Latvia’s new prime minister, Andris Kulbergs, suggested “scaling down” the Rail Baltica railway project, ERR reported. Speaking at a joint press conference with Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal in Tallinn, Kulbergs said that he was looking at a potential solution to the project’s funding gap that would be “out of the box.” He said that…
Latvia’s security situation has not improved and has become more complex, President Edgars Rinkevics stated, LETA reports. Speaking in an interview on TV24, Rinkevics warned that Russia was becoming more unpredictable and that Latvia must be prepared to respond to various kinds of Russian provocations. At the same time, he noted that the threat posed…
The mayors of the Estonian capital, Tallinn, and the Finnish capital, Helsinki, have approved a twin city cooperation plan for 2026-2029, Baltic News reports. The action plan focuses on growth and innovation, resilience and sustainability, and creative industries and grassroots cooperation. The two cities will cooperate in startup ecosystem development, civil protection, and cultural and…
Lithuania is moving towards universal military conscription, Defence Minister Robertas Kaunas stated, BNS reported. The number of conscripts was increasing each year, Kaunas noted. However, the Lithuanian Armed Forces (LGP) needed more infrastructure, instructors, military capacity, and weaponry before the introduction of universal conscription, he added. Prime Minister Inga Ruginiene asserted that universal conscription remained…
Hostile states were probably responsible for a massive data leak at Lithuania’s Centre of Registers (VIRC), President Gitanas Nauseda announced, BNS reported. He said that the theft of over 600,000 records from VIRC’s real estate register was a matter of national security. Nauseda slammed the government for not disclosing the data breach until one or…
Recent drone incidents in the Baltic States are part of Russia’s strategy to destabilise democratic societies in the region, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen stated, BNS reports. Speaking after a meeting with Baltic presidents in the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius, von der Leyen stressed the need for EU unity in support of the three…
Estonia’s national transmission system operator, Elering, has postponed plans to build a fourth electricity interconnection with Latvia until after 2038, which was the project’s original completion date, ERR reports. Earlier, Elering postponed a decision on the construction of a third undersea electricity connection to Finland. Reigo Kebja, board member at Elering, said that final investment…
A report of the Latvian government’s internal review commission on the progress of the Rail Baltica railway project has revealed that the state-owned company, Eiropas Dzelzcela Linijas, failed to consult independent experts on important decisions, LETA and LSM reported. The commission report analysed two suspended construction projects on a railway bridge across the Daugava river…
The Estonian government has decided not to privatise four state-owned energy, real estate, digital services, and lottery firms, ERR reports. The decision applies to four state-owned enterprises controlled by the Ministry of Finance: energy group Eesti Energia, state real estate manager Riigi Kinnisvara Aktsiaselts (RKAS), digital services company Levira, and lottery operator Eesti Loto. The…
