Barack Obama meets Ukraine President-elect Petro Poroshenko in Warsaw

President Barack Obama met Ukraine President-elect Petro Poroshenko, and pledged support for plans to restore peace to the country.

Both presidents are in Warsaw to mark 25 years since the fall of communism in Poland.

Barack Obama called Petro Poroshenko a “wise selection” to lead Ukraine, and said the nation could become a vibrant, thriving democracy if the world community stood behind it.

Petro Poroshenko, a billionaire sweet manufacturer, was elected in May and will be inaugurated as Ukraine’s president on Saturday.

Barack Obama pledged $5 million of military assistance to Kiev including body armor and night-vision goggles.

The aid follows $18 million promised since early March for food, clothes, radios and other equipment.

Barack Obama has now arrived in Brussels for a meeting of the G7 major industrial nations, the first since Russia was removed from the G8 in protest over its annexation of Crimea in March.

He is expected to attend the 70th anniversary commemorations of the D-Day landings in Normandy on Friday. Russian President Vladimir Putin will also be at the ceremony but the two leaders have no meeting scheduled.

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