Tibet rose to 750 on Sunday, with 3,044 people still missing, as fresh rainfall pushed up river levels and forced rescuers to move to higher ground.
Türkiye, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan are set to convene the first high-level meeting under their newly established Mecca Joint Defence Agreement, marking an early step in efforts to deepen military and security cooperation among the three countries.
In Nepal's Chitwan district, a region better known for its forests, wildlife and pilgrimage sites, authorities are carrying out mass burials for hundreds of victims of the country's devastating glacier-triggered floods as the scale of the disaster continues to unfold.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment