Gov. Gen. Julie Payette will travel to Ukraine and Latvia from Jan. 17 to 19 to underline Canada’s commitment to strengthening military, political and commercial ties with both former Soviet republics, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Monday.

As the Queen’s representative in Canada and Commander-in-Chief, the Governor General will meet with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and Latvian President Raimonds Vējonis and she will also visit Canadian troops in Ukraine and Latvia.

“Canada enjoys an excellent relationship with Ukraine and Latvia,” Trudeau said in a statement. “We will continue to support these two countries by contributing to the ongoing stability of the region. The Governor General’s visit will help further strengthen our political and commercial ties, and reaffirm our friendship.”

Governor General Julie Payette, centre right, meets with Ukraine Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman, second from left, at Rideau Hall in Ottawa on Wednesday Nov. 1, 2017. © PC / Sean Kilpatrick

Canada has about 200 soldiers stationed in Ukraine under Operation UNIFIER, a military training and capacity-building assistance to Ukrainian Forces battling Russian-backed rebels in eastern Ukraine.

Canada also leads NATO’s multinational enhanced Forward Presence Battlegroup Latvia, and contributes approximately 450 troops to the deployment as part of Operation REASSURANCE.

The Canadian-led battlegroup, which also includes troops from Albania, Italy, Latvia, Poland, Slovenia, and Spain, is part of a larger 4,000-strong NATO force deployed to Poland, Lithuania and Estonia to reassure them in the face of an increasingly assertive Russia, itself worried about NATO’s eastward expansion.

Canadian soldiers practice their shooting skills during Operation UNIFIER, Canada’s military training mission to Ukraine, at the International Peacekeeping and Security Centre (IPSC) in Starychi, Ukraine on December 30, 2015. © Joint Task Force Ukraine, DND

Payette, a former Canadian astronaut, will be accompanied by General Jonathan Vance, Chief of the Defence Staff.

This will be the first visit by a Governor General in Latvia. The last Governor General to visit Ukraine was the Michaëlle Jean in 2009.

NATO Forward Presence Battlegroup Factsheet Efp by Radio-Canada on Scribd