Ukrainian drone warfare specialists are set to travel to Latvia in the coming weeks to advise the Baltic country on countering unmanned aerial threats, Latvian Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs said on Monday.
The experts will share their experience and help develop a long-term plan for building a layered air defence system capable of responding to different types of threats, Kulbergs said after meeting Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko in Riga.
Latvia, an EU and NATO member bordering Russia and Belarus, has experienced several incidents involving drones entering its airspace.
“We need to be better prepared to shoot down drones that enter Latvian airspace, and nobody knows better than the Ukrainians how to shoot them down and how to detect them,” Kulbergs said.
Svyrydenko pledged Ukraine’s support. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had previously announced that experts would be sent to Latvia.
Now in the fifth year of its war against Russia, Ukraine is widely regarded as one of the world’s leading countries in drone warfare and counter-drone operations.
Since the start of the war, Latvia has recorded several drone-related incidents. On a number of occasions, unmanned aircraft involved in Ukrainian attacks on targets in north-western Russia strayed into Latvian airspace and crashed.
The incidents caused no significant damage or injuries but triggered a political crisis in Latvia that ultimately led to a change of government.
Kulbergs’ Cabinet took office only a few days ago, and Svyrydenko was the first foreign leader to visit the new administration.