ESTONIA

NATO Battlegroup to take part in annual Winter Camp exercise

By
Helena-Reet Ennet
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NordenBladet —

Close to 1400 soldiers will take part in the annual Winter Camp exercise on the Central Training Area near Tapa, testing their infantry and armour capabilities against the harsh winter conditions in Estonia.

Demonstrating winter interoperability under the command of the 1st Infantry Brigade, British, French and Estonian soldiers will work alongside one another across a range of armour, infantry, planning, engineering and artillery scenarios.

Members of the UK-led Battlegroup will this year also be joined by soldiers from the British Army’s Parachute and Yorkshire Regiments, who will learn to train alongside armour in a winter environment.

“Since our arrival in September, we have placed great emphasis on increasing the Battlegroup’s capability and developing integration and interoperability with our allies,” said Lt Col Simon Worth, Commanding Officer of the eFP Estonia Battlegroup. “The Battlegroup has completed a series of exercises to prepare us for operating in the cold weather environment, which allows us to deploy on Winter Camp alongside the Estonian 1st Infantry Brigade and demonstrate the significant progress we have made.”

During the exercise NATO soldiers will be conducting live firing, anti-tank exercises, infantry patrols and engineering tasks, before culminating in a ‘force on force’ attack and defend training serial, with Estonian colleagues from the Scouts Battalion and the Estonian Defence League posing as the adversary.

This year, exercise Winter Camp will also include co-ordination between ground and air forces each day. F-16 fighter jets from the Belgian Air Force, currently stationed at Amari Air Base in Estonia as part of the NATO Air Policing mission, will provide the air support, enhancing the training for Joint Terminal Attack Controllers, whose role is to direct actions of the aircraft and call in airstrikes.

“Fighting force on force with soldiers from Scouts Battalion and Defence League while at the same time being tested by Estonian winter and difficult terrain will provide a unique learning opportunity for the battlegroup,” said commander of 1st Infantry Brigade colonel Andrus Merilo. “Winter Camp will definitely develop United Kingdom, French and Estonian soldiers´ and their commanders’ skills. They will practice how to maintain combat capabilities of personnel and fighting vehicles and learn how to conduct offensive and defensive actions in winter conditions in the most effective way.”

“After several joint exercises, Winter Camp is the culmination of the French Combat Team’s participation to the eFP mission in Estonia,” said Lt Col Nicolas, Deputy Commanding Officer of the eFP Estonia Battlegroup. “It is a real opportunity for our soldiers to perfect their tactical skills in a demanding winter environment, as well as to strengthen their interoperability work with our NATO allies.”

As the largest winter exercise for the Battlegroup, it will begin on 29th January and is scheduled to run until the 6th of February.

NATO’s enhanced Forward Presence Battlegroup Estonia is currently led by the Royal Tank Regiment from the United Kingdom, with France and Denmark providing forces on a rotational basis. Iceland also contributes to the eFP.  The eFP Battlegroups in Latvia, Lithuania and Poland are led by Canada, Germany and the US respectively and all NATO Battlegroups have been integrated into their host nations’ brigades to ensure maximum cohesion between Allied forces.

Source: Estonian Defence Forces

Estonia gets its sixth unicorn as Veriff raises $100m from Tiger

By
Helena-Reet Ennet
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NordenBladet – Estonian identity verification startup Veriff has just raised a $100m Series C, making it the Baltic country’s sixth unicorn.

The round was co-led by Tiger Global and Alkeon, with participation from existing investors IVP and Accel. The round values the company at $1.5bn.

Despite having a population of just 1.3m, Estonia has given birth to five other unicorns — Skype, Wise (or TransferWise, as it used to be called), Pipedrive, Bolt and Playtech.

Veriff says that the company will use the fresh funding for R&D and hiring. The company currently has 360 employees from 46 nationalities.

CEO and founder Kaarel Kotkas said he would be spending more time in the US going forward: “Me being in the US lets me build up the team there, [while] keeping the same culture and being there personally for our bigger customers.

“The biggest challenge will be to keep on scaling at the same speed without losing the great culture of delivering fast, and not being a big enough company to allow ourselves to get slow.”

