Latvian Defence Minister Andris Spruds, representing the left-leaning Progressives, announced on the evening of May 10 that he is stepping down to prevent political disputes from undermining confidence in Latvia’s armed forces.

According to him, the Progressives will now need to decide whether they were prepared to remain within the current three-party coalition alongside New Unity and the Greens and Farmers Union (ZZS). His sharp criticism of coalition partners has raised doubts over the alliance’s future stability.

As reported by IntelliNews, Spruds was facing mounting political pressure after a series of drone incidents exposed weaknesses in the country’s air defence and public warning systems ahead of parliamentary elections this autumn.

Reportedly, several drones entered Latvian airspace from Russia overnight in the early hours of May 7, with two of them crashing and one causing a fire at an oil depot in Rezekne.

Latvian PM Evika Silina admitted that “something went wrong” after a drone crossed into the country’s territory undetected before crashing at an unused fuel storage site in Rezekne. Residents only received emergency mobile alerts around an hour after the impact, triggering criticism over the authorities’ response, Latvian broadcaster LSM.lv reported.

“The Armed Forces and Latvia’s defence capability are more important than any ministerial office or party agenda,” Spruds stated, explaining his resignation, LSM.lv reported.

He argued that an organised political campaign had been directed against the Progressives because the party had challenged entrenched political practices and refused to conform to established expectations.

Spruds also criticised Prime Minister Evika Silina’s New Unity party, suggesting it had succumbed to pressure from rival political groups while becoming increasingly concerned about declining public support ahead of the parliamentary elections scheduled for October.

“New Unity should take time to examine its own conduct,” he remarked, accusing the party of shifting blame onto others despite having dominated government for many years, LSM.lv reported.

Although resigning from the Cabinet, Spruds confirmed that he would remain a member of the Saeima.

The resignation followed an earlier announcement by Silina that Spruds no longer retained either her confidence or that of the public, and that she had therefore requested his resignation.

“I have reached the conclusion that Defence Minister Andris Spruds has lost both my trust and the trust of the public, and I have asked him to step down. I informed the minister and coalition partners of this decision today,” Silina said, LSM.lv reported.

The prime minister explained that her decision was based not only on the handling of recent drone incursions into Latvian airspace, but also on broader concerns regarding the defence sector.

Silina revealed that she had invited Colonel Raivis Melnis to become the next defence minister, and that he had accepted the offer. This would place a serving military figure in a civilian post responsible for overseeing the armed forces.

Melnis is currently serving as the defence ministry’s representative in Ukraine and has also acted as an adviser to the Prime Minister since February.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha stated on social media that he had spoken with Latvian Foreign Minister Baiba Braze regarding the drones that recently entered Latvian airspace from Russia.

According to Sybiha, investigations had established that the drones were Ukrainian and had been diverted off course by Russian electronic warfare systems, LSM.lv reported.

As reported by IntelliNews, in March, foreign drones believed to be of Ukrainian origin also crashed in Lithuania and Estonia.