Europe must arm itself – Latvia’s president

NATO countries should increase the capacities of defense industries to produce the necessary weapons for themselves and Ukraine, Edgars Rinkēvičs, the President of Latvia, said.

Calls to increase the arming process are not enough. In addition, it will require significant costs, the Latvian president added. “Whether we want it or not, Europe must arm itself,” Rinkēvičs stressed.

The Latvian president also talked about the development of defense production with the European Commissioner for the Internal Market, Thierry Breton, on October 20. The meeting also focused on the possibilities of attracting investments under the ammunition production support program, promoting joint purchases in the defense industry, and progress in implementing the European Union agreement to accelerate joint purchases and supply of artillery shells for Ukraine. 

The European Union supports member countries in supplying artillery ammunition and missiles from national stocks, aggregation of demand, and joint procurement of 155-mm ammunition. In addition, the EU helps in increasing the production capacity of the European defense industry.

In July, the Act in Support of Ammunition Production, developed in the European Union to increase the production of ammunition and missiles, also entered into force. This is part of the EU’s plan to provide Ukraine with a million artillery munitions within 12 months.