This year's defense budget allocates a record amount - €2.1 billion, writes Ir.
In which areas is it planned to invest these funds and how will they enhance the country's security? According to military analyst Martiņš Verdīņš, this is a good start, but for now, it is just numbers. He notes that the defense capability will only be genuinely strengthened once all procurements are completed, the Latvian army receives the ordered weapon systems, and they are put into operation.
This year, €1.14 billion, or 53% of the defense budget, will be allocated to enhance the combat capabilities of the armed forces, so that in the event of war, they can withstand the initial attack and halt the enemy.
The increase in funding is impressive - just in 2023, only a third of the defense budget, or €366 million, was allocated for combat capability development. According to Verdīņš, a turning point was the NATO summit in Vilnius in 2023, where, a year after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, alliance leaders announced new regional defense plans, including in the Baltic states. These plans emphasize closer cooperation of allied forces on the ground with clear directives on what forces do, how, and where, to ensure the fastest possible response in the event of an attack.
In the area of enhancing combat capability, the largest funding this year is allocated for the acquisition of 84 ASCOD infantry fighting vehicles - €303 million. These vehicles will be armed with two battalions of the mechanized infantry brigade of the land forces. A contract worth €760 million was signed last year with the Spanish company GDELS-Santa Bárbara Sistemas, and the first deliveries are promised in the second half of this year.
