As NATO allies prepare to gather in Türkiye next month, Latvia is arriving with a message backed by action, Anadolu Agency reports.
The Baltic nation bordering Russia and Belarus has become the first member of the alliance to legally commit to spending at least 5% of GDP on defense from 2027, reflecting security concerns that Latvian officials say are increasingly shared across Europe.
"Today, there are no 'frontline' and 'rear' allies – we are all on NATO's frontline," Foreign Minister Baiba Braze told Anadolu ahead of the NATO summit in Ankara on July 7-8.
Braze said allies must show "concrete progress towards the agreed defense investment targets, deliver on capability commitments and strengthen our defense industrial capacity."
The summit takes place at a sensitive moment for the alliance, with the war in Ukraine continuing to shape NATO's agenda, tensions between Washington and some allies and debates over defense spending intensifying across Europe and North America.
"Latvia's message is straightforward: NATO's core mission remains collective defense, and the alliance must continue strengthening its deterrence and defense posture in line with today's security environment," Braze said.
She argued that the threats facing the alliance are "immediate and interconnected," ranging from the war in Ukraine to broader challenges affecting Euro-Atlantic security.
"Security cannot be built on declarations alone; it requires deployable forces, resilient supply chains, advanced technologies and sustained political resolve," she added.
Braze noted that Latvia is already among NATO's highest defense spenders relative to GDP and said the country's focus is not only on spending levels but on building military capabilities.
The minister also praised Türkiye's contribution to NATO's eastern flank, including support for the alliance's Eastern Sentry activities and its planned participation in Baltic Air Policing missions from Estonia's Amari air base later this year.
