Ground zero: NATO’s drone war comes down to earth in Latvia

lettish and canadian river troops ar conducting a large-scale work out with strand drones for the first time, taking remote warfare out of the skies and applying it directly to the battlefield. 

They're taking lessons from ex-Ukrainian soldiers and tech companies in a stunning reversal of training roles, and scrambling to adapt the new technology just as the Baltic country is plunged into a political crisis over a mistaken aerial drone strike on an oil storage facility.

"For me, it's no doubt that drones are coming into the game," said Latvian Lt.-Col. Andris Bruveris, commander of the Second Mechanized Infantry Battalion, known as the Iron Battalion.

"I'm using these ground drones in this exercise for executing different types of missions, starting from intelligence, continuing with the kinetic effects against the enemy, and of course sustainment operations, resupply operations, casualty evacuations."

The Latvian Brigade, which operates alongside the Canadian-led multinational brigade, is leading the exercise known as Crystal Arrow 2026.

Approximately 2,500 troops including Canadians and 500 pieces of equipment are taking part in the war game, which is expected to run until May 15.

While aerial drones have become lethally ubiquitous on the battlefields of Ukraine, the use of remotely piloted ground vehicles is a relatively new development, and one that NATO nations are struggling to fit into their rigid command structure and way of doing business. 

Bruveris said he immediately saw the benefit once the various fleets — ranging from toy-like four-wheelers to bigger, oversized shopping cart-style systems — were in the hands of technicians.

"I'm conducting reconnaissance, I don't need to send people behind lines. I can use drones for that," Bruveris said. "I believe that these unmanned systems are the future because one way or the other, it's cheaper than people's lives."

It's all unfolding at the Sēlija training site, a vast forested area that's remote enough that the highly specialized electronic warfare jamming equipment being used there doesn’t interfere with Latvia's civilian population.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced last month that Ukrainian drones, both aerial and ground, recently took part in a localized offensive and retook a position from the Russians with no human involvement. 

Some experts have been skeptical of the claim, which had been floating around unconfirmed on social media for months. Zelenskyy described it as the dawn of a new age of warfare.  

Canadian Lt.-Col. Dan Richel, who serves as deputy commander of the Latvian Brigade, said the Ukrainians have been leading the way, but at the moment he doesn't see ground drones as decisive, nor as a replacement for front-line soldiers.

"I think they are a very important addition," said Richel. "I do see UAS (uncrewed aerial systems) and the UGV (uncrewed ground vehicles) as complementary systems."

One day, Richel said, they'll get to the point where they can perform independent operations.

The question of how much automation there should be in all uncrewed systems is one of the issues at the heart of a political crisis in Latvia.

A mistaken Ukrainian aerial drone strike on a Latvian oil storage depot last week claimed its first political casualty over the weekend with the resignation of the country’s defence minister.

The incident is a cautionary tale demonstrating how easily uncrewed systems might be manipulated. 

Andris Sprūds was forced to step down over the handling of the incursion last Thursday involving two Ukrainian strike drones on a mission over Russia that veered off course and smashed into the Baltic country.  

No one was hurt in the incident, but the county’s prime minister asked for Spruds's resignation, saying anti-drone systems were not deployed fast enough. 

Ukraine’s foreign minister posted on social media that Russian electronic warfare interference deliberately diverted the drones into Latvia. 

Both Latvia and neighbouring Lithuania have called on NATO to increase air defences in the region. 

Claudio Palestini, Head of NATO’s innovation and technology adoption section, said Monday he couldn’t speak to the specific situation, but noted the western military alliance has been conducting a series of tests and trials to improve the efficiency of the interceptor network.

"We are building with all the means that we have as much as possible preparedness and resilience across all domains," Palestini said.

In announcing his resignation, Sprūds insisted that a lot of work had been done to improve Latvia's defences. He described reaction to the incursion as a political campaign against him. 

If the drones were diverted, it represents a technical achievement in electronic warfare for the Russians — one that could potentially be short-lived given the pace of drone development on the battlefield. 

Regardless, experts such as Mubin Shiekh of the tech company CTRL say an important evolution in warfare is underway. 

Russia has not acknowledged jamming the Ukrainian drones and has repeatedly denied responsibility for the incursion.

The incident on the Latvian border represents a dramatic illustration of NATO nations scrambling to catch up in the race to defend against uncrewed systems, however.

While it is unlikely to face a circumstance similar to the incident in Latvia, the Canadian military has begun to deploy counter-drone systems at its major naval ports and airbases as part of an upgrade to guard against uncrewed threats.

Senior reporter, defence and security

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