RIGA, Latvia (AP) — Latvia’s center-right Prime Minister Evika Silina stepped down Thursday following the collapse of her governing coalition after the left-leaning Progressives Party withdrew their support, leaving her administration without a parliamentary majority.
Silina’s departure follows last week’s forced resignation of Defense Minister Andris Spruds from the Progressives Party over how the administration managed several incidents where wayward drones believed to originate from Ukraine strayed into Latvia’s airspace. Silina stated that Spruds had lost both her confidence and that of the citizens.
The drone episodes “clearly demonstrated that the political leadership of the defense sector has failed to fulfill its promise of safe skies over our country,” Silina said on Sunday, explaining Spruds’ resignation.
Two suspected Ukrainian drones crossed into Latvia on May 7, with one crashing at a fuel storage facility. Spruds indicated they were likely Ukrainian drones targeting Russia that mistakenly ended up in Latvia.
Since March, several Ukrainian drones bound for Russia have struck territories across the three Baltic nations. Opposition voices argue these episodes have exposed gaps in Latvia’s capacity to address military dangers.
The three-party Latvian coalition government, which included an agrarian party, had faced mounting tensions for months across various policy matters.
Silina’s departure occurs just months before scheduled general elections in October.
“My priority has always been, and remains, the well-being and security of Latvia’s people,” Silina wrote on X on Thursday. “Parties and coalitions change, but Latvia endures. And my responsibility to society comes above all else.”
Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics, who holds the authority to name a new government leader, plans to conduct meetings with delegates from all parliamentary parties on Friday.
On Sunday, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said the incidents in Latvia were “the result of Russian electronic warfare deliberately diverting Ukrainian drones from their targets in Russia.” He offered Ukraine’s help to the Baltic states and Finland to prevent such incidents in the future.
