Washington, Jul 23 (DPA): The US has transferred two detainees from Guantanamo Bay, one to Latvia and a second to Spain, as part of the effort to close the controversial prison on the naval base in Cuba, the Pentagon said Thursday.

The defence department did not identify the detainees under the arrangements made with the host governments. The Spanish interior ministry in Madrid said the individual it was accepting was Afghan.

Spain has now taken the third of five detainees it has agreed to resettle.

"The United States is grateful to the governments of Spain and Latvia for their willingness to support US efforts to close the Guantanamo Bay detention facility," the Pentagon said.

The number of prisoners remaining at Guantanamo is 176. Two others were transferred last week to Algeria and Cape Verde.

President Barack Obama has been trying to close the prison since he took office in 2009, but missed a deadline he set for the end of January. His administration has struggled to find enough countries willing to take detainees designated for release.