Six US fighter jets arrived in Estonia for training

By
Helena-Reet Ennet
-

NordenBladet —

Today, six F-15E Strike Eagle fighters from the United States Air Force arrived at Ämari Air Base as part of the Astute Protector exercise. The main goal of the fighters in Estonia is to support the Baltic Air Policing Mission with the F-16 fighter jets of the Belgian Air Force, whose rotation began in December last year.

In addition, Danish F-16 fighter jets will arrive at the Lithuanian Šiauliai airport tomorrow and will perform the same tasks with the Polish F-16 fighter jets there. During the exercise, air-to-air and air-to-ground training procedures will be practiced with allies across the Baltics.

The F-15E fighters belong to the 48th Fighter Wing of the US Air Force and arrived to Estonia from their permanent home base in United Kingdom Lakenheath Air Force Base. The fighters will remain in Estonia until the end of next week.

“Baltic and enhanced Air Policing are enduring NATO missions that deliver constant vigilance of Allied airspace and contribute to the Alliance’s collective defence posture. The additional aircraft will work closely with the current detachments to increase our readiness, build crucial interoperability and underline the robust solidarity across the Alliance,” said Major General Jöerg Lebert, Chief of Staff, Headquarters Allied Air Command.

The United States conducts such exercises on a regular basis to assess its capabilities status and, if necessary, to fulfil its responsibilities as an ally. The exercises will also increase the level of cooperation of NATO Allies in responding to potential crises around the world.

NATO members allocate certain parts of their airspace to air force exercises and drills, including low-flying operations. The governments of the Baltic States have also allocated areas in their airspace for low-level flights. Low-level flights are performed in agreement with the Civil Aviation Administration and the Air Traffic Services.

According to the decision of the North Atlantic Council, the air forces of NATO member states have been guarding the airspace of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania since 29 March 2004, when the Baltic States became members of NATO. As part of the 2012 Chicago Summit, the North Atlantic Council extended the Baltic Air Security Mission indefinitely.

Source: Estonian Defence Forces

Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee Marko Mihkelson speaks at security conference in Kiev

By
Helena-Reet Ennet
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NordenBladet —

Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Riigikogu (Parliament of Estonia) Marko Mihkelson participates in a security conference in Kiev, where the hybrid threats of today’s world and current security challenges for Ukraine will be discussed.

Mihkelson emphasised that, in the current security situation, it was very important to meet with Ukrainian colleagues in Kiev at this very moment in order to get the most objective information possible on the current situation and possible future developments. “Ukraine, as an independent democratic state, is facing the most serious threat in its history, and the international support of friends and partners is vital. Estonia supports Ukraine actively both diplomatically and by giving real defence assistance,” Mihkelson said.

During the working visit, Mihkelson will meet with Chair of the Committee on Matters of Foreign Policy and Inter-parliamentary Cooperation of the Verkhovna Rada (Ukrainian Parliament) Oleksandr Merezhko, Chair of the Committee on Matters of Integration of Ukraine with the European Union Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze, former President and Leader of the Opposition Petro Poroshenko, Director of Foreign Policy and European Integration Directorate General at the Administration of the President of Ukraine Ihor Zhovkva, former political prisoner Oleh Sentsov as well as with Hero of Ukraine and Member of Parliament General Mykhailo Zabrodskyi. Mihkelson will also give an interview to the Ukrainian TV channel 24.tv.

Source: Parliament of Estonia

The European Union Affairs Committee amended Estonia’s positions on Fit for 55 legislative proposals

By
Helena-Reet Ennet
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NordenBladet —

The European Union Affairs Committee of the Riigikogu (Parliament of Estonia) discussed Estonia’s positions on the legislative proposals of the EU climate package Fit for 55 at its video sitting today and decided to approve the positions as well as to amend them, taking partially into account the opinions of the Environment Committee and the Economic Affairs Committee of the Riigikogu.

The Committee discussed the system for greenhouse gas emission allowance trading, the Effort Sharing Regulation, the proposals for regulations on aviation, land use, land use change and forestry, and CO2 emission performance standards for passenger cars and light commercial vehicles, as well as the positions of the Government first on 17 December. Today, the Committee continued the discussion on amending the positions of the Government.

