President
Obama and the First Lady have welcomed five Nordic leaders to the White
House for a lavish state dinner after earlier putting on a show of unity
against Vladimir Putin's recent military aggression in the Baltics.
The
Obamas first welcomed Icelandic Prime Minister Sigurdur Ingi Johannsson
- who has only been in charge of his country for a month - and his wife
Ingibjorg Elsa Ingjaldsdottir as they arrived at the North Portico of
the White House.
They
were swiftly followed by the prime ministers of Sweden, Finland,
Denmark and Norway, who were also invited to the unusual - if a little
crowded - meeting.
President Obama and the First Lady have greeted five Nordic leaders
after they arrived at the White House for a lavish state dinner. From
left: Solrun Lokke Rasmussen and Danish Prime Minister Lars Lokke
Rasmussen, Sindre Finnes and Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg,
Ingibjorg Elsa Ingjaldsdottir and Icelandic Prime Minister Sigurdur Ingi
Johannsson, First Lady Michelle Obama and President Obama, Jenni Haukio
and Finnish President Sauli Niinisto, and Ulla Lofven and Swedish Prime
Minister Stefan Lofven
Finnish President Sauli Niinisto his wife Jenni Haukio with US President Barack Obama and the First Lady
Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg and her husband Sindre Finnes with US President Barack Obama and the First Lady
The
dinner will send a strong statement to Russia, who the five heads of
state earlier slammed for its military buildup - including the buzzing
of a U.S. warship near Kaliningrad - as they called for economic
sanctions against Moscow to be maintained.
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