Latest Articles about Latvia
Baltic Region Holds Multiple NATO Exercises in Anticipation of Russia’s Massive Zapad 2017 Drills
Twice in the past several weeks, Russian intrusions put the Baltics on high alert. On June 1, several Russian soldiers, traveling from the Russian exclave of Kaliningrad without transit permits, were stopped in Lithuania (Apollo.lv, June 2). A week later, two Goryn-class tugboats—the MB-119 and... MORE
Mattis Goes to the Baltics
This piece originally appeared on Real Clear Defense on May 10, 2017. Jim Mattis will visit the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius this week, marking his first ever visit to the Baltics in his new capacity as U.S. Secretary of Defense. Joining Mattis in Lithuania will... MORE
Latvia Pursues ‘Total Defense’ Concept, Rejects Conscription
In early April 2017, the Latvian Ministry of Defense’s (MoD) Parliamentary Secretary Andrejs Panteļējevs publicly announced the country was returning to the concept of total or “comprehensive” defense, which it had abandoned after joining the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Latvia will maintain the strategy... MORE
Russian Fake News Operation Seeks to Generate Baltic Opposition to NATO Presence
Russian media outlets in Moscow and in the Baltic countries have stepped up their efforts to generate opposition among Estonians, Latvians and Lithuanians to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). These media sources have been putting out fake news stories suggesting that NATO was recruiting... MORE
Moscow’s Laughs Not to Be Trusted in the Baltics
Humor is a much more powerful “soft warfare” weapon in Russia’s hands than one might think. This month (March 2017), a team of academics from Latvia and Ukraine, in collaboration with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s (NATO) Strategic Communications Center of Excellence (STRATCOM), presented their... MORE
Baltics Take Step Toward Creating Single Security Space
The issue of closer defense cooperation among the three Baltic States—Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia—was raised again, on March 3, by defense professionals and distinguished speakers from the United Kingdom and the United States, during a conference on “Social Resilience Against Hybrid Threats in the Baltic... MORE
NATO Consolidating ‘Collective Defense’ in Europe’s East
Since the beginning of February 2017, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) has begun to implement the decision taken at the Alliance’s summit in Warsaw last July to deploy a rotational battalion-sized combat unit to each of the Baltic States and Poland. The bolstering of... MORE
A Visionary at the Head of the Latvian Armed Forces
The Latvian National Armed Forces (LNAF) are starting the year with a new commander. After having his appointment approved by the Latvian parliament in December 22, 2016, Major General Leonīds Kalniņš officially took over the position of chief of defense (CHOD) of the LNAF on... MORE
Baltics Sharply Increase Defense Expenditures
By approving additional defense spending in their national budgets for 2017, the Baltic States—Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia—strongly answered Russia’s aggression in Ukraine. Their budget figures, adopted this past December, mean not only greater resources for their own national defense, but also a significant step forward... MORE
China and CEE Countries Push for Broader Economic Cooperation in Riga
Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang’s historic visit to Riga, Latvia, on November 4, marked the opening of a new chapter in relations between Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) and the People’s Republic of China (PRC). During his three-day visit, Li met together with the heads... MORE