Šics: Latvia will never be fully ready for war, because warfare constantly changes
Disaster medicine expert and Riga City Council deputy Mārtiņš Šics says Latvia should not expect to ever be fully prepared for a crisis or war, since warfare constantly evolves. He highlights NATO-standard training in self-aid and the growing use of drones for evacuating the wounded in Ukraine.
Mārtiņš Šics, a disaster medicine specialist and member of the Riga City Council, said during the TV24 programme “Preses klubs” that Latvia should not wait for a moment when it can call itself fully prepared for a possible crisis or war. His answer to this question was blunt: “Never.” He explained that warfare is constantly changing, which means preparations can never come to an end.
One area where Latvia is successfully developing in line with NATO standards, according to Šics, is training personnel to provide self-aid and mutual aid in the event of injuries. This means people know how to stop bleeding, immobilise injuries and prepare a casualty for evacuation so that their chances of survival increase.
Šics noted that air evacuation had long been considered the most effective way to remove wounded soldiers from the battlefield, but the war in Ukraine has brought significant changes. New technologies, including drones, are increasingly used there to bring wounded soldiers out of dangerous areas. This reduces the risks faced by rescuers, who could otherwise become targets themselves when travelling to the casualty by vehicle. In Latvia, these methods are not yet widely taught, but military medicine is evolving and the lessons learned in Ukraine are being carefully analysed.
Regular practical exercises are also essential for emergency readiness, Šics said. These exercises involve both state institutions and private companies, including the airport, aviation companies and transport and energy sector firms. They are also required to meet international security standards.
No country can deal with such crises alone, he stressed. If many severely wounded people needed help at the same time, international cooperation would be activated, and patients could be taken for treatment to neighbouring countries and elsewhere in Europe using existing cooperation mechanisms and medical evacuation systems. Since warfare constantly produces new technologies and tactics, preparations will never stop, Šics repeated. The experience from Ukraine is already changing how casualty rescue and medical evacuation are understood.
