Latvias President Requests Opposition Leader to Form New Government

Latvia’s Prime Minister Resigns Amid Drone Incident, Opposition Leader Emerges as Front-Runner

Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics has announced his support for opposition lawmaker Andris Kulbergs to replace Evika Silina as prime minister. Silina resigned on Thursday after a series of incidents involving Ukrainian drones that strayed into Latvia from Russia and exploded at an oil storage facility.

According to reports, the incident is part of a recurring issue in NATO member countries Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania. The situation has led to concerns about the country’s air defences.

Kulbergs, leader of the United List of smaller parties, will take office if lawmakers approve him and his cabinet. Rinkevics stated that he believes the new prime minister should come from opposition parties.

Silina had previously fired her defence minister, Andris Spruds, after two Ukrainian drones crashed into Latvia from Russia. The incident led to a loss of support for Silina’s government from the Progressives party, her left-leaning coalition partner.

Kulbergs has expressed his intention to create an enlarged coalition to administer Latvia until parliamentary elections are held on October 3. If he were to succeed, the cabinet lineup would still need to be approved by the parliament.

The president invited Kulbergs to form a government after meeting with representatives from all parties in parliament. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has offered to send Ukrainian experts to Latvia to help boost its air defences.

Source: Al Jazeera