On Monday, the ruling coalition agreed to work together on legislative changes to introduce a compensation mechanism for residents for damage that may be caused by drones arriving from abroad. This was announced by Finance Minister Maris Kuchinskis (United List).
According to Kuchinskis, this is important both for security services and for residents, considering that drones can be shot down, which may pose additional risks in such cases. Therefore, clear regulation is necessary to alleviate defense concerns and ensure public safety. The Ministry of Justice will take on a coordinating role in this work, while the Ministry of Defense will participate in developing the content of future regulations.
Kuchinskis also noted that it is important to maintain the current approach in education — to avoid a return to fully remote learning, while ensuring the possibility of using it in emergencies, such as threats from drones. He emphasized that Ukraine's experience shows the long-term negative impact of such an approach on children.
As reported by LETA, the Green and Farmers' Union (ZZS) has proposed introducing a compensation mechanism for damage caused to residents as a result of incidents involving drones. The ZZS cited an incident that occurred in early May this year in Rezekne, where a fallen drone caused significant material damage to a private individual, but compensation proved impossible.
The ZZS proposed amendments to the law "On Emergency Situations and Exceptional Conditions," providing for a compensation mechanism both during the state of emergency or exceptional conditions and in cases where such a regime is not formally declared, but the threat is comparable to such a situation.
The political force believes that such amendments will ensure a fair balance between public interests and the protection of private property rights, as well as strengthen trust in state institutions.
Additionally, it is planned to impose on the Cabinet of Ministers the obligation to develop a procedure for submitting and reviewing applications for compensation.
It was previously reported that recently in Latvia, especially in the eastern border area, several incidents involving unmanned aerial vehicles have been recorded, raising questions about security and the protection of civilians.
Particular attention was drawn to the case in Rezekne in early May, when a drone caused material damage to a private individual. In turn, as previously reported by Bb.lv on Monday, June 8, NATO fighters participating in the mission to patrol the airspace of the Baltic states shot down a foreign drone in Latgale, which had entered Latvian airspace due to Russian electronic warfare means.
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