Members of the Saeima from the opposition party “United List” (AS) have submitted a formal request to Prime Minister Evika Siliņa (New Unity), calling on her to explain the government’s responsibility and possible systemic failure to ensure timely warning of residents following the drone incident in Latgale on the 25th of March.
The deputies point out that residents learned about the presence of an armed drone in Latvian territory only after the fact — from social media, the media, and the sound of the explosion — as neither sirens nor mobile alert systems, including cell broadcasting, were activated. They emphasize that in practice there is no evidence of a functioning public warning system.
The request states that the problem is not technical but political — namely, the inability of the responsible ministries to ensure coordinated action and effective crisis management. The deputies also criticize public statements by Defence Minister Andris Sprūds (Progressives) about the so-called “drone wall,” arguing that the incident demonstrates its inability to prevent threats even in isolated cases.
It is also noted that the public has not been provided with clear information on how to act in such situations, leaving residents uncertain about safety measures. The deputies stress that political responsibility for the coordination of government work and crisis management lies with the Prime Minister.
The Saeima deputies submitted the request to the Mandate, Ethics and Submissions Committee for review on Thursday.
As previously reported, the Commander of the National Armed Forces, Major General Kaspars Pudāns, stated in an interview on Latvian Television’s programme “Morning Panorama” that due to the short warning time, there was insufficient time to notify local residents about the threat posed by the drone.
He explained that providing accurate information to residents potentially affected by the threat requires time to determine the possible direction and trajectory of the threat. In this case, the warning window was too short.
Pudāns acknowledged that certain indicators and sensors did not provide the necessary information that would have allowed for a faster assessment of the situation. He noted that while the threat assessment and calculations were being carried out, the object had already left Latvian territory or had exploded and no longer posed a threat.
It has also been reported that this week drones entered and exploded in all three Baltic states.
Most likely, while Ukraine was defending itself against Russian aggression, the drones were aimed at targets in Russia but deviated from their course or were diverted by electronic warfare interference methods.
Officials from the Baltic states have emphasized that these incidents are a consequence of Russia’s full-scale war of aggression and that similar incidents may recur.
Early Monday morning, in Lithuania’s Varėna district near the Belarusian border, a drone crashed onto the frozen Lake Lavysas.
In Latvia, a drone entered the country’s airspace from Russia during the night leading into Wednesday and exploded in the Krāslava municipality approximately one kilometre from the centre of Svariņi parish, while another object briefly entered from Belarusian territory and then returned towards Russia.
Meanwhile, in northeastern Estonia,
a drone that entered from Russian airspace crashed into the chimney of the Auvere power plant on Wednesday morning.
Lithuanian Prime Minister Inga Ruginienė confirmed that the fallen and exploded aircraft was a Ukrainian drone intended for a target in Russia.
The President of Latvia, Edgars Rinkēvičs, has also acknowledged that the unmanned aerial vehicle that entered Latvian airspace and detonated was a Ukrainian drone, apparently part of a coordinated Ukrainian operation against targets in Russia.
On the night leading into Wednesday, Ukraine carried out drone strikes on the Russian ports of Ust-Luga and Vyborg in the Leningrad region. Prior to that, Ukrainian drones hit the port of Primorsk in northwestern Russia. These ports are located on the coast of the Gulf of Finland in the Baltic Sea.
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