When Latvia Went to War
When Latvia Went to War
Latvian soldiers shared the harrowing trials of a contemporary American Alamo.
U.S. troops at COP Keating, 2009 (Photo 1st Lt. Brad Larson)
There is not a lot of Latvian military history. The armed forces were formed in 1918 after the establishment of the independent nation, fighting bravely during the War of Independence (1918-1920). The interwar years left the military ill-prepared for the outbreak of World War II. Troops were ordered not to intervene during the Soviet occupation in 1940. During the war, many veterans fought as partisans against the Soviet occupation. The present Latvian military was reconstituted in 1991.
When they write the next military history of Latvia’s short military history, one story that ought to featured is the harrowing experience of one of the most vicious battles in Afghanistan. This occurred on October 3, 2009. A force of 400 Taliban assaulted the American Combat Outpost Keating near the town of Kamdesh. In the battle of Kamdesh a handful of soldiers, including two Latvians nearly became the next America Alamo.
What happened? The isolated U.S. outpost was surrounded and attacked by a vastly superior enemy force. The perimeter was breached, leaving the outnumbered defenders fighting for their lives as the attackers started burning down the compound. At the outbreak of the battle air support was not available and weather prevented deploying reinforcement.
The force survived the onslaught, in part by calling down bombing runs on their own position and the determined resistance of the men fighting to regain control of the compound. At the end of the fight, virtually all the compound had been destroyed. There were only three buildings left standing. Eight Americans died and twenty-seven were wounded.
COP Keating after the fight (U.S. Army photo)
The story of the Battle of Kamdesh is told in the book The Outpost by Jake Tapper (2013) and the film The Outpost (2020).
Poster the the 2020 film The Outpost
Why were Latvians there? NATO forces joined in operations in Afghanistan in response to the terrorist attacks against the United States on September 11, 2001. Latvian forces participated in operations in Afghanistan for 18 years. Hundreds served. Four died. Dozens were bestowed medals of valor. There were two Latvian soldiers at COP Keating who were participating in training local Afghan forces.
What happened to the Latvian soldiers? Latvian Sgt. 1st Class Janis Lakis in an interview described how he, “woke up at 5:30 a.m. on Oct. 3, 2009, sipped some coffee and waited patiently to train Afghan soldiers, a routine set to begin in just an hour. First, though, came the mortars, the screams of attack and the sight of shells exploding like popcorn.” With little time to think, Lakis and a fellow Latvian soldier Cpl. Martins Dabolins evaluated their choices, remembering all along of their nearby “American brothers….In that case, it’s only one decision: It’s stay and fight….”
Dabolins recalled, “[o]f all the battles I have ever been in, battle of COP Keating was probably not the most complicated, but definitely the heaviest. There are two particular moments that I remember most. When I had to give my sniper rifle to one of American troops who gave me the assault rifle that I needed to recover the ammo supply point together with American troops by taking buildings on the way one by one. There were wounded and casualties, so our lines were depleted and there were only a few men who could counterattack. It was critical to get to the ammo supply point because we were running out of ammo, we only had a couple of clips and a few grenades left. Without ammo we would lose. And the other moment was when I was sitting on the rubble of the burned-down post after the battle – dirty and exhausted. I had sniper rifle behind, machinegun in my hands and I was looking at the support arriving from the mountains. That was when I realized that we have won the battle. The luck this time has been on the side of Latvian troops. Until that moment, it was very uncertain whether we will see the dawn. We just did not have enough men to keep fighting.”
This may not have been the biggest battle in military history, but for two Latvian soldiers it was war enough.
And think, if this is how Latvians fought in Afghanistan, how would they fight in Latvia? The Russians better beware.
For more on the battle of CP Keating also read:
More Can’t Make Up Military History
Before Ukraine There Was Poland
Why Hollywood Bombed at Pearl Harbor
Remembering 9/11 and What Came After
And in the “Shameless Plug” category.
"After D-Day is a great study of combined arms warfare ... a significant contribution." -- Field Artillery Journal
"An excellent step-by-step analysis of Operation Cobra, the code name for Allied breakout from the attrition-style battles in Normandy." -- Choice
"Captures all the intensity and realism....The reader benefits from the author's superior ability to fashion the imagery of battle." -- Parameters
"Carafano demonstrates what carried the battle was effective leadership by field grade officers...who seized initiative and took decisive action." -- Booknews.com
"This book is a valuable addition to any library on World War II or modern military history." -- Journal of Military History
After storming the beaches on D-Day, June 6, 1944, the Allied invasion of France bogged down in seven weeks of grueling attrition in Normandy. On July 25, U.S. divisions under Gen. Omar Bradley launched Operation Cobra, an attempt to break out of the hedgerows and begin a war of movement across France. Despite a disastrous start, with dropped bombs killing hundreds of GIs, Cobra proved to be one of the most pivotal battles of World War II, successfully breaking the stalemate in Normandy and clearing a path into occupied France.
And….
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