The unity of the alliance and the increase in defense spending are critically important for the security of Europe, said Latvia's Foreign Minister Baiba Braže, speaking at a meeting of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly's Permanent Committee in Riga.
She noted that at the upcoming NATO summit in Ankara, allies need to demonstrate concrete progress towards increasing defense funding to 5% of gross domestic product (GDP). According to the minister, this is an important condition for strengthening the alliance's capabilities and successful further cooperation.
The Foreign Minister pointed out that Latvia is already close to achieving this goal, becoming the first NATO country to enshrine in law the commitment to allocate 5% of GDP for defense. This year, Latvia's defense budget is about 4.9% of GDP, and in the future, it is planned to maintain it at no less than 5%.
Speaking about security challenges, Braže emphasized the growing importance of technology - artificial intelligence, quantum technologies, 6G communication, the development of space technologies, and biomedicine are becoming important areas of competition between states. The minister noted that Latvia is actively developing the field of defense innovations and cooperation between the defense sector, science, and industry.
Particular attention in Latvia is given to the development of drones. Latvia, together with the United Kingdom, leads an international coalition of drones, offering allies opportunities to test innovations, including at the Autonomous Systems Competence Center and the military training ground "Sēlija."
Braže emphasized that the security situation in the world is interconnected. Russia's war against Ukraine and tensions in the Middle East affect both regional and global security, the economy, and energy, and potential targets of modern threats could include critical infrastructure and the digital environment, the minister noted.
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