Preview: Baltics prepare royal welcome for Queen Elizabeth II

Oct 3, 2006, 14:32 GMT

Riga - The Baltic states announced plans on Tuesday to welcome Britain's Queen Elizabeth to their countries - the first visit of a reigning British monarch to the region.

'This is a major event in bilateral relations, and it reminds us how far we have come since 1991 and how close our partnership is now,' Britain's ambassador to Latvia, Ian Bond, told journalists.

The Queen and her consort, Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, will visit Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia from October 16 to 19, at the invitation of the three countries' presidents.

The three Baltic states joined the EU and NATO in 2004, and have close military and business links with Britain.

'The UK gave Latvia intensive support on the way to the EU and NATO and supported our integration: this will be symbolically shown during the visit,' said Janis Mazeiks, advisor to the Latvian president on foreign-policy issues.

The royal visit is scheduled to begin in Lithuania on October 16. The Queen will address parliament and visit Vilnius University, while the Duke meets Lithuanian participants in the youth-development award scheme which he founded.

The royal couple will move on to Latvia on 18 October, where they will attend a gala performance given by hearing-impaired dancers, wheelchair basketball players and young representatives of Latvia's national minorities who have been supported by the British Embassy.

The queen will also visit Latvia's Museum of the Soviet and Nazi Occupations 1940-91, while the duke dedicates a memorial to British servicemen killed in the Baltic states' war of independence 1918-20.

The final stop on the tour will be Estonia, where the couple will attend concerts in Estonia's national art museum and its mediaeval town square, before receiving a salute from the Estonian navy.

The royal couple will also go on a 'walkabout' in each country, walking through the anticipated crowds of onlookers in order to meet local people. The royal visit, which is being regarded as a tip of the hat from the UK, has aroused lively interest in all three Baltic states.

'It's hard to think of any other representative of the international political, social or cultural scene who enjoys such positive recognition as the Queen,' Mazeiks said.

The queen was crowned in 1953 and is the world's second longest-serving head of state. As titular leader of the Commonwealth, she is also head of state of 16 of the organisation's 53 states, including Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Tuvalu.