German Minister of Defence to Visit Latvia

On Thursday, March 2, Ursula von der Leyen, the German Minister of Defence will arrive to Latvia for an official visit.

The Minister of Defence Raimonds Bergmanis and the Chief of Defence of the Latvian National Armed Forces Major General Leonids Kalnins will meet the German Minister of Defence Ursula von der Leyen to discuss bilateral defence, current regional security challenges as well as the implementation of decisions taken during NATO Warsaw summit.

After annexation of Crimea in the Spring of 2014 and Russia’s aggression in the East of Ukraine, NATO, including Germany, has been actively involved in strengthening military presence and enhancing security in Latvia.

In July, last year, within the framework of the initiative “Persistent Presence”, German Armed Forces deployed a Deployable Control and Reporting Centre (DCRC) to the Lielvārde Air Force Base, establishing military presence of Allied forces in accordance with the decisions taken during the NATO summit in Wales on strengthening regional security at the eastern border of the Alliance. Integrated in the Baltic Air Surveillance Network (BALTNET), the DCRC was a part of NATO Air Command and Control system.

German soldiers have previously participated in joint military training in Latvia along with soldiers from Latvia and other Allied countries.

Anete Gnēze, Head of the Media Relations Section
Military Public Affairs Department
Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Latvia
Phone: 00 371 67335093; Cell: 00 371 26474087
E-mail: anete.gneze@mod.gov.lv