Latvian Land Forces

Latvian Land Forces
Latvian Land Forces
Sauszemes spēki
	Emblem of the Latvian Land Forces
Active	1918–1940, 1991–present
Country	Latvia
Type	Army
Role	Land warfare
Size	7,345 Professional soldiers; 10,000 National Guard; 38,000 Reserve
Part of	Latvian National Armed Forces
Motto(s)	Vienotībā spēks; (English: "Power in unity")
Anniversaries	30 April (Land Forces Day); 4 May (Independence Restoration and Armed Forces Day)
Engagements	War of Independence; Iraq War Multinational force in Iraq; ; War in Afghanistan Attack on Bari Alai; ;
Commanders
Commander	Colonel Sandris Gaugers [lv]

The Latvian Land Forces (Latvian: Sauszemes spēki, SzS) together with the Latvian National Guard form the land warfare branch of the Latvian National Armed Forces. Since 2007, land forces are organized as a fully professional standing army.

Mission

The main missions of the national Land Forces are to:

Provide for the defense of all national territories;
Ensure combat readiness and the mobilization of units;
Dispose of explosive ordnance;
Provide public assistance.

Structure

Latvian military units and bases^[4]
Note: "Special Tasks Unit" is a special forces unit of battalion size.

Mechanized Infantry Brigade^[5]
- Headquarters
- Headquarters and Signal Company
- 1st Mechanized Infantry Battalion (LATBAT)^[6]
  - Headquarters and Support Company
  - 1st Mechanized Infantry Company
  - 2nd Mechanized Infantry Company
  - 3rd Mechanized Infantry Company
  - Combat Service Support Company
- 2nd Mechanized Infantry Battalion
  - Headquarters and Support Company
  - 1st Mechanized Infantry Company
  - 2nd Mechanized Infantry Company
  - 3rd Mechanized Infantry Company
  - Combat Service Support Company
- 3rd Infantry Battalion (trains active service soldiers, national guardsmen and reserve soldiers)
  - Headquarters and Support Company
  - 1st Infantry Company
  - 2nd Infantry Company
  - 3rd Infantry Company
  - Combat Service Support Company
- Artillery Unit (M109A5Ö howitzers)
- Combat Support Battalion
  - Staff and Signal Company
  - Anti-tank Company (Spike-LR missiles)
  - Fire Support Company
  - Engineer Company
  - Military Intelligence Company
  - Forward Air Control Unit
- Combat Service Support Battalion
  - Staff and Signal Company
  - Supply and Transport Company
  - Technical Support and Maintenance Company
  - Medical Company

Cooperation

Since 1996 till today the National Armed Forces' soldiers have been deployed on nine international peace-keeping missions in Afghanistan, Albania, Bosnia, Central African Republic, Georgia, Iraq, Kosovo, North Macedonia and Somalia.^[7] Starting from January 1, 2015, Latvian Armed Forces are taking part in EU's Nordic Battle Group.^[8]^[9] On March 29, 2004, Latvia became a full member of NATO.^[10]

Equipment

Rank structure^[11]

The rank structure of the Latvian army is adjusted to the rank structure of the NATO countries in Europe. Rank insignia are worn historically on the collars and today also on shoulder marks. Starting 2016, only the Staff Battalion wears the collar insignia.

Officers of the Latvian Army
	Flag Officers			Senior Officers			Junior Officers
Rank insignia
Rank	Lieutenant General Ģenerālleitnants	Major General Ģenerālmajors	Brigadier General Brigādes Ģenerālis	Colonel Pulkvedis	Lieutenant Colonel Pulkvežleitnants	Major Majors	Captain Kapteinis	First Lieutenant Virsleitnants	Second Lieutenant Leitnants
NATO Rank Grade	OF-8	OF-7	OF-6	OF-5	OF-4	OF-3	OF-2	OF-1

Non-Commissioned Officers of the Latvian army
	General NCOs		Senior NCOs		Junior NCOs		Privates
Rank insignia
Rank	Senior Warrant Officer Augstākais virsseržants	Warrant Officer Galvenais virsseržants	Senior Sergeant Štāba virsseržants	Sergeant First Class Virsseržants	Sergeant Seržants	Corporal Kaprālis	Private First Class Dižkareivis	Private Kareivis
NATO Rank Grade	OR-9	OR-8	OR-7	OR-6	OR-5	OR-4	OR-3	OR-2

References

^ |url=https://www.mil.lv/lv/par-mums
^ "Simbolika". Nacionālie bruņotie spēki. Archived from the original on 1 October 2015. Retrieved 30 September 2015.
^ "Nacionālie bruņotie spēki". Retrieved 8 June 2019.
^ Jane's World Armies Issue 23 - 2008
^ "Mechanized Infantry Brigade". Latvian Army. Retrieved 29 October 2019.
^ "1. mehanizētā kājnieku bataljona vēsture | Nacionālie bruņotie spēki". www.mil.lv (in Latvian). Retrieved 2023-05-10.
^ "Nacionālie bruņotie spēki". Archived from the original on 31 December 2014. Retrieved 24 December 2014.
^ "Nordic battlegroup - Swedish Armed Forces". Archived from the original on 2015-03-20. Retrieved 2015-02-25.
^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-12-23. Retrieved 2015-02-20.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
^ "Member countries". Retrieved 24 December 2014.
^ "Latvia Latvian Army ranks military combat field uniforms dress grades uniformes combat armee lettone - Army Recognition - Army Recognition". Retrieved 24 December 2014.

External links

[1] |url=https://www.mil.lv/lv/par-mums

[2] "Simbolika". Nacionālie bruņotie spēki. Archived from the original on 1 October 2015. Retrieved 30 September 2015.

[3] "Nacionālie bruņotie spēki". Retrieved 8 June 2019.

[4] Jane's World Armies Issue 23 - 2008

[5] "Mechanized Infantry Brigade". Latvian Army. Retrieved 29 October 2019.

[6] "1. mehanizētā kājnieku bataljona vēsture | Nacionālie bruņotie spēki". www.mil.lv (in Latvian). Retrieved 2023-05-10.

[7] "Nacionālie bruņotie spēki". Archived from the original on 31 December 2014. Retrieved 24 December 2014.

[8] "Nordic battlegroup - Swedish Armed Forces". Archived from the original on 2015-03-20. Retrieved 2015-02-25.

[9] "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-12-23. Retrieved 2015-02-20.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)

[10] "Member countries". Retrieved 24 December 2014.

[11] "Latvia Latvian Army ranks military combat field uniforms dress grades uniformes combat armee lettone - Army Recognition - Army Recognition". Retrieved 24 December 2014.

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