WEBVTT

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(mellow music)

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- My parents were both from Latvia

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and when the Communists were coming in

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^they were fleeing and it was only

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^we'll just go this far and we'll just go this far

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^and took nothing with them, basically absolutely nothing

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and ended up going to Germany

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and we lived in a displaced persons camp.

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(mellow music)

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I was born in 1950 and then we came over

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when I was six months old.

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So I had never been to Latvia.

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Latvia was always kind of this promised land

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and at the time I never imagined

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that it would ever be free

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but it was definitely very much a part of my life.

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(mellow music)

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^(speaking foreign language)

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^(speaking foreign language)

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(mellow music)

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- We had to make a decision which way to go,

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to be more west or more east.

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^We always felt that we are a part

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^of Western culture, cultural wise, language wise

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^and so on and then we decide to go to West.

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And join all Western economical and security organizations,

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namely European Union and NATO.

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When we regained independence, early fall 1991,

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we start from the scratch.

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When I am saying scratch, I mean scratch.

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No single Kalashnikov rifle, nothing.

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Just will and determination to be independent

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and to be able to defend our independence.

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It's how we started.

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(mellow music)

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Because we were open, open to old friends,

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open to innovations, open to a new system, new structure,

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open, the most important, to a Western kind

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of military system.

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So it's why our first contacts, our first exercise,

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our first relationship and active counterpart

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is Michigan National Guard, played this important role.

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(mellow music)

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^(man speaking foreign language)

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^(mellow music)

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^(speaking foreign language)

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(mellow music)

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^- They put a notice out that they

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^were looking for partner states

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^for Lithuania, Astonia, and Latvia.

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Well, I had some connections with Latvia,

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my executive assistant, Altsie Mason, spoke Latvian,

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one of my best friends and his wife

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were both born in Latvia, so I had an awareness of Latvia.

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(mellow music)

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- When the partnership program first came up,

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I think it was General Taylor,

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I remember him saying that they were talking

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about a country and I think he actually mispronounced it

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and I said well is it Latvia?

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Could it be Latvia?

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And I really didn't think it could

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and it was, in fact, and then General Stumpf

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just took such an active role

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in trying to get that country for us,

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for Michigan, and it was amazing.

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(mellow music)

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- They were starting from ground zero.

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^They didn't have, the Zemessardze, their National Guard,

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^didn't have uniforms, they didn't have weapons.

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^They had some facilities and they were really anxious

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to learn and to become part of the Western society.

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When General Connaway went over there

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to visit them he said listen,

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why don't we set up a state partnership program

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with our National Guard?

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Citizen soldiers.

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It ended up being a perfect fit as we found out later.

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It makes it even better because of long-term relationships.

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We were able to partner with these countries

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and bring them along, help them with their democracy

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and make sure that they're free countries

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and that they can stand up on their own.

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So, we went in to just show them

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how the National Guard worked,

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how the US Military worked, how we were organized,

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how our Command and Control worked.

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(mellow music)

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If you're organized under the Russian system

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you could probably never get into NATO

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because you wouldn't have the organization

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that's required to do that

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but then a lot of it is to show leadership,

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that you've got an organization

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which can defend themselves and have leaders

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in there, have some equipment that you can do some things

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in your own personal defense.

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(mellow music)

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- When I became the Adjutant General,

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that was about a year prior to them becoming NATO members.

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And what that really signaled was that they

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^were absolutely headed in the right direction

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^in terms of how they were organizing, equipping,

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and training their soldiers.

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So as they joined NATO, I think that just gave them

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a real sense of accomplishment,

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certainly it gave them a greater sense

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of security as they sit right on the Russian border.

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There were a lotta people that were helping

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but nobody could do it for the Latvians.

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The Latvians absolutely had to do it for themselves

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and I think that's why they took great pride in it.

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They were pretty teachable and they learned a lot

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in the process but they had to do all the heavy lifting.

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We were all there to assist.

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As I took over the partnership

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when I became the Adjutant General

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it was clear that the Latvians were making a lot

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of progress as we've discussed.

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They had become part of NATO, they were part

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of the European Union, and I thought we'd gotten

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to a point where it was probably time

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to move on from a classroom-type training environment

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to some operational kinds of things.

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(mellow music)

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As the global war on terror progressed,

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our president certainly wanted more NATO participation,

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so NATO actually wanted to get some

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of its member states to participate

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for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan.

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At some point, the Latvian Chief of Defense

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was asked if they would send

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Operational Mentoring Liaison Teams to Afghanistan.

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Isn't that amazing?

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Here's Latvia, who not so long ago joined NATO

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and now is going and doing operational mentoring.

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(mellow music)

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(lively music)

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^- The Operational Liaison and Mentor Team

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^which was a team actually built

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^for one conduct or one battalion,

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where we were mentoring, actually,

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the really positions within the battalion

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and trying to teach them and teaching,

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of course, as well how to fight.

