Military Parade in honor of the 100th anniversary of the republic of Latvia

Thousands of people flocked to the November 11 Embankment in Riga today to watch the traditional military parade, held in honor of Latvia’s Independence Day. The November 18 military parade was joined by more than 1,000 soldiers, home guards, border guards, policemen, firefighters and youth guards. The Defense Ministry has described this year’s military parade as the largest since the restoration of independence. The parade was attended by esteemed military guests from abroad, including Commander of the Canadian Army Lt. Gen. Paul Wynnyk. Lt. Gen. Norbert Gehart, Austria's National Armaments Director, and Maj. Gen. Gregory Vadnais, Michigan National Guard Adjutant General. Marching in the parade were soldiers of the Canadian-led multi-national NATO battalion station in Latvia. Also marching in the parade were soldiers from Denmark, Germany, Estonia, Great Britain, Lithuania, Sweden and the United States. At the rear of the parade was a display of Latvian and allied military hardware, including Spanish and Polish tanks, as well as US Blackhawk helicopters and NATO fighters currently based in the Baltics. Also in display for this first time was the self-propelled howitzers recently purchased from Austria, as well as the CVR(T) armored vehicles purchased from Great Britain.