NordenBladet — The Head of the Estonian delegation to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly Marko Mihkelson spoke at the high level Kyiv (Kiev) Security Forum, saying that without a strong strive for independence from the part of Ukraine, Estonia and many other Eastern European states would not be members of NATO today.

In his speech yesterday, Mihkelson stressed that the peaceful, democratic and yet politically unwavering decision of Ukraine to leave the Russian empire in 1991, and the consequent voluntary renunciation of nuclear weapons, opened the door for many European nations to secure their freedom and security through NATO membership.

“The impact of the restoration of Ukraine’s independence in 1991 can be compared to the fall of the Berlin Wall. This paved the way for the conclusive collapse of the Soviet empire, and the sovereignty of the Eastern European nations in the field of security,” Mihkelson said.

“Now it is up to us to do everything in our power to defend Ukraine’s efforts to join the European Union and NATO. It is a marathon; but even the longest marathon has a finish line. Estonia must combine forces with its allies to point out the exact finish line to Ukraine,” Mihkelson said.

Other participants in the panel Joining forces to fight for freedom were Secretary of the National Security and Defence Council of Ukraine Oleksandr Turchynov, Minister of Defence of Ukraine Stepan Poltorak, and Minister of National Defence of Lithuania Raimundas Karoblis.

The patron of the high level Security Forum is the former Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk. Speakers of the forum included President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko, Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman, Minister of Internal Affairs Arsen Avakov, Minister of Justice Pavlo Petrenko, former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, recent presidential candidate Anatoliy Hrytsenko, and many others. The Forum was launched in 2007.

Source: Parliament of Estonia

NordenBladet — At the meeting of President of the Riigikogu (Parliament of Estonia) Henn Põlluaas and President of the Republic of Latvia Raimonds Vējonis today, the discussion focused on regional cooperation and the excellent relations between the two countries.

Põlluaas said that Estonia and Latvia were good partners and cooperated closely in different fields of life. “We have similar history, our economic connections are strong, we have close cultural cooperation, and we are interested in having both closer digital cooperation and closer cross-border cooperation,” Põlluaas emphasised.

Põlluaas believes that Estonia and Latvia share common values also in strengthening of the security in the region and in NATO, which is proven by the establishment of NATO Multinational Division Headquarters North in Ādaži, where the command is comprised of officers from Denmark, Latvia and Estonia.

Public services in the border regions and possibilities for improving the cross-border cooperation between Estonia and Latvia, as well as regional connectivity were also spoken about at the meeting.

The President of Latvia congratulated the President of the Riigikogu on his appointment to office. He assured that Latvia was a good friend of Estonia, and agreed that there was much in common in the history and today’s cooperation of the two countries. Vējonis said that the cooperation between the three Baltic States was constantly developing, and it was very effective and necessary.

The President of Latvia was also interested in the forming of the Government of Estonia. The President of the Riigikogu gave an overview of the situation in Estonia after the elections, and expressed hope that in a few weeks, the new Government would assume office.

Chairman of the Estonia-Latvia Parliamentary Group Aadu Must also participated in the meeting. He gave a brief overview of the parliamentary cooperation of the Baltic States and wished Latvia success in the Presidency of the Baltic Assembly.

Source: Parliament of Estonia