RIGA, June 25 (LETA) - The Ministry of Defense will deploy additional air defense systems in the near future, Defense Minister Raivis Melnis told reporters today following a meeting of the Military Council.

Melnis stated that the defense sector is actively working to improve the air defense system and ensure airspace security by by deploying additional radar and interceptor systems along the country’s eastern border.

At the same time, he noted that procurement procedures and the time they require pose a challenge. "But we have found a solution and will deploy additional systems in the near future. We need not only drones and radars, but also the integration of these systems and the training of soldiers. Here, I must express my gratitude to our allies from Ukraine," Melnis emphasized.

Melnis also noted that, as a next step, the Ministry of Defense plans to continue working on the establishment of the Baltic defense line in a much more detailed and systematic manner. The main challenges will be securing land parcels and deploying barriers.

Today, representatives of the National Armed Forces briefed the President and Melnis on the next steps in the third phase of the line’s construction. "We also needed to take into account our allies’ needs regarding the construction of obstacles, and now we will be able to move on to the next stages, digging anti-tank trenches and deploying obstacles," the minister emphasized.

National Armed Forces Commander Kaspars Pudans announced after the council meeting that the council had been briefed on the current state of combat readiness and on proposed solutions for the immediate improvement of this readiness in accordance with potential scenarios and threats.

The Military Council meeting was followed by a meeting with local government officials from the eastern border region, as well as the heads of the Smiltene, Valmiera, Gulbene, and Madona municipalities.

Pudans told the media that he was pleased that the army’s cooperation with local governments is successful and that mutual understanding is now at a much higher level. Joint exercises have contributed to this, he said.

Melnis, in turn, told reporters that dialogue with local governments must continue, but that in the future it will be necessary to involve representatives from the Ministry of the Interior and the Crisis Management Center.

As previously reported, the development of anti-mobile infrastructure is part of the Baltic Defense Line project, which was agreed upon by the Baltic states and Poland on January 19, 2024.

Since March 2024, the National Armed Forces have been carrying out military fortifications along Latvia’s eastern border. The goal of constructing these defensive structures is to deter, halt, and, if necessary, eliminate an aggressor.

Last year, EUR 45 million were allocated for the military fortification of Latvia’s eastern border. This year, EUR 55 million are earmarked for strengthening the eastern border.

Since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, seven unmanned aerial vehicles have crashed in Latvia's territory, while one drone was neutralized by NATO fighter jets.

Regarding the origin of the drones, there is no basis for automatically assuming that all unmanned aerial vehicles involved in the incidents are Ukrainian drones, as previously noted by the National Armed Forces.

One of the drone incidents this spring cost Defense Minister Andris Spruds (Progressives) his post, and shortly thereafter, the entire government of Evika Silina (New Unity) fell.