National Defence Committee is on a visit to discuss Estonian-British defence cooperation

NordenBladet —

The National Defence Committee is on a two-day visit to London, UK, to discuss the increasingly close cooperation of the two countries in the field of defence.

The Chairman of the National Defence Committee Raimond Kaljulaid described Estonia’s defence cooperation with the United Kingdom as excellent, and the UK as the biggest contributor to Estonia’s security among our NATO allies. The NATO battle group in Estonia has been under British command since spring 2017.

“We are unanimous with the British in our attitudes towards Russia, and the consequent single-minded belief that we need to take concrete action to ensure the security of NATO countries. We are also cooperating in practical terms in missions abroad, where the Estonian units have served together with the British troops. Estonian-British defence cooperation and the British contribution to our security and the feeling that our people have of being protected has been vital,” Kaljulaid said, adding that the meetings in London with colleagues from the British parliament will offer opportunities to discuss defence cooperation that is conducted both bilaterally and within the NATO.

The Committee delegation is meeting the House of Commons Chairman of the Defence Select Committee Tobias Ellwood along with the members of the Committee, and the Shadow Secretary of State for Defence John Healey. The Committee has scheduled meetings in the Ministry of Defence, in the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, and in the defence and security think tank RUSI.

In addition to Kaljulaid, members of the Committee Heiki Hepner, Kalle Laanet, and Alar Laneman are also taking part in the visit.

Source: Parliament of Estonia