Chairman of the European Union Affairs Committee Siim Kallas said that the Government was generally very pragmatic in its positions, standing for the interests of Estonia and leaving room for negotiations. “The Committee still wished to amend the positions. In the clauses we have added, we underline that the transition to a cleaner and more sustainable living environment should proceed at a wisely chosen pace,” Kallas said.

“In particular, we wanted to point out that greenhouse gas reduction must be based on impact assessments. This was also noted in the opinions of the thematic committees of the Riigikogu, the Support Group for the Protection of Estonian National Interests in the European Union Climate Package and the interest groups that expressed their views to the Committee,” the Chairman added.

“The Committee thinks that the achievement of the target and the impact on society need to be monitored in order to adjust the targets and the burden of emissions reduction between sectors, if necessary,” Kallas said. “We also supplemented Estonia’s positions by a clause which says that in the event of economic damage, there must be a possibility to consider granting state aid to the most affected sectors. We also underlined the necessity of regional support measures and ensuring food security.”

The Committee also complemented the position on the Emissions Trading Scheme by emphasising the need to modernise the scheme and to introduce additional measures to this end. “The Emissions Trading Scheme is no longer cost-effective and has shown instability, which does not allow private and commercial consumers to predict their expenses,” Kallas noted.

Deputy Chairman of the European Union Affairs Committee Raimond Kaljulaid pointed out that the package was an initiative that had a serious impact on both Europe and Estonia, which inevitably influenced also the Estonian economy, and through it, the employment and prices, as well as the investment capacity and international competitiveness of the Estonian companies.

“In the case of Fit for 55, we have to take into account that most probably its impacts will be more felt mainly in rural regions, where the working places of many people employed in the agriculture and forestry sector are located. Also, it will be more complicated for the people living further away from the centres to find alternative solutions for heating. Increase of transport expenses and growth of food prices are understandably a greater problem for households with smaller income,” Kaljulaid said. He added that there was also the question of how the negative effects would be compensated to the people, as the planned social fund is not sufficient as a mitigation measure.

The European Union Affairs Committee also instructed the Government to keep members of the Riigikogu and stakeholders informed about further negotiations on the package and to include them in discussions on the national sectoral distribution of emission reduction.

With the Fit for 55 climate package proposals, the European Union has set itself a target of reducing emissions in Europe by at least 55% in comparison to 1990 by 2030, and to achieve climate neutrality by 2050. It is an extensive package that includes 13 initiatives that concern several sectors. The Government formulates its positions on the proposals, which have to be approved by the European Union Affairs Committee on the basis of the opinions of the thematic committees.

Since the beginning of the Autumn Session, the European Union Affairs Committee has been holding parliamentary discussion to get an overview of the Fit for 55 initiative. On the European Union Affairs Committee’s initiative, the issue of green transition was also debated as a matter of significant national importance in the plenary of the Riigikogu in November. Together with the five initiatives discussed today, the European Union Affairs Committee has by now developed a position on 11 initiatives. The Committee still has to take a position on two more initiatives, and it will do this in January.

Minister of the Environment Erki Savisaar and representatives of the Minister of the Environment, the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications, the Ministry of Rural Affairs and the Ministry of Finance participated in today’s session via a video bridge and replied to the questions of the members of the Riigikogu.

Photos of the sitting (Erik Peinar, Chancellery of the Riigikogu)

Comments of the Chair and the Deputy Chair of the European Union Affairs Committee in Estonian (Erik Peinar, Chancellery of the Riigikogu)

Source: Parliament of Estonia

Prime Minister responded to interpellation about compensation for increased energy prices

By
Helena-Reet Ennet
-

NordenBladet —

Prime Minister Kaja Kallas replied to the interpellation concerning the problems with the compensation for the increased energy prices, submitted by Members of the Riigikogu Urmas Reinsalu, Helir-Valdor Seeder, Heiki Hepner, Mihhail Lotman, Priit Sibul, Raivo Tamm, Andres Metsoja, Tarmo Kruusimäe, and Üllar Saaremäe.

