A new drone incident in Latvia — in which the errant flying device exploded when it crashed into a lake Saturday — added to anxiety and political ructions in the Baltic country that borders Russia.
A new drone incident in Latvia — in which the errant flying device exploded when it crashed into a lake Saturday — added to anxiety and political ructions in the Baltic country that borders Russia.
The drone came down in Lake Dridza, 15 kilometers (eight miles) from Latvia's border with Belarus, according to police, who recovered its remains after being alerted by locals.
Belarus is Russia's ally in Moscow's war against Ukraine.
Several Russian and Ukrainian drones have crashed in Latvia over the course of the Russia-Ukraine war, in which both sides have been using drone-jamming technology to send the devices off-course. Incidents have been multiplying in recent months.
Outgoing Prime Minister Evika Silina confirmed the latest crash on X, saying that she was awaiting "the most detailed information possible" on it.
The drone menace has cost Silina her job.
In early May, she sacked her defense minister after saying Latvia's anti-drone defenses were not being deployed fast enough to track and bring down intruding drones.
Other members of the defense minister's party then resigned, bringing down her ruling coalition.
Latvia's president a week ago tapped an opposition lawmaker, Andris Kulbergs, to try to form a new government.
