Ukraine signed a drone cooperation deal with Latvia on June 9 at a summit in Tallinn involving Ukraine and seven Nordic-Baltic states [1, 2]. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the agreement would strengthen joint defense and co-production. "These are concrete things to strengthen our joint defense and co-production, and, importantly, this also means Ukraine's expertise and experience helping to strengthen our partners," Zelenskyy said [1].
Latvian Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs said the deal would provide Latvia with technological know-how and opportunities to co-produce drones. "We need to protect our skies, and nobody knows how to do that better than Ukraine. Drones were responsible for the vast majority of deaths of Russian troops in the Ukraine war," Kulbergs said [1].
Ukraine is leveraging its drone warfare expertise in diplomatic deals with multiple countries. Latvia became the sixth nation to participate in Kyiv's drone cooperation initiative, part of Ukraine's broader effort to strengthen European defenses [1]. Zelenskyy emphasized Ukraine’s goal to ensure "that every region of Europe has sufficient protection against Russian threats" [1].
The Baltic countries, including Latvia, have experienced drone incursions related to the ongoing war. Ukraine has blamed Russian electronic warfare for disrupting drone paths in the region [1].
Earlier in June, Zelenskyy met with leaders from Britain, France, and Germany in London. These leaders expressed readiness to support ceasefire talks in Ukraine, following more than four years of war before the recent shift in focus to the Iran conflict [2]. Soon after, Zelenskyy met Nordic-Baltic leaders in Tallinn [2].
The Kremlin responded to these developments by stating that Europe is likely not ready to serve as a mediator in Ukraine peace negotiations. It noted that the U.S. had led previous efforts before attention shifted due to the Iran conflict [2].