Silina dissatisfied with delayed cell broadcast message over drone incident in Rezekne

RIGA - Prime Minister Evika Silina (New Unity) on Thursday voiced dissatisfaction with a tardy response to a drone crash at an oil storage facility in Rezekne, saying that the cell broadcast alert was sent out only after the incident had already happened.

Silina told this to reporters after a Crisis Management Meeting convened by the prime minister on last night's drone incidents in eastern Latvia.

It should be borne in mind that such incidents are a consequence of Russia's war in Ukraine, and Latvia should be prepared for such incidents to happen again, Silina said.

The cell broadcast system worked on Thursday, but Silina was dissatisfied with the situation in which the warning was sent out only after the incident at the oil storage facility in Rezekne had already happened. Defense Minister Andris Spruds (Progressives) will be asked to explain the reasons for the delay.

Spruds said at the news conference in Rezekne that the question whether the cell broadcast message was delayed was justified, which is why it is necessary to assess what has worked and what has not.

"I will carry out such an assessment and inspection, and I will have it carried out in the armed forces, [to assess] what has worked and what has not," Spruds promised.

At the same time, the minister acknowledged that cell broadcasting is triggered upon gathering "a certain set of information". According to him, there is "a lot of information every night", but it is unlikely that cell broadcasting should be triggered "every minute". He reiterated that what happened last night would be evaluated and, if necessary, the algorithms would be improved.

Economics Minister Viktors Valainis (Greens/Farmers) assured at the Crisis Management Meeting that the incident at the oil storage facility would not have any consequences for the security of the country's oil reserves, the prime minister said.

Silina believes that such situations make society more resilient. She said that local authorities reacted quickly and made the right decisions in response to the drone incidents. The government plans to further develop guidelines to give local authorities even more freedom to act in such situations.

The prime minister also stressed that it is very important that people follow official sources of information in such situations and not information that is spread on social networks, as it is very often false.

Silina noted that recently, completely false information was spread on social media that Latvia had opened its airspace so that Ukraine could launch drone attacks against Russia from its territory. "Russia will do everything to expose the Latvian population to the influence of information warfare," Silina added.

Silina also called on people to take official announcements very seriously and to respect them.

According to the prime minister, Ukraine is also ready to share its expertise on such incidents. "We could use such expertise at the border," said Silina.

Arvis Zile, head of the Crisis Management Center, told reporters that each incident is a lesson. Algorithms and operating procedures are therefore reviewed after such incidents to make any necessary improvements.

"In this case, we have again identified potential weaknesses and areas where we need to improve, and we will continue to work on this. It is the exchange of information - to convey the information to the public and the relevant officials more quickly, so that decisions can be made in a more timely manner to deal with these incidents," Zile said.

As LETA reported, several unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), or drones, flew into Latvian airspace from Russia in the early hours of Thursday, and at least one of them crashed in Rezekne, damaging an oil storage facility.

At the request of the National Armed Forces (NAF), a cell broadcast notification was sent out by the State Fire and Rescue Service to residents of the municipalities of Ludza, Balvi, and Rezekne.

Even after sunrise, drones could be seen and heard in the air over Rezekne, eyewitnesses reported. Residents also reported noises similar to fighter jets.

Defense Minister Andris Spruds (Progressives) said in an interview with Latvian Television that the Latvian National Armed Forces (NAF), together with NATO allies, were exercising maximum control over Latvian airspace. NATO fighter jets were also in the air, the minister added.

The NAF notes that while Russian aggression in Ukraine is ongoing, there is a risk of recurrence of incidents of foreign drones entering or approaching Latvian airspace.