Canada commits to extending NATO mission in Latvia for three years

Prime Minister Mark Carney extended Canada’s commitment to a NATO mission in Latvia, saying ‘security can only come through strength.’

While visiting Latvia, Prime Minister Mark Carney committed to extending Canada’s biggest overseas military mission by another three years.

“We will, in the process, increase the brigade’s capabilities here in Latvia, reinforce our collective defense, strengthen our cooperative security, and keep the NATO presence strong,” Carney said at a joint press conference in Riga with Latvian Prime Minister Evika Silina.

Operation REASSURANCE currently has about 2,000 Canadian troops stationed in Latvia and represents our country’s biggest commitment to NATO.

In his comments in Riga, as he did in his speech at Kyiv’s Independence Day, Carney once again referenced former U.S. president Ronald Reagan’s preferred slogan about Russia, saying “we can’t ‘trust but verify’ with Putin … we must deter and fortify.”

Canada leads the NATO Multinational Brigade of 14 countries and about 3,000 troops in total.

The mission began in 2014, and in 2022, Canada committed to a multi-year extension in response to the Russia-Ukraine war.

Carney plans to visit Canadian troops serving as part of the mission at a Latvian base on Wednesday, before he wraps up his European trip and returns to Canada.