On 11 April 1992, in Liepāja, the restored flag of the Latvian Naval Forces was raised on the first repaired coast guard vessel, KA-04 “Sams.” This was not merely a ceremonial gesture – a state that had only recently restored its independence needed to protect its Baltic Sea coast, ports, and territorial waters in practice. This date is regarded and commemorated as the birthday of the restored Latvian Naval Forces.

After the restoration of independence, Latvia had to build much of its security system almost from scratch. Re-establishing the Naval Forces was especially important because Latvia had to assert control over its ports, coastline, and economic zone at a time when the former Soviet military presence was still felt in the region.