Latvia to increase defense budget to 5% of GDP
Next year, Latvia will allocate 4% of GDP for defense spending, and in the following years the figure should increase to 5%.
This is reported by Censor.NET with reference to Lms.
The publication writes that the decision to increase defense spending was made by the government behind closed doors. It stipulates that starting next year, funding for this area should be at least 4% of GDP, and then should increase to 5%.
Most of the funds are planned to be spent on air defense, ammunition production, and the development of unmanned technologies.
"It is necessary to increase funding for Latvia's defense and urgently introduce additional military capabilities," Defense Minister Andris Sprūds emphasized.
At the same time, Latvian Prime Minister Evika Siliņa admitted that in order to achieve such a proportion in the budget, all ministries will have to review their expenditures.
This year, defense spending is expected to reach €1.719 billion, or 3.45% of GDP. But, as Latvian President Edgars Rinkēvičs stated earlier, the share of these expenditures should be increased to 4% of GDP in the coming years.