The interpellators inquired about the reasons behind the delay in launching the support measures.

Kallas explained that the government had decided on the following compensation measures for the increased energy prices. Firstly, a 50% reduction in the power network charge, in the total amount of EUR 88.25 million, which will benefit every electricity consumer, whether a natural or a legal person. Secondly, elimination of the gas network charge in full, in the total amount of EUR 25.08 million. This concerns every gas consumer, both natural and legal persons. Thirdly, there is a targeted measure for households where the income per person remains below the median salary. “In this case, 80% of the price increase in energy expenses – I am talking about electricity, gas, and central heating – is compensated. This will be in effect from September to March, also retroactively,” Prime Minister said.

She pointed out that the previously agreed complementary measures were added last Thursday. “First of all – the price cap for all household customers has so far been 12 cents per kWh, for up to 650 kWh of consumption. This will be deducted by the seller of electricity from the bill from January until March. And second, the gas price cap for household customers is EUR 65 per MWh, and anything over that will be fully compensated by the state up to the consumption of 2.75 MWh. This is done from January until March. For business customers, we will additionally fully compensate the power network charge, and this is also in effect from January until March,” Kallas added.

Prime Minister explained that the government adopted the first energy price increase support measures at the end of October, and that the first support measures benefited the residents in a matter of a fortnight. For example, the bills for energy consumption in October, which were sent out in November, already reflected the measure to reduce power network charge. And at the end of November, i.e. a month after the government’s decisions, the Minister of Public Administration signed the resolution of the targeted support measure, and its application along with a test period was developed within 1.5 months, which is an extremely short time in IT development. This would usually take at least nine months. But the delay was necessary to allow local governments time to prepare.

Kallas also replied to the interpellation concerning the mitigation of the impact of the energy prices shock, submitted by Members of the Riigikogu Riina Sikkut, Helmen Kütt, Jaak Juske, Indrek Saar, Heljo Pikhof, Lauri Läänemets, Kalvi Kõva, and Raimond Kaljulaid.  

Kallas said that the response in alleviating the increased electricity prices has been quick and efficient; the first decisions were made as early as October 2021, and the most recent date from last week. “The volume of the governmental support measures alone is EUR 325 million. At the moment, Estonia has one of the largest, most farsighted and extensive programmes for supporting household customers and businesses in the whole of Europe,” Prime Minister said.

Minister of the Interior Kristian Jaani responded to the interpellation concerning the reduction in the opening hours of the service bureaus of the Police and Border Guard Board.

During the open microphone, Kalle Grünthal, Alar Laneman (both from the Estonian Conservative People’s Party), and Heiki Hepner (Isamaa) took the floor.

The sitting ended at 7.37 p.m.

Source: Parliament of Estonia

Appeal of the Chairs of Baltic and Polish National Defence Committees and Foreign Affairs Committees

By
Helena-Reet Ennet
-

NordenBladet —

In their joint appeal to Secretary General of NATO Jens Stoltenberg, President of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly Gerald E. Connolly and the committees in charge of foreign and defence policy in the parliaments of NATO Allies, the Chairmen of the Committees on National Security and Defence and the Committees on Foreign Affairs of the parliaments of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland expressed concern over the severe security threats faced by all NATO member countries in light of the recent meeting of the NATO-Russia Council.

Dear Colleagues,

On behalf of the Committees on National Security and Defence and the Committees on Foreign Affairs of the Parliaments of the Republic of Estonia, the Republic of Latvia, the Republic of Lithuania, and the Republic of Poland, let us express our concern over the severe security threats faced by all NATO member countries in light of the recent meeting of the NATO-Russia Council.

Over the years, Russia has used military aggression against its neighbours, violated international law and spread instability in Eastern Europe and beyond. Then, in December 2021, Russia put forward a set of proposals for “legally binding security guarantees” that the Kremlin was seeking from the West, written in a language that borders on the ultimatum. The demand for the contentious security guarantees followed soon after Western governments alerted the public that Russia had massed over 100,000 troops on its side of the border with Ukraine, a move that could signal an imminent invasion of Ukraine.

