Latvian PM Siliņa Resigns Over Drone Dispute

Latvian Prime Minister Evika Siliņa announced her resignation on Thursday, collapsing her coalition government amid a dispute over the handling of Ukrainian drone incidents near the Russian border.

Siliņa, leader of the center-right New Unity party, made the announcement at a press briefing after the Progressives party, her left-leaning coalition partner, withdrew its support. The move left her without a parliamentary majority. The tripartite coalition, which also included an agrarian party, had faced strains for months over various issues, with parliamentary elections scheduled for October.

The crisis stemmed from multiple incidents in recent weeks in which Ukrainian drones, apparently en route to targets in Russia, entered Latvian airspace and crashed in the eastern part of the country. One such event last week involved two drones striking an empty oil depot near the town of Rezekne, about 40 kilometers from the Russian border. No casualties were reported. Similar drone incursions have occurred in neighboring Estonia and Lithuania.

Defense Minister Andris Spruds, a member of the Progressives party, resigned over the weekend after Siliņa dismissed him. She cited his failure to...