Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) Ihor Klymenko and Latvian Defense Minister Raivis Melnis, who arrived in Kyiv, discussed the development of the Drone Deal, strengthening air defense and missile defense, as well as the development of a multilayered counter-drone defense.
“Glad to welcome in Kyiv a great friend of Ukraine, Latvian Defense Minister Raivis Melnis. Latvia is one of our most active partners. In 2026, the country has allocated about EUR 110 million to support Ukraine’s security, including EUR 50 million for drones. I am grateful for this support,” Klymenko wrote on Telegram on Saturday.
According to him, he and Melnis discussed the development of the Drone Deal concluded between the countries.
“We need to move from individual deliveries to joint production, localization of components and testing of new systems. Ukraine is also ready to share practical combat experience in the use of UAVs and countermeasures,” Klymenko added.
As the NSDC secretary said, they also discussed strengthening air defense and missile defense and developing a multilayered counter-drone defense.
“We see great potential here for joint projects with Latvia, in particular within the SAFE mechanism,” he added.
Klymenko said that following the meeting, they agreed to accelerate work on mechanisms for procuring Ukrainian-made weapons and concluding the relevant contracts.
“This is an important step toward giving Ukraine’s defense industry a greater role in supplying our partners,” he said.
“Thank you to Raivis Melnis and the Latvian side for an open and substantive dialogue. We will continue working on concrete solutions that strengthen Ukraine and our partners,” Klymenko concluded.