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(lively music)

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It was not only American fight.

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It was fight of the NATO which was there

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and we were partners already before

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and we are partners there as well.

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(lively music)

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The year is 2008 when we were coming together

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as one joint team going to Afghanistan

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to teach somebody for the fighting.

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Oh it was first time when we are actually

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in such really war situations

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where troops are getting in contact three times a day

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and we brought with us back to our country, actually,

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a lot of lessons learned.

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(lively music)

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It was so interesting because we start actually

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with some joint training already in the beginning

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of the OMLT for a half a year here in Latvia.

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(lively music)

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- And so we met those guys early

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when this thing kicked off and right away we got along.

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I mean they were great guys.

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(lively music)

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They're very unassuming.

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^They're all built like trucks.

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^And they are phenomenal soldiers.

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^And they were the best soldiers

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^I've worked with in any army anywhere.

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They were extremely professional

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and very, very proficient, very good at what they did.

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And OMLT won because we built the model,

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we had a lot of freedom

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to put this thing together right

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and so what happened was we were getting some

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of their folks JTAC qualified.

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^- So the Joint Terminal Attack Controller

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^his job is to integrate air power

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^with the ground power, so they are the nexus

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for those combined fires, so indirect artillery,

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direct fire from the army, plus also the indirect fire

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and direct fire from the aircraft.

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The state in Latvia had decided

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to do the combined OMLTs right?

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The mentoring and liaison team so they

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had sent a group over looking

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at some specific skillsets that they wanted

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out of the Michigan Guard for those augmentees.

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That's when we kinda started walking through an idea

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that that was a capability that was highly required

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for the OMLTs and how we operated in Afghanistan

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to bring in close air support to those teams

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that were out separated from large ground units.

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We kinda thought that through

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that that would be a very good capability not only

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for the OMLT and the deployment

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but something for Latvia to develop organcally

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within their country.

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These guys really do lead from the front

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and it becomes such an integral part

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of the overall Latvian military's ability

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to fight in a coalition environment.

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When you see that level of effort,

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it can't help but instill in you

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some motivation for yourself to do better

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but at the same time, motivate you

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to do everything within your power

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to assist these individuals to get as good as they can be

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and always, overhanging that, is the remembrance

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of Voldemars and what he did with a few weeks of training.

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(mellow music)

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- So, Voldemars was the best soldier

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I'd met in any army anywhere.

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He was just amazing.

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He was just an amazing guy.

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And he was a ...

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He was a field soldier.

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His fieldcraft, his knowledge of tactics,

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he was what a recce guy is supposed to be.

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But he was extremely humble

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and I learned a ton from him.

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I mean I learned more from Volja

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than probably just about anybody in my career.

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(mellow music)

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So Andres, we called The Wolf.

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Andres was very, very quiet

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and very, very humble.

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But he was a phenomenal sniper.

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In fact, there's a lotta stuff

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that he taught me that when I became a sniper

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I kept those lessons.

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Andres was just a really genuinely good man.

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(mellow music)

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On May 1, 2009

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it looked like everybody in the world

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was shootin' at that little place.

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There was just traces pourin' in

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from seven or eight different support

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by fire positions, there were coulis rockets

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just one after the other hammered

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into our hoot specifically.

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(mellow music)

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So four of those boys and a medic

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and two LVI folks tried to hold off

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probably a company-plus size element.

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(somber music)

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- The place where it happened from 1st of May

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was on the Marasmus Milk

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and simultaneously we were both on the same place

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in the same OP, it was the Latvians

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and it was the Americans.

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And I lost my Latvian soldiers

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in the same way how I lost my American soldiers.

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(mellow music)

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- I had the privilege of going to Latvia

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and attending their funerals

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and to pay our respect and express our condolences

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to their families.

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But it reminded all of us of just how important

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our partnership was and the fact

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that both countries have been asked

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to spill the blood of their soldiers

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in Iraq and Afghanistan and it's certainly

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created a stronger bond, I think, between our countries

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and between our two military organizations.

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(mellow music)

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^- This friendship is tested not in Latvian as well

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and together we go to where is sad Latvians

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because we lost our soldiers in this very hard operation.

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It's mean we are connected through the blood

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and this is most, most powerful friendship in the world.

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I am very happy because I was born in Latvia.

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I am very happy because I am in this time

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when we are developing after regaining our independence

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and developing our military capability

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but I am most exciting because we have

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the very good, nice friend Michigan National Guard

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(mumbles) in Michigan State.

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(mellow music)

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- There are great conditions for friendship

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because you know each other for, I don't know,

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10 years, 15 years, in my case I know

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I still have many friends since the very beginning

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for the last 25 years.

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This is kind of the biggest advantage

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of the right management friendship

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but friendship and management so tight

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it's difficult to distinguish even

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which one is the first one.

