The President of Latvia pointed out that Russia's aggressive actions have made it necessary to strengthen the defence industry. "Russian President Vladimir Putin wants to restore the Russian Empire of the 19th and 20th centuries. This is much clearer now than it was two years ago when Russia launched the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. There are growing risks posed by Russian hybrid attacks, including weaponizing migration, artificial intelligence, cyber-attacks and propaganda. We must take this into account and act accordingly. We must strengthen the military industry and increase production capacity, which is both in Ukraine's interests and our own. The decisions taken at the NATO summits in Madrid and Vilnius to strengthen the Alliance's eastern flank and support Ukraine must continue to be implemented. Only NATO and the European Union are a real guarantors of security," Rinkēvičs stressed.
