The head of government expressed that Estonia and France share a close and very trusting relationship and a desire to shape the future of Europe. “Like France, we see that supporting Ukraine remains our top priority for however long that support is needed,” she remarked. “Together we can help the Ukrainians win the war and force Russia to retreat to its own borders. We have the resources, the knowledge, and the economic power necessary to do so. That power – the power of the free world – is stronger than any that Russia wields, and we must not be afraid to use it.”
Estonia and France also agree that Europe’s top strategic priority at present must be strengthening its own defence. “All of our allies need to invest more in their defence,” the head of government advised. “Estonia has been doing that for some time now: currently at a rate of more than 3% of our GDP. France’s defence spending will exceed 2% for the first time this year, too. We must continue on this course.”
Prime Minister Kallas added that more effort is needed to kick-start Europe’s defence industry. “We have just decided in Estonia to set up a defence industry fund valued at 50 million euros to shore up our own defence and stimulate the economy,” she explained. “However, we need solutions at the European level as well. The EU must allocate more money from its seven-year budget to defence: the existing rate of 0.86% is far too little. I thanked President Macron for backing Estonia’s idea of issuing defence bonds, but Estonia is open to other ideas that will quickly boost Europe’s defence capabilities as well.”
The Estonian head of government also met with her French counterpart Gabriel Attal in Paris yesterday. During their meeting she thanked France for its outstanding defence cooperation. “We are grateful for the fact that French soldiers are stationed in Tapa and that French planes have been protecting our skies out of Ämari Air Base,” she said, also noting the excellent military cooperation between Estonia and France in Africa.
Prime Minister Kallas said she would like to see more cooperation between Estonian and French companies. “One area they could be collaborating on is green technologies,” she noted. “When we were in Paris last autumn, our two countries signed a mutual statement of intent on cooperation in that very field. French companies are more than welcome to visit Estonia to discover what partnership opportunities await them there.”
The shadow war being waged by Russia against the free world was also raised during the meeting. “The hybrid activities which the Russians are aiming at Europe are only growing in strength,” the Estonian head of government cautioned. “We need to seriously discuss these issues with our allies and partners and send a clear signal to the Russians that such behaviour is unacceptable.”
Gallery: https://www.flickr.com/photos/stenbockimaja/albums/72177720316671361/
