National Defence Committee of the Riigikogu visits Finland

NordenBladet —

Today, the delegation of the National Defence Committee of the Riigikogu (Parliament of Estonia) goes on a two-day working visit to Finland on the invitation of the Chairman of the Defence Committee of the Eduskunta (Parliament of Finland).

In the opinion of Chairman of the National Defence Committee Enn Eesmaa, the long-time excellent cooperation of the Defence Committees of Estonia and Finland is all the more important now when Finland has recently applied to join NATO. “We strongly support the accession decision of both Finland and Sweden. It has a huge impact on the security of Estonia and our region more widely,” he said. “During the visit, we will discuss with our Nordic neighbours plans for further strengthening of defence capabilities and cooperation between parliaments as well as confirm the readiness of the Riigikogu to ratify the protocols on accession to NATO as soon as they are submitted to the Parliament.”

The delegation of the National Defence Committee will have a meeting with the Defence Committee of the Eduskunta that is chaired by Petteri Orpo. The members of the Committee will also meet with Commander of the Finnish Defence Forces General Timo Kivinen, Minister of Justice Anna-Maja Henriksson and representatives of the National Emergency Supply Agency of Finland, and visit the Finnish Institute of International Affairs (FIIA).

Besides the Chairman of the National Defence Committee, Deputy Chairman Leo Kunnas and members of the Committee Heiki Hepner, Peeter Rahnel and Mati Raidma participate in the visit.

The National Defence Committee of the Riigikogu has closely cooperated with the Defence Committee of the Eduskunta and held annual working meetings since 1993, which makes it the Committee with the longest bilateral cooperation relations in the Riigikogu.

Source: Parliament of Estonia