Latvian Naval Forces

Latvian Naval Forces
Active	1918-1940, 1991-
Country	Latvia
Branch	Naval Force
Role	To defend Latvian territorial sea from external threats, conduct military and rescue operations.
Commanders
Current commander	Commander in Chief flotiles admirālis Ingus Vizulis
Insignia
Naval Ensign
Naval Jack

Latvian Naval Forces (Latvian: Latvijas Jūras Spēki) is a branch of the National Armed Forces tasked with conducting military and rescue operations at sea. The NF perform mine and explosive sweeping on the Baltic Sea, as well as search and rescue operations and ecological monitoring activities. The Naval Forces have participated in international NATO/Partnership for Peace operations and various exercises with great success. The main development priorities of the NF are to expand their activities within the Baltic States’ Ship Squadron BALTRON and to develop a Sea Surveillance System. They pay a great deal of attention to professionally specialized training and English-language teaching. One of the key tasks facing the NF is to develop its infrastructure.

When Latvia regained its independence in 1991, it began recreating the Latvian Naval Forces under the command of Admiral (then Captain) Gaidis Zeibots. In 1994 the Naval Forces were composed of the Southern Region (in Liepāja), the Central Region (in Riga), the Coastal Defense Battalion (in Ventspils) and the Training Center (in Liepāja). The most important naval event of these early days of the re-established Latvian Republic occurred on April 11, 1991 when the Latvian flag was hoisted on the re-established Navy's first ship "SAMS." This date is now recognized as the rebirth of the Latvian Naval Forces.

In 1999 the Baltic Naval Squadron (BALTRON) was created with ships from the Lithuanian, Latvian and Estonian Navies. Latvian Navy Captain Ilmars Lesinskis, then the Commander of the Southern District, was appointed to serve as the first commander of this multi-national force.

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Wikipedia