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NATO Force Integration Unit inaugurated in Latvia

Xinhua, November 17, 2015 Adjust font size:

A new NATO Force Integration Unit (NFIU) was inaugurated here on Monday in a ceremony which started with a moment of silence honoring the victims of last Friday's terror attacks in Paris.

NATO defense ministers agreed in February to set up multinational command and control elements, or NFIUs, in six Eastern European states, including Latvia, to respond to new security challenges.

Manned by around 40 staff each, the NFIUs are intended to facilitate rapid deployment of NATO forces to the Eastern part of the Alliance if necessary. The units will also support collective defense planning and help coordinate training and exercises.

Latvian Defense Minister Raimonds Bergmanis said at the inauguration ceremony that this was a historic moment even though the NFIU has been operating in Latvia already since Sept. 1, 2015.

The presence of NATO forces in Latvia is extremely important at a time when the world is witnessing barbaric attacks like the ones staged in Paris last week, which essentially could be taken as a declaration of war on Europe, the minister said.

Latvian Chief of Defense Lt. Gen. Raimonds Graube described the creation of the NFIU as a highly important message that no NATO ally is left on its own. "The unit symbolizes NATO's readiness to respond to modern challenges," the Latvian chief of defense said.

Condemning the attacks in Paris in the strongest of terms, General Adrian Bradshow, Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe (Deputy SACEUR), said that the Alliance was ready to provide any support to France in its fight against Islamic State (IS) terrorist group.

Attending the ceremony in the Latvian capital were Latvian Defense Minister Raimonds Bergmanis, Latvian Chief of Defense Lt. Gen. Raimonds Graube, Adrian Bradshaw, Deputy Supreme Allied Commander Europe (Deputy SACEUR), Hans Lothar Domrose, Commander of the Allied Joint Force Command Brunssum, Manfred Hoffmann, Commander of the Multinational Corps Northeast and Eriks Naglis, Commander of NFIU in Latvia, as well as other guests. Endit