No need to wait for NATO Summit to invest in defense capabilities - president

RIGA - There is no need to wait for the NATO Summit to ensure investments in Latvia's defense capabilities, stressed President Edgars Rinkevics, who met with Defense Minister Andris Spruds (Progressives) at Riga Castle on Friday.

Martins Dregeris, advisor to the President, told LETA that during the meeting the Defense Minister informed about the NATO Defense Ministers' meeting that took place in Brussels on Thursday.

The President and the Defense Minister discussed the NATO capability targets for the implementation of the Alliance's defense plans, as well as the necessary defense funding and actions to meet these targets.

Rinkevics said that the Allies' ability to send a clear signal at the NATO Summit in The Hague on substantial investments in deterrence and defense reinforcement and the mobilization of the defense industry will be crucial.

"A united and strong transatlantic alliance is the best deterrence signal against Russian aggression," the President of Latvia noted, underlining Latvia's priorities for the NATO Summit.

He also pointed out that Latvia had a responsibility to meet the objectives of NATO capabilities. It is also in Latvia's interest that all Allies fulfill them.

The President emphasized that Latvia should purposefully fill its capability gaps in priority areas - arming of ground forces, air defense capabilities, infrastructure development - and increase the human resources of the National Armed Forces.

Rinkevics stressed the need for the Defense Ministry to continue to explain to the Latvian public in a reasoned manner the decisions already taken and the necessary next steps to ensure inter-sectoral support for the increase of funding in the defense budget.

NATO has reportedly agreed on the biggest arms program since the Cold War, sources close to the talks told the DPA news agency on Thursday. It envisages a significant increase in deterrence and defense capabilities in the coming years as Russia remains a serious threat to the military alliance.