Latvia: Pres. Rinkevics meets Canadian PM Trudeau in Riga

Latvia’s President, Edgars Rinkevics, met with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in Riga, LETA reports. The two officials discussed the NATO summit in Vilnius, support for Ukraine, the situation in Belarus and Russia, and bilateral economic cooperation. Rinkevics expressed Latvia’s wish for Canada to expand its military presence in Latvia. Canada leads the NATO enhanced Forward Presence battalion in Latvia, which is to be expanded to a combat-capable brigade. Also, Latvia seeks a permanent deployment of air and missile defence assets in the Baltic States, Rinkevics added.