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So it makes our business very easy.

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We know each other, we know systems,

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we know exactly what we need.

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Hey, hey Admiral, what you think

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about this capability, say hmmm.

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Thank you.

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It means he knew that we need this.

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He's familiar with our system

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and this is, I would say, it's ultimate level

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of cooperation, you cannot be closer as friend

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then as military partners, as the managers,

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as the commanding officer or assistant.

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We know each other personally,

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we know each other professionally,

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and we know each other's systems,

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we know each other's defense

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and capabilities and so on.

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(mellow music)

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- The strategic implications of the program are huge

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and we could never let our foot off the accelerator.

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^We do three things, we fight our nation's wars,

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^we defend our homeland, we build global partnerships,

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^and those global partnerships are important.

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This is a mission.

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^In our world as it is in Latvia,

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^it's all about building readiness.

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That's the conversation.

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And how do we help Latvia continue

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to enhance their capability and build combat power?

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(mellow music)

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^- Situation in last two years

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^in our region is challenge, unbelievable.

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We are facing is ...

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Our unpredictable neighbors who is then very close to us.

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For us, need in very short period,

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build up our assault forces.

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Question is, how you protect Latvia?

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Answer, like Latvian.

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It's a main, I think, idea of organization

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like NATO is allies and if you have a friends

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and allies, you are much stronger

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and of course everyone know

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chain is strong as each of links

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and you helps strengthen this each of links.

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(mellow music)

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- Thanks for really helping us develop our capabilities

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to be appreciated by our NATO friends

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and I believe you saved many, many lives

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in international operations

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because our soldier will be well trained

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by Michigan National Guard.

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And the most important for what you did

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is you could call it create, develop, and sustain

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what you have the full set from the very beginning,

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from the scratch up through capability

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and then sustain is get built

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like jet offensives, this is unique.

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Of course you are the most advanced military system

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on earth, the most capable,

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the most technologically advanced.

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For us it's big advantage or opportunity let's say

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to cooperate with you and to get this always big edge

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of the capabilities.

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(adventurous music)

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^(speaking foreign language)

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- So as I look to the future, I think that,

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again, it speaks to how critically important

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is that we stay focused and continue

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to build this partnership to the next level

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and, again, at the foundation of it

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is those interpersonal relationships,

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that element of trust, you cannot surge trust,

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it is not what you say, it is what you do

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^and that has been certainly my experience

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^in the last 11 years and it has been reciprocal.

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The threat has not gone away

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and it's going to for the foreseeable future

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and I would tell you the value

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that the State Partnership Program has given

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has contributed to building the readiness,

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the capability, of Latvia is worth its weight in gold.

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When I look in my rear view mirror

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at this partnership and what has been accomplished

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over 25 years, both in country,

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in the United States, in Michigan,

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and in this country, it is nothing less than amazing

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and good and so I look to the future

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because this is important and I think

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^that we face continuing challenges,

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^the world is a very dangerous place,

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and particularly for Latvia.

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(mellow music)

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- If we talk about cooperation

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in Michigan's National Guards

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help us build up our capabilities

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in different domain, air domain, land domain,

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cyber domain at the moment is very important

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for everyone and this is crucial point

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and of course you have a big history,

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you have a huge knowledge about all of that capabilities.

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I am unbelievable, feel good, what I saw

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at the last two years.

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How developed the situation

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and particularly where is Michigan National Guard.

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(triumphant music)

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- We get as much as we give and it is a two way street

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and I can tell ya, there have been

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a lotta lessons learned and a lotta take aways

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that we've incorporated into the way

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that we do business, that we've learned from the Latvians.

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I'm sure you've seen our coin before.

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I take great pride in this coin

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and it says a lot

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because it truly a partnership, friendship.

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If you were to define what that really should look like,

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this is what right looks like.

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It's Michigan and Latvia.

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(energetic music)

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- In my arms at the moment is very interesting piece.

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Is a coin.

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Coin of Michigan State National Guard

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and Latvian Arm Forces together and on one coins.

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And I think, in the future,

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I want the same feeling continuous

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but seriously for us need that

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because you are always in the first row

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with situation how developed

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at the moment, lot of capabilities.

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When we are built from nothing

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and finally we are announced full operation capability.

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That is like a sweet fruit and we need

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for everyone that and we are very proudly about that.

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(triumphant music)

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- Do you know somebody's really jealous

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about our friendship.

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Because how cooperated Michigan to is Latvia

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it sometimes is not such good in our neighbor countries

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and we are very proud about that,

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how we find they are really our friends.

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(triumphant music)

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- They're family and, look, I will move heaven

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and earth within my ability to do it, to support 'em.

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They know that.

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(triumphant music)

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- [Shawn] If them guys called me up

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I would go anywhere, anytime with that group of soldiers.

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(triumphant music)

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(mellow music)