This year, for the first time, the exercise is being held simultaneously in two locations and involves the largest number of participants to date - more than 500 representatives of Latvian and foreign institutions.
The VDD has been organizing full-scale counter-terrorism exercises since 2007, and this is the 13th exercise of this scale.
During the Wolmar 2024 anti-terrorism exercise, representatives of the responsible services test their readiness to implement the measures set out in the action plan in the event of a threat to terrestrial objects (the "Object" anti-terrorism plan) approved by the Cabinet of Ministers to prevent a terrorist threat and to eliminate the consequences of attacks carried out.
During the training at the Valmiera Olympic Centre, the State Security Service in cooperation with the State Police, the Emergency Medical Service, the State Fire and Rescue Service, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Prosecutor General's Office, the Valmiera Municipality Police, the State Border Guard and the National Armed Forces (NBS) test and improve mutual cooperation procedures under conditions as close to a real situation as possible in the event of terrorists armed with firearms and explosives invading a mass gathering facility and taking several dozen hostages.
Three Latvian special units are training in intercepting terrorists in Valmiera: the State Police anti-terrorist unit "OMEGA", the NBS Special Tasks Unit and the State Border Guard special operations service "Sigma".
In Jāņmuiža, tactical units of the State Security Service and the Estonian Security Police (KAPO), in cooperation with the NBS Special Tasks Unit, will train in apprehending armed and particularly dangerous organizers of terrorist acts. The 2nd Vidzeme Brigade of the National Guard, the NBS Air Force and the Military Police are providing support during this phase of the exercise.
The VDD draws the attention of the residents and guests of Valmiera and Jāņmuiža to the fact that, in connection with the exercise, these locations will be subject to occasional increased movement of operational services and NBS vehicles, including low-level helicopter flights. The Service asks for an understanding attitude towards the exercise, as its main objective is to ensure public safety.
No significant traffic restrictions are planned in Valmiera or Jāņmuiža during the exercise.
The VDD in Latvia is the lead institution coordinating the anti-terrorism activities of state and local authorities, as well as other institutions involved in counter-terrorism prevention or response measures.
The level of the terrorist threat in Latvia is currently low and the information at the disposal of the VDD does not indicate that the situation is likely to change in the near future.
