Latvian President Edgars Rinkēvičs has begun talks with the six parties represented in parliament following the resignation of Prime Minister Evika Siliņa.
The president first met the centre-left Progressives at Riga Castle on Friday, before holding consultations with representatives of the other parties.
The Progressives had withdrawn their support for the centre-right prime minister over a dispute regarding the handling of drone incidents on the border with Russia, triggering the collapse of the ruling three-party coalition.
Siliņa, who had been in office since September 2023, submitted her resignation on Thursday. Under the Latvian constitution, this automatically leads to the resignation of the entire Cabinet, which will remain in a caretaker capacity until a new government is confirmed.
Rinkēvičs, who is responsible for tasking a candidate with forming a government and appointing the next prime minister, said he aims to reach a decision as quickly as possible.
Following initial consultations, he suggested that forming a functioning government with parliamentary remains achievable before elections due in October. Talks are set to continue on Saturday.
It remains unclear what form the next government could take.
Three parties have already signalled a willingness in principle to cooperate, including the Union of Greens and Farmers, a member of the outgoing coalition. However, they currently lack a parliamentary majority.
Observers expect Siliņa’s New Unity alliance to play a key role in the negotiations.
The immediate trigger for the political crisis was the resignation of defence minister Andris Sprūds. The Progressives politician stepped down under pressure from Siliņa after two suspected Russia-bound Ukrainian drones crashed in Latvian territory. Siliņa had accused him of failures in air defence and sought to replace him with a military officer.
The incidents come amid heightened tensions linked to the war in Ukraine, with drones from both Russia and Ukraine having previously entered Latvian airspace.
