"Deliveries of the next consignment of drones to the Armed Forces of Ukraine will be made gradually in July as part of the drone coalition. More than 2,500 combat drones of various types and capabilities worth 4 million euros will be delivered to Ukraine," the ministry said.
“The drone coalition is gaining momentum. In the next package, more than 2,500 drones produced by seven Latvian companies will be sent to Ukraine. Together with the members of the international drone coalition, we continuously work to deliver combat drones of various capacities to Ukraine in accordance with the current needs and testing requirements of the Ukrainian army. At the same time, significant funds are being invested in the further development and implementation of drone technology," said Defense Minister Andris Sprūds.
This year, the Ministry of Defense has allocated 20 million euros for the needs of the drone coalition, of which more than 10 million are intended for the purchase of drones from the Latvian defense industry. In April and May of this year, Latvia sent 135 combat drones of various capacities and electronic warfare equipment worth approximately 1 million euros to Ukraine.
Until the end of the year, the Ministry of Defense will continue to purchase combat drones manufactured in Latvia, primarily FPV-type drones that can be controlled from a first-person point of view.
There are currently 14 countries in the international drone coalition: Latvia, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, Australia, Denmark, France, Estonia, Italy, Canada, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Poland, Germany and Sweden. In total, the members of the drone coalition have so far raised more than half a billion euros for the supply of drones to Ukraine. The member states are also working on the creation of a common fund so that they can acquire financing for the production of drones in the coalition countries more quickly and efficiently.
