NATO summit in Ankara was truly a success for Latvia - Riekstins

RIGA - The NATO summit in Turkey did not make any sensational headlines, but from Latvia's perspective, it was a success, Latvian Ambassador to NATO Maris Riekstins said in an interview with Latvian Television on Friday.

The summit declaration succinctly captures the unified views of the alliance member states' leaders on key issues, which in the future will serve not only as a tool for public communication, but also as a foundation for further work.

From Latvia's perspective, the summit was truly very successful, as it reaffirmed support for collective defense and Article 5 of the NATO Treaty, which is often the subject of debate regarding whether the alliance remains united, said Riekstins. "I think this is truly very important news both for our own residents (..) and also our adversaries, so that they understand that the leaders of the alliance's member states are united in their understanding of how we will continue to work together," he said.

A key aspect of the NATO summit was the assessment of implementation of decisions adopted at the previous summit, particularly regarding additional financial investments in defense. According to Riekstins, the summit noted and highlighted the fact that European countries and Canada have invested an additional USD 140 billion over the past year to strengthen their defense capabilities. This is significant, given the United States administration's repeated complaints that the United States has borne the lion's share of the financial burden of strengthening NATO for many years.

It was also important to reach a common understanding that Russia is one of the two main threats to NATO's security, alongside international terrorism. "This is not just a political slogan. It means that we will continue our work by assessing how to counter this threat," explained Latvia's ambassador to NATO.

Finally, Riekstins highlighted as significant the commitment reached at the summit to continue providing military support for Ukraine in its war against Russia.

As reported, NATO leaders at the summit in Ankara endorsed a commitment to provide Ukraine with EUR 140 billion in military aid in 2026 and 2027.

In the declaration, NATO leaders, including the United States, reaffirmed their unwavering commitment to the mutual assistance clause enshrined in Article 5 of the Alliance’s treaty.

As noted in the declaration, to counter the long-term threats posed by Russia to Euro-Atlantic security and stability, as well as the persistent threat of terrorism, last year, European allies and Canada increased their investments in key defense needs by more than USD 139 billion.

The allies also reiterate that Iran must never be allowed to possess nuclear weapons and call on Iran to fully respect freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.