Russia’s list of demands and proposals undermine the fundamentals of the international legal system, restrict the right to self-determination of states and go against the principles of national sovereignty, territorial integrity and non-violability of internationally recognised borders.

  • The proposal to cease the NATO Open Door policy stands against the nation-state right to choose the Alliances and undermine Article 10 of the Washington Treaty. Russia has no right to veto NATO’s decisions, nor can it impose its will upon the Alliance it is not a member of. The right to choose the Alliances must be granted to Ukraine, Georgia, and other countries that express such intention.
  • The proposals for the creation of incident prevention mechanisms, for “restraint in military planning”, and for refraining from conducting “military exercises or other military activities above the brigade level in a zone of agreed width and configuration on each side of the borderline of the Russian Federation”, undermine the Article 5 of the Washington Treaty and impose the zones of different defence guarantees within the Alliance.
  • The proposal for restrictions on deploying land-based intermediate and short-range missiles would restrict NATO’s territorial collective defence and result in Russia’s escalation dominance in the region.

We are very much concerned about linking the goals of strengthening Eastern Europe’s security and defence with possible Russia’s invasion into Ukraine. We cannot trade our deterrence and collective defence with Russia, including restrictions on NATO exercises in our region or Allied presence. We must continue NATO deterrence and defence adaptation based on the need to fully implement the Warsaw Summit decisions and subsequent agreements on NATO readiness and rapid reinforcement.

Russia has no right to restrict NATO collective defence and deterrence posture and planning. The current situation is asymmetric and cannot be taken as a baseline for any possible debate on any possible reductions, limitations or unilateral restraints from the NATO side. Over the few years, Russia has significantly modernised and increased the entire range of its capabilities multiple times, improved the readiness of its troops, and developed A2/AD systems. The Alliance is still in a phase of development of its deterrence and defence posture. Therefore, any limitations on NATO posture would only legitimise Russia’s regional military dominance and undermine NATO as a collective defence alliance.

The Baltic Region is facing a massive increase of the Russian military presence close to the NATO border and the most recent Russian-Belarus military integration. Russia’s aggression against neighbouring states, now coupled with the tight integration of Russian and Belarusian militaries, pose a significant threat to the region.

We should not allow Russia to destabilise NATO by dividing the Alliance and undermining NATO cohesion and resolve. The territory and security of NATO are indivisible. The indivisibility of the Alliance is fundamental for Euro-Atlantic security and stability. Russia seeks to attain military advantage in Europe by deterring and decoupling the United States from its European Allies and gaining military domination. NATO must continue strengthening its deterrence and defence posture to respond to the threats and challenges stemming from Russia.

Given the principles mentioned earlier, we must reject Russia’s attempts to undermine European security in the strongest possible way. The division of spheres of influence, the restrictions on national sovereignty, and self-determination are harmful to European and Transatlantic security.

The only condition for dialogue must be based on real de-escalation and Russia refraining from massive build-up near Ukraine. Russia’s aggression in and around Ukraine cannot be tolerated or legitimised. The NATO dialogue with Russia must be conditions, not calendar-driven. NATO-Russia engagement depends on Russia’s willingness to engage in a constructive dialogue, but it cannot lead to business as usual. NATO must sustain and strengthen its deterrence and defence adaptation by pursuing dialogue with Russia.

In light of these dangerous trends, we must remain united, work together to strengthen the transatlantic partnership and increase the role of NATO. Therefore, to show the unity of the Alliance against the aforementioned threats, we call on you to support the position set out above.

Text of the appeal (in English)

Source: Parliament of Estonia

Riigikogu discussed increasing the base amount of the pension

By
Helena-Reet Ennet
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NordenBladet —

The Bill that provides for a EUR 20 increase in the base amount of pension and the national pension from 1 January 2023 passed the second reading at the sitting today.

The Bill on Amendments to the State Pension Insurance Act (466 SE), initiated by the Government, provides that after increasing the base amount, the amount of pension for 44 work years would be close to EUR 611.

