Latvian President Vaira Vike-Freiberga on Saturday held a red-carpet ceremony to welcome her US counterpart George W. Bush, who started a second visit by a US president to the tiny Baltic country.

Bush, who arrived here later Friday at the start of a European tour to celebrate the 60th anniversary of defeat of Nazi Germany, was also given the "Three-Star Order, first class," Latvia's top medal by President Vike-Freiberga.

"I've been telling the (Latvian) president that it's such a joy to come to a country that loves and values freedom and to be in the presence of a president who speaks so clearly about the need for people to be free and the recognition that a free world will lead to peace," Bush said.

The US president laid a wreath at a monument in a Riga square which is the Baltic nation's leading symbol of independence.

Latvian president termed Bush's stop in Riga as a powerful sign that the US supports her country.

"By coming to Latvia, US President George Bush has underscored the double meaning of the 60th anniversary of the end of the Second World War," Vike-Freiberga told reporters before Bush's arrival.

Russia maintains that Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania willingly joined the Soviet Union instead of being annexed by then Soviet leader Josef Stalin, while the three Baltic states urged the Russians to denounce the occupation.

Bush will hold bilateral talks with Vike-Freiberga Saturday before a summit-level meeting with the presidents of the three Baltic countries, which declared independence in 1991.

His five-day whirlwind tour of Europe will also take him to the Netherlands, Russia and Georgia to attend a series of ceremonies marking the anniversary of the World War II defeat of Nazi Germany.