On 24 July President Edgars Rinkēvičs got acquainted with the working conditions of the State Fire and Rescue Service Riga Regional Headquarters, Units 5 and 2, heard the opinion and vision of the State Fire and Rescue Service management, rescuers, and employees on the necessary improvements and challenges in the work of the service.
"I have repeatedly stated that the internal security of the country is as important as the external one. Therefore, we need to move away from the distinction between external and internal security and understand that national security is indivisible. The State Fire and Rescue Service is as important for Latvia's security as the National Armed Forces - the civil protection system, with professionals loyal to the state, can guarantee the state's resilience. For many years, those working in the internal affairs system have been left as paupers with insufficient funding from the state. This is true both of the low pay and of the morally and physically outdated infrastructure in many parts of Riga and the regions of Latvia. I will discuss these issues with the Minister of the Interior in the near future, especially now that the 2024 state budget is being worked on," said President Rinkēvičs after his visit to the State Fire and Rescue Service.
