Latvia prepares plan to dismantle eastern border roads, railways if needed

Latvia is developing a detailed plan to swiftly sever road and rail connections along its eastern border in the event of a security threat, Defence Minister Andris Sprūds said on January 28.

“Should the military threat increase, we do not rule out dismantling roads and railways,” Sprūds told Latvian Television’s Rīta Panorāma programme.

He stressed that both the Military Council and the Ministry of Transport have provided consolidated guidance, which forms the basis of the plan. “No occupying military train will travel on Latvian territory,” he added.

Prime Minister Evika Siliņa said after a meeting with President Edgar Rinkēvičs that the proposal is intended to ensure the Latvian National Armed Forces can operate effectively in the event of a heightened security threat.

“Railways have traditionally been used for freight, but in a crisis they could also serve as an instrument for the defence forces,” Siliņa said. She noted that ensuring infrastructure security is not solely the responsibility of the armed forces.

Siliņa also stressed that any action in peacetime would require coordinated decisions with Baltic and international partners. “We cannot act in isolation,” she said.

President Rinkēvičs highlighted that the government is taking a comprehensive view of the eastern border, which involves roads, railways and other anti-mobility measures implemented by the Ministry of Defence.

“The main task is to implement the measures already planned and develop an operational model for railways that can be activated in a crisis,” he said, noting that clarity on dismantling rail tracks along the Russian border is expected early next year.

Latvian authorities have been reviewing the potential impact of dismantling railway lines leading towards Russia, seen by military analysts as a direct security risk. Two key railway corridors run eastwards: the Rēzekne II–Zilupe line towards Pytalovo and Moscow, and the Rēzekne II–Kārsava line towards Pskov. A third line connects Latvia with Belarus via Daugavpils–Indra, heading towards Polotsk.

The section from Kārsava to the border runs parallel to Russia for many kilometres and is considered one of the most strategically sensitive railway stretches in the region, Latvian media reported.

By Aghakazim Guliyev