"We highly value the decision of the US Senate to support the allocation of additional funding for cooperation with the Baltic States in the field of security in 2024. The planned financing will give us the opportunity to develop the military capabilities of the Baltic states more rapidly and to generally strengthen the security of NATO's eastern border," said Minister of Defense Ināra Mūrniece.
At the end of last year, the US Congress approved 225 million US dollars in funding for all three Baltic states as part of the "Baltic Security Initiative" for the fiscal year 2023, which is directed to the development of military capabilities.
In December 2022, the US approved military presence plans for the next three years, which provide for the continuous, rotating presence of US military units and increased participation in military exercises in Latvia.
The Senate passed the National Defense Authorization Act by 86 votes to 11 on Thursday, July 27. It provides for a total of $886 billion in fiscal year 2024 funding for America's national defense.