From 1 April 2021, the amount of pension for the same number of work years is EUR 552.38. The current rate of national pension is EUR 255.18. The national pension is intended for persons who do not meet the pension qualifying period requirement (15 years) by the time they reach the old age pension age.

Currently, the base amount of pension is EUR 235. All pensioners have the equal base amount of pension; this is supplemented by the part calculated on the basis of years of pensionable service, the insurance part, and the combined part, which are different for each person and depend on their number of work years and size of income.

During the debate, Kersti Sarapuu (Centre Party), Helmen Kütt (Social Democratic Party), Peeter Ernits (Estonian Conservative People’s Party), and Urmas Reinsalu (Isamaa) took the floor. Mart Võrklaev took the floor on behalf of the Reform Party Faction.  

The Riigikogu did not support the motion to amend of the Isamaa faction which would have increased the base amount of pension and the national pension by EUR 20 as early as from 1 January 2022. 26 members of the Riigikogu voted in favour of the motion and 40 were against.

Verbatim record of the sitting (in Estonian)
The video recording of the sitting will be available on the Riigikogu YouTube channel.
(Please note that the recording will be uploaded with a delay.)

Source: Parliament of Estonia

The Baltic Assembly discusses security issues

By
Helena-Reet Ennet
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NordenBladet —

Today and tomorrow, members of the Estonian Delegation to the Baltic Assembly (BA) and the National Defence Committee of the Riigikogu (Parliament of Estonia) will attend the meeting of the BA Security and Defence Committee in Riga. The meeting will focus on cross-border cooperation and fight against organised crime in the Baltic States.

Member of the Estonian Delegation to the Baltic Assembly Anti Poolamets pointed out that the hybrid attacks of Lukashenka’s regime on Latvia, Lithuania and Poland were currently one of the most important foreign policy issues for the security of the Baltic States. “No workable solutions have yet been found for the activities on the border between Belarus and the European Union. The meeting of the BA Security and Defence Committee will discuss joint solutions that would ensure security and stability in the region,” Poolamets said.

He added that the cooperation of the Baltic States in the fight against organised crime was also an important topic that would be discussed. “Organised crime is considered one of the main security threats to the people of the European Union, besides that, the number of organised crime groups is growing in the region. We will discuss how to stop criminal activities through enhancing our cooperation,” Poolamets explained.

Chairman of the National Defence Committee of the Riigikogu Enn Eesmaa said that one of the issues on the agenda of the meetings in Riga would be drafting a plan for effective border control in the Baltic States in crisis situations. Establishing of the early warning procedure for closing of the borders of the Baltic States, which will reduce the risk of uncoordinated activities and ensure the continuation of the daily life of the citizens in border regions, will also be spoken about. “At the meeting, we will also hear the reports of the representatives of Governments on the implementation of the recommendations of the BA in the areas of security threats, preparedness of society to respond to crises, and cross-border cooperation with Poland,” Eesmaa added.

Deputy Chairman of the National Defence Committee of the Riigikogu Leo Kunnas and member of the Committee Mati Raidma will also participate in the meeting of the BA Security and Defence Committee.

Source: Parliament of Estonia

The Commander of the Finnish Defence Forces visited Estonia

By
Helena-Reet Ennet
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NordenBladet —

The Commander of the Finnish Defence Forces, General Timo Kivinen, visited Estonia on 18 January 2022. The visit was be hosted by Estonia’s Chief of Defence, Lieutenant General Martin Herem.

During his visit, General Kivinen discussed the international security situation and defence cooperation between Estonia and Finland.

„Visit to Estonia was important. Direct personal meetings made it possible to discuss thoroughly international security situation and bilateral defence cooperation,“ said General Kivinen.

„Finnish and Estonian Defence Forces have been, are and will remain strong and close partners. We have a common understanding of the security situation in our region and how to maintain our defence capabilities even in a complicated security situation,“ said Lieutenant General Herem.

The visit was accompanied by meetings with Estonian Defence Minister Kalle Laanet and Finnish Ambassador Timo Kantola. General Kivinen also visited NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence and got an overview of Estonian Defence League activities.

PHOTOS

Source: Estonian Defence Forces

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