The defence minister is in Latvia on the second day of his visit to the Baltic countries.
Besides visiting defence structures financed by Luxembourg, he took part in discussions around strategy and the possibility of a new cooperation agreement between Latvia and Luxembourg.
Faced with the recent development of Russian troops in their immediate proximity, Latvia is understandably worried about its safety. They want to feel as safe as Luxembourg, says Artis Pabriks, Latvian deputy prime minister and minister for defence. But for this, they need support. "In these uncertain times, we need a bigger presence. We have a large American representation. On the day the Russian attack against Ukraine began, I was woken up at 4am. Four hours later, American planes landed at this base to help us. What we need now is a bigger presence and the same security like you have."
While their borders are not currently threatened, this only holds if Ukraine wins the war. "Ukraine are fighting our war. If they lose this war, Russian aggression continues. Ukraine isn't Russia's big goal. There are very different plans behind that."
Western democracy has to prevent this. Military support for Ukraine and a boycott of Russian gas and oil are they only solutions, even if they hurt, says Pabriks. "It will be difficult for us, to. but if we don't want to finance bloodshed, we have to pay another way."
"We are supporting greater security for our NATO partners in the East," said François Bausch during his visit with his Latvian counterpart. While there are no Luxembourgish soldiers based in Latvia, we have made considerable financial investments, for instance 8 million to clear former soviet lands, or co-financing a military barracks. Further military aid is planned.
On Wednesday, Bausch will continue his visit in Lithuania.
