ESTONIA

Jüri Ratas discusses contribution of parliaments in addressing Ukraine crisis with EU counterparts

By
Helena-Reet Ennet
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NordenBladet —

Today and tomorrow, President of the Riigikogu (Parliament of Estonia) Jüri Ratas participates in the Conference of Speakers of the European Union Parliaments in Ljubljana, Slovenia, where the contribution of parliaments in addressing the Ukraine crisis and in building resilience for democratic governance will be discussed.

The President of the Riigikogu will deliver a speech at the session devoted to the European Union as the guarantor of stability, security and prosperity in the region. The role of parliaments in speeding up the enlargement process of the EU will be discussed as well at the debates. The good practices of parliaments in dealing with strategic EU documents, role of parliamentary diplomacy and interparliamentary cooperation will also be spoken about at the Conference.

The Speakers of EU Parliaments meeting in Ljubljana will also give their assessment to the work of the parliaments during the epidemic and discuss increasing resilience of parliaments in emergency situations.

Besides attending the Conference, the President of the Riigikogu will have bilateral meetings in Ljubljana with President of the Storting (Parliament) of Norway Masud Gharahkhani, Speaker of the Althingi (Parliament) of Iceland Birgir Ármannsson, President of the Bundestag of Germany Bärbel Bas, Speaker of the National Assembly of Bulgaria Nikola Minchev, Speaker of the Croatian Parliament Gordan Jandroković and Vice-Chairman of the Chamber of Deputies of Romania Vasile-Daniel Suciu.

The President of the Riigikogu will also attend the meetings of the Speakers of the parliaments of the Baltic States and Poland and the Speakers of the parliaments of the Nordic Countries and the Baltic States, where joint action plans for the future will be discussed.

The Conference will be live streamed online.

Source: Parliament of Estonia

National Defence Committee approved allocation of additional half a billion euro to defence

By
Helena-Reet Ennet
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NordenBladet —

At the additional sitting of the National Defence Committee of the Riigikogu (Parliament of Estonia) today, Minister of Defence Kalle Laanet gave an overview of the Government’s decision to use additional funding to improve the defence capability of the state, and the Committee approved the allocation of additional funds.

Chairman of the National Defence Committee Enn Eesmaa underlined that in today’s security situation, each additional euro helped improve the defence capability of our country. “Developing of defence sector and maintenance of military capabilities are very expensive, but at the moment a greater contribution to national defence is inevitable,” Eesmaa said.

In the opinion of Deputy Chairman of the National Defence Committee Leo Kunnas, we are moving in the right direction, but creation of medium range air defence capability and financing it still require a firm resolution.  

According to Minister Laanet, the Ministry of Defence was given the task to ascertain in four months whether Estonia was able to develop of medium range air defence capability in cooperation with the allies. He said that the NATO allies were able to provide this. The aim is to achieve medium range air defence capability by 2025.  

Laanet gave the National Defence Committee an outline of what Estonia could acquire to enhance its defence capability during the next two years for the additional 562 million euro allocated by the Government. From this, 476 million euro are meant for strengthening national defence and 86 million will be invested in society’s capability to cope in crisis situations. The Minister explained that all today’s investments required funding for maintenance, which means that the national defence spending would increase also in the coming years.

According to the Minister, the aim is to acquire short-range air defence for protecting our troops, besides that, anti-tank weaponry and indirect fire capabilities will be developed and the necessary infrastructure to receive the allies will be built. Laanet said that Estonia would use Ukraine’s lessons for improving its defence capability.

Minister Laanet highlighted the role of the Defence League and noted that the aim was to strengthen the structure of territorial defence as well as to further train and equip the members of the Defence League.

In January, the Government allocated additional 340 million euro to national defence, which Estonia will use to buy ammunition and improve early warning.

Source: Parliament of Estonia

President of the Riigikogu in Kyiv: Ukraine will not be left alone to face violence and injustice

By
Helena-Reet Ennet
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NordenBladet —

Today, President of the Riigikogu (Parliament of Estonia) Jüri Ratas and his Latvian and Lithuanian counterparts addressed the Verkhovna Rada (Parliament ) of Ukraine in Kyiv. Ratas affirmed our strong support to Ukraine in its fight for its independence and against Russia’s aggression.

In Kyiv, the Speakers of the Parliaments of the Baltic States met with President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal, with whom they spoke about the unwavering will of the people of Ukraine to defend their country.

The Speakers of the Parliaments of Ukraine, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania visited Kyiv a month after the beginning of the war and together with their Ukrainian counterpart Ruslan Stefanchuk adopted a joint declaration for restoration security in Europe. The declaration is signed by President of the Riigikogu Jüri Ratas, Speaker of the Saeima (Parliament) of Latvia Ināra Mūrniece, Speaker of the Seimas (Parliament) of Lithuania Viktorija Čmilytė-Nielsen and Speaker of the Verkhovna Rada Ruslan Stefanchuk.

“International support to Ukraine is strong at present, but it needs to be upheld for a long period,” Ratas said. “First the war must be ended, Russian forces expelled, and integrity of Ukraine restored. And then we need to rebuild the cities and towns crushed by the Russian forces.”

Ratas expressed hope that by that time, Ukraine’s accession process to the EU would have started. He assured that Estonia would do its best to speed up this process.

“Ukraine is also fighting to defend Europe as a whole, and our values,” Ratas pointed out. “In the light of this, we should focus on supporting Ukraine in all areas possible, isolating Russia and raising the cost of the aggression.”

The President of the Riigikogu reiterated his promise that Ukraine would not be left alone to face violence and injustice, and added that millions of people all over the world were going to keep this promise. He gave to his Ukrainian counterpart a commemorative photo collage of a demonstration in Tallinn’s Freedom Square on 26 February, where more than 30,000 people gathered in support of Ukraine.

Ratas underlined that Estonia as well as many other democratic countries had helped Ukraine. “The assistance ranges on a wide scale from political and military to humanitarian,” Ratas said. “Not just the state, but thousands and thousands of Estonians have offered their help and donated money to help the women and children fleeing the war. We admire their bravery.”

Ratas recalled that the Estonians knew what it meant for people to flee war and occupation, as in 1944 tens of thousands of Estonians left our country, and many of them did not live long enough to see how Estonia restored its independence in 1991. “Today, it is the duty of us all to help Ukraine,” Ratas said.

The President of the Riigikogu is accompanied on the visit by Chair of Estonia-Ukraine Parliamentary Friendship Group of the Riigikogu Mati Raidma and Member of the Riigikogu Urmas Reinsalu.  

Source: Parliament of Estonia

Foreign Affairs Committee: Estonia supports Ukraine and encourages allies to put pressure on Russia

By
Helena-Reet Ennet
-

NordenBladet —

Today, the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Riigikogu (Parliament of Estonia) held a video conference with their colleagues from the Committee on Matters of Foreign Policy and Inter-parliamentary Cooperation of the Verkhovna Rada (Parliament) of Ukraine, who told them about the situation in Ukraine. The Foreign Affairs Committee of the Riigikogu assured their Ukrainian colleagues that Estonia would do all it can to persuade the allies to put further pressure on Russia and help Ukraine in every