Photo By Sgt. 1st Class Keith Anderson | Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges, commanding general, U.S. Army Europe, speaks with Cpl. Brian...... read more read more
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VILNIUS, Lithuania - U.S. Soldiers joined Lithuanians to celebrate the Baltic nation’s 95th Armed Forces Day with a display of American equipment in Kaunas Nov. 21, and with a parade and mass formation in the capital’s Cathedral Square Nov. 23.
For Lithuanians, the holiday honors the restoration of the country’s Armed Forces on Nov. 23, 1918, just weeks after the end of WWI, when the prime minister, Augustinas Voldemaras, signed Order No. 1 giving legal basis for formation of the armed forces of the newly-independent Lithuania.
As part of Armed Forces Day events, U.S. Cavalry Soldiers stood in a small formation with Strykers in front of Lithuania’s Karmelava Airspace Control Centre Nov. 21 in Kaunas for a visit from the new NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaitė, and several other officials. Hungarian, Danish and Lithuanian Soldiers also had displays for the distinguished visitors.
“Collective defense is our core task,” said Stoltenberg, the former prime minster of Norway, “NATO stands with Lithuania – as we do with each and every ally.”
On Nov. 23, U.S. Cavalry Soldiers from B Co., 2nd Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, and Soldiers from C Troop, 1st Squadron, 2nd Cavalry Regiment, marched with Danish, Hungarian and Lithuanian Soldiers before crowds of thousands in the nation’s largest city.
“It’s not too often you can say you were in a country’s parade in their national capital,” said Spc. Matthew Walker, medic, B Co., 2nd Bn., 8th Cav. Reg., and native of Kokomo, Indiana. “I’m really into history and I thought downtown Vilnius was gorgeous; I would have liked to have spent more time there.”
President of the Republic of Lithuania Dalia Grybauskaitė; Minister of National Defense Juozas Olekas; Chief of Defense of Lithuania Maj. Gen. Jonas Vytautas Žukas; Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevičius; Speaker of the Parliament Loreta Graužinienė; and several other dignitaries attended the event, and thanked U.S. and NATO service members for their support.
The Honor Guard Company of the Lithuanian Armed Forces performed a cannon salute in the honor of the Homeland, the Lithuanian Armed Forces and NATO allies.
Representatives from all the services of the Lithuanian Armed Forces, the Public Security Service and the State Border Guard Service stood in the military formation and marched in the parade, in addition to Hungarian Defense Forces from the 5th Bocskai Istvan Infantry Brigade, Danish Army soldiers from the 1st Brigade, Danish Division, and U.S. Soldiers.
Lt. Gen. Ben Hodges, commanding general, U.S. Army Europe, also traveled to Lithuania for Armed Forces Day events, and visited Ironhorse Soldiers Nov. 24 in Rukla in garrison and out at the nearby live fire range.
“I'm extremely proud of them,” Hodges said, speaking about 1st BCT soldiers during a same-day video teleconference with the Pentagon press corps from the U.S. Embassy in Vilnius.
The U.S. Army is committed to standing alongside its European allies, which is reflected in a new slogan, ‘Strong Europe,’ a take on the ‘Army Strong’ slogan, Hodges said. The strength of the Army is its dedicated Soldiers and their leaders, many of whom will be spending Thanksgiving in Eastern Europe.
U.S. Cavalry Soldiers are in Lithuania as part of the U.S. Army Europe-led Atlantic Resolve, a multinational combined arms exercise involving the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division, and host nations, taking place across Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland to enhance multinational interoperability, to strengthen relationships among allied militaries, to contribute to regional stability and to demonstrate US commitment to NATO.
| Date Taken: | 11.24.2014 |
| Date Posted: | 11.28.2014 05:46 |
| Story ID: | 149014 |
| Location: | VILNIUS, LT |
| Web Views: | 278 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, US Soldiers celebrate Lithuanian Armed Forces Day, by SFC Keith Anderson, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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