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Zelensky arrives in Latvia as last stop on Baltic tour

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Zelensky arrives in Latvia as last stop on Baltic tour
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky and Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics attend an official welcoming ceremony in Riga, Latvia on Jan. 11, 2024. (Gints Ivuskans/AFP via Getty Images)

President Volodymyr Zelensky arrived in the Latvian capital of Riga in the afternoon of Jan. 11, the final stop on his tour of the Baltic nations.

Zelensky arrived in the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius on Jan. 10 and traveled to the Estonian capital of Tallinn earlier on Jan. 11.

The three Baltic countries have been among Kyiv's staunchest supporters against Russian aggression, and both the Lithuanian and Estonian presidents outlined new aid packages for Ukraine for the coming years during Zelensky's visits.

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda pledged a three-year support package for Ukraine worth nearly $220 million. Vilnius promised to continue its uninterrupted support for Ukraine through defense deals finalized last year, as well as through new ones planned for the coming months and years.

Estonian President Alar Karis pledged to allocate 1.2 billion euros ($1.3 billion) for Kyiv until the year 2027 and called on the EU to increase its military support for Ukraine as the country enters its third calendar year of an all-out war with Russia.

Zelensky was welcomed in Riga by Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics, with whom he is expected to speak at a joint press conference later on Jan. 10.

Estonia pledges $1.3 billion in long-term support for Kyiv as Zelensky tours Baltics
Estonian President Alar Karis pledged to allocate 1.2 billion euros ($1.3 billion) for Kyiv until the year 2027, a major commitment from a country of 1.3 million people, after Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky arrived in Estonia as part of his Baltic trip.
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