Prime Minister Justin Trudeau travelling to Latvia and NATO summit in Lithuania

OTTAWA –

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will travel to Europe next week for the annual NATO leaders’ summit.

The two-day summit in Lithuania starts July 11 and comes as the alliance has agreed to extend the term of Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg by another year.

NATO also recently expanded its membership to include Finland and Canada and other nations are pushing to allow Sweden to join as well.

Before the summit Trudeau will stop in Latvia where he will meet with the Latvian president and prime minister in Riga on July 10.

Canada’s largest overseas mission is as the leader of an 11-nation NATO battle group in Latvia.

Defence Minister Anita Anand recently committed to adding a tank squadron and around 130 troops as part of an effort to expand that battle group into a combat-ready brigade.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 4, 2023.