Blog Posts tagged with "Latvia"
Smart Civic Engagement in Latvia
Col. Shawn Fritz adds a EUCOM coin to a ceremonial time capsule placed in the foundation of the new three-bay garage with Lt. Col. Peter Wisti.
On Monday, Judy Garber, U.S. Ambassador to Latvia; members of the U.S. Embassy in Riga and EUCOM; the Latvian Ministry of Interior (State Fire and Rescue Service) and National Guard members; and local government officials broke ground on a EUCOM Humanitarian Assistance project modernizing eight fire and rescue stations in Latvia.
This project is a sterling example of the whole of government approach taken by both of our countries to build essential service capabilities that Latvia can employ not just within its own borders, but to benefit Europe as a whole. As we saw from the recent spate of natural disasters across Europe in the last two years -- wildfires in Russia, flooding in the Balkans, earthquakes in Turkey, extreme winter weather in central and eastern Europe -- there’s certainly a need for robust emergency response services in the region. Effective essential services help contain and mitigate the impact of disasters and thereby contribute to maintaining security and stability in the affected areas -- a EUCOM core mission.
The Gulbene Firehouse fleet of firetrucks was decades old, and so was the garage built to house them. With the recent purchase of new, larger, modern firetrucks, a larger garage is needed as well.
A construction crew lays the foundation for the new three-bay garage at the firehouse in Gulbene, Latvia.
This groundbreaking was part of a multi-year EUCOM HA effort that started in 2010 to renovate Latvia’s national fire and rescue stations and enhance their emergency response capability. Latvia leveraged these renovated stations by reaching out to the European Union for new fire trucks, which, combined with updated emergency facilities, enabling a speedier response to emergencies. As a result of this improved capability, Latvia was able to send firefighters and equipment outside the country to tackle catastrophic forest fires in Russia and severe flooding in Poland and Moldova. Thanks to innovative thinking by EUCOM and Latvian project team members, this project delivered a “bigger bang for the buck”.
Much like NATO’s “Smart Defense” concept, EUCOM’s HA effort with Latvia is “Smart Civic Engagement”--a joint project with one of our smallest NATO allies and one of the poorest countries in the European Union precisely crafted to deliver significant security benefits. We are truly Stronger Together!
Ambassador Lawrence Butler
Civilian Deputy to the Commander
US European Command
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The Power of Partnering in the Baltics
In early March, we teamed up with Project Hope, a non-profit medical service organization, to work with us and our Baltic allies in Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia on some of the most relevant, important issues facing all of our forces.
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Ending the week in Estonia
The final day of the Wounded Warrior team’s trip in the Baltics began with a visit to Magdaleena East Central Tallinn Hospital, one of the largest hospitals in Estonia and the best hospital in Tallinn for rehabilitation.
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Day 2: Nothing says spring like fresh flowers.
While visiting Lithuania the Wounded Warrior team and the two physicians from Project Hope drove out to Vilnius University Emergency Hospital (VUEH) located 15 minutes west of the capital, Vilnius. The day’s mission was to deliver medical lectures about Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) to the staff at a local hospital there.
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Exploring Wounded Warrior issues in partner nations
Wounded Warrior, Veteran care, traumatic brain injury and post traumatic stress disorder. All are powerful terms capable of eliciting intense emotions from military service members and civilians alike. For the Baltic nations of Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia supporting International Security Assistance Force - Afghanistan it is a term they are becoming more familiar with.
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Local Procurement in Latvia Strengthens Northern Distribution Network
The United States European Command (USEUCOM) plays an important role supplying the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan. I’d like to explain how building business relationships with companies in the USEUCOM area of responsibility can have a positive effect on that effort.
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HA Works When They Want it as Much as We Do!
What makes a Humanitarian Assistance (HA) project a success? There are many factors that impact the process; it is no longer just a triangular relationship between the project scope, available funding and allocated time.
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A Fighting Force & So Much More
The military is occasionally called upon to provide life saving assistance in times of disaster. I’ve blogged over the past few years about our involvement in fires, floods and earthquakes. These disasters, and the military’s role in them, receive much attention. But the military is also routinely involved in capacity building projects which often do not get the same level of coverage.
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A Baltic Bridge to the Adriatic
In human affairs, successful cooperation in one area often builds bridges to successful cooperation on other endeavors. In the case of Croatia and Latvia, successful security cooperation has recently led to cooperation on the protection of the natural and economic resources on the Dalmatian Coast.
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It Does Not Take Much to Make a Difference
I recently had a chance to accompany the Latvian Military Chaplain...
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Thanks to innovative thinking by EUCOM and Latvian project team members, this project delivered a “bigger bang for the buck”.