Melnis: Drone shot down to protect residents from danger
Latvia's Defense Minister Raivis Melnis says the drone shot down on Friday morning was destroyed to prevent it from endangering residents; the incident occurred near Rugaji and no one was injured.
Latvia's Defense Minister Raivis Melnis has explained that the decision to shoot down an unmanned aerial vehicle that entered the country's airspace on Friday morning was made because of the threat it posed. According to Melnis, drones entering Latvian territory can endanger residents and must therefore be destroyed. He also noted that there was no way to guarantee the aircraft would simply fall in a swamp or forest.
The minister rejected suggestions that more than one drone had been spotted. He said only one drone was detected, and residents may have heard the noise of fighter jets as they accelerated.
The incident took place near Lake Bozeva, about five kilometers from the center of Rugaji in Balvi Municipality. Sandra Kapteine, head of the Rugaji administration, said the drone was brought down in a wooded area, with no residents or property harmed. Emergency services are currently working at the scene.
According to information available so far, the drone entered Latvian airspace under the influence of electromagnetic warfare conducted by Russia. Soldiers of the National Armed Forces, members of the National Guard and State Police officers are involved in inspecting the site. Iveta Berzina, a representative of the NBS Joint Staff, said that because the drone was shot down at high altitude, its debris may be scattered over a wide area.
Meanwhile, foreign media reported that a fire broke out at the port of Ust-Luga in Russia's Leningrad region overnight following a Ukrainian drone attack. Governor Alexander Drozdenko said 54 drones had been shot down over the region. Ukrainian drones also attacked a Wildberries warehouse in the Tver region overnight. Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces said it had struck 29 power substations in Russian-occupied territories within a day, and 240 substations between August 1 and 13. Russia's Defense Ministry claimed that 553 Ukrainian drones had been shot down overnight over 18 Russian regions and occupied Crimea; experts estimate that 10 to 15 percent of drones reach their targets.
