Obama pays 12-hour visit to Estonia

TALLINN - US President Barack Obama arrived here early Wednesday for a 12-hour visit to Estonia.

Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Paet welcomed Obama at the Tallinn Airport, saying that the United States is a close ally to Estonia and the president's visit prior to the NATO summit in Wales is proof of that.

"Security issues are most important at the moment, but Estonia has excellent cooperation with the United States in several other areas as well -- the protection of human rights, e-governance and promoting democracy worldwide, as well as in regards to issues of cyber security," Paet said.

He added that in light of the NATO summit beginning Thursday, it is important to discuss "increasing the presence of our allies in the region and that the solutions that have already been made in recent months become permanent," according to a press release by the Estonian Foreign Ministry.

During his visit, Obama will meet with Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves, Prime Minister Taavi Roivas, as well as Latvian President Andris Berzins and Lithuanian President Dalia Grybauskaite.