Expert: Latvia should unify procurement of defense tech for military and civilian use

In early September, one of Latvia's largest defense industry forums took place in Rēzekne, drawing more than 150 participants from 19 countries and around 120 Latvian companies offering drones, counter-drone detection, communications, sensors and energy solutions. The event was co-organized by the Ministry of Defense.

The head of strategic development at LAT Defence writes that much of the technology showcased at the forum is dual-use — needed not only by the military but also by municipalities, Interior Ministry services, and energy and communications operators. However, he notes that these civilian buyers were largely absent from the forum.

Fragmented procurement

Currently, each service procures technology separately — the State Border Guard has its own counter-drone systems, the State Police bought drones through a separate tender, and municipalities have no unified requirements at all. This results in incompatible systems that would need to operate as a coordinated network during a crisis.

The author suggests that the Ministries of Defense and Interior, together with the Crisis Management Center, should develop a unified national requirements catalog for civilian resilience technologies, which could then form the basis for centralized framework agreements. He also proposes including municipalities and Interior Ministry services in the annual 72-hour resilience exercises so civilian systems are tested alongside the National Armed Forces (NAF).

Procurement specification problems

The article also points out that technical specifications in military and dual-use procurement do not always match the NAF's actual needs, resulting in solutions that formally meet tender requirements but prove insufficiently effective in practice. As an example, it cites a public dispute this summer over whether ammunition for counter-drone systems was procured on time.

As a possible fix, the author proposes mandatory practical testing for larger technology procurements — both before finalizing specifications and after delivery. He emphasizes that strengthening Latvia's resilience should be treated as an interdisciplinary process requiring cooperation among at least the Ministries of Defense, Interior and Transport.