Latvian Army

Latvijas Sauszemes Spēki Latvian Army
Emblem of the Latvian Army
active	1918–1940 1991 to the present
Country	Latvia
Armed forces	Latvian National Armed Forces
Type	Armed forces ( army )
management
Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces	President of Latvia
Military commander in chief	Lieutenant General Leonīds Kalniņš
commander	Colonel Sandris Gaugers

The Latvian Army ( Latvian Latvijas Sauszemes Spēki ) is the land force of the armed forces of the Republic of Latvia .

history

Military parade for the 25th Independence Day in Latvia

After the Russian Revolution and World War I , Latvia declared independence on November 18, 1918. In the following period, own troops were set up for the first time, which gradually became a structured army that was able to defend the sovereignty of the country in the Latvian War of Independence . The new Latvian army played a major role in the fighting, which mostly took place on land, and was one of the decisive factors in its victorious end on August 11, 1920 with the Riga Peace Treaty .

In the following period of independence the land forces consisted of four divisions . Nevertheless, Latvia did not manage to maintain its sovereignty during the Second World War and it was occupied by the Soviet Union , later by the German Empire and finally again by the Soviet Union.

In 1991 the Republic of Latvia regained its independence as a sovereign state. In the following years own armed forces (including an army) were set up again. After Latvia joined NATO in 2004, the land forces were restructured. In 2006 all regular units were combined in one brigade . The commander of this brigade is also the commander of the army. In 2012 the land forces began to be expanded into a mechanized force.

Commander of the Army

Colonel Sandris Gaugers has been the commandant of the brigade since 2018, making it the highest-ranking officer in the Latvian army.

Its direct predecessors were:

• Ilmārs Atis Lejiņš (2016-2018)
• Mārtiņš Liberts (2013-2016)
• Dzintars Roga (2007-2013)

Tasks and organization

Latvian soldiers during a NATO exercise in Spain

The Latvian Land Forces have five central tasks:

• to ensure the protection of the state
• To ensure combat readiness
• Prepare to participate in international operations
• Participation in international counter-terrorism operations
• Relief and support of other aid workers in emergencies, fire and rescue measures as well as in crisis situations

structure

The Latvian army consists of an infantry brigade stationed near Ādaži . This is structured as follows:

• Infantry brigade
  • headquarters
    • Headquarters / telecommunications company
  • 1st Mechanized Infantry Battalion
    • Headquarters / telecommunications company
    • 1st (mechanized) infantry company
    • 2nd (mechanized) infantry company
    • 3rd (mechanized) infantry company
    • Supply company
  • 2nd Mechanized Infantry Battalion
    • Headquarters / telecommunications company
    • 1st (mechanized) infantry company
    • 2nd (mechanized) infantry company
    • 3rd (mechanized) infantry company
    • Supply company
  • 3rd Infantry Battalion
  • Artillery Division
  • Combat Support Battalion
    • Headquarters / telecommunications company
    • Tank Hunting Company
    • Pioneer company
    • Reconnaissance Company
    • Forward Air Control Team
  • Supply battalion
    • Supply and transport company
    • Medical company
    • Repair company

Ranks

Rank group	Generals			Staff officers			Subaltern officers
Shoulder pieces
Rank	Ģenerālleitnants	Ģenerālmajor	Brigādes Ģenerālis	Pulkvedis	Pulkvežleitnants	Majors	Kapteinis	Virsleitnants	Leitnants
Rank (Bundeswehr)	Lieutenant General	Major general	Brigadier General	Colonel	Lieutenant colonel	major	Captain	First lieutenant	lieutenant
NATO rank code	OF-8	OF-7	OF-6	OF-5	OF-4	OF-3	OF-2	OF-1

Rank group	NCOs and men
Shoulder pieces
Rank	Vecākais virsniekvietnieks	Virsniekvietnieks	Vecākais virsseržants	Virsseržants	Seržants	Kapralis	Dižkareivis	Kareivis
Rank (Bundeswehr)	Sergeant Major	Staff Sergeant	Sergeant Major	Sergeant / Oberfeldwebel	NCO / Staff NCO	Corporal Oberstabsgefreiter	Obergefreiter / Hauptgefreiter	soldier
NATO rank code	OR-9	OR-8	OR-7	OR-6	OR-5	OR-4	OR-3	OR-2

equipment

The Latvian Army has u. a. via transport vehicles from Scania , Mercedes and Land Rover . In addition, the chain-driven multi-purpose vehicle Bandvagn 206 and armored vehicles of the type HMMWV are in use. In 2014, Latvia received 123 CVR (T) armored vehicles valued at £ 39.4 million from British stocks .

There are also 35 M109 self -propelled howitzers (from the Austrian Armed Forces ) , 10 support units with data centers and 2 driving school vehicles. The first self-propelled guns were delivered in autumn 2017 - the guns are intended to increase the artillery capacities of Latvia.

In February 2018 bought Latvia for 108 million euro anti-tank missiles of the type "Spike" from Israel. These weapon systems are to be delivered gradually by 2023. It is planned to equip the Scorpion reconnaissance vehicles CVR (T) bought from England with it. Latvia already uses an older version of the "Spike" anti-tank missile in the army.

• 

  Latvian Bandvagn BV206

• 

  Latvian CVR (T) at a parade

• 

  Latvian M109 howitzers

• 

  Latvian anti-tank missile "Spike"

Web links

Commons : Latvian Armed Forces  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• Land Forces website (Latvian)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Press release dated September 4, 2014 on the UK Government website, accessed October 7, 2014.
2. ↑ orf.at: Self- propelled howitzers with a loss to Latvia sold online message on kaernten.orf.at from June 8, 2017, accessed on September 20, 2017.
3. ↑ Press release from May 6, 2017 on the Latvian Armed Forces website, accessed on May 10, 2017 (English).
4. ↑ Latvia buys 'Strike' anti-tank missiles from Israel Online report on finanz.net of February 12, 2018, accessed on February 14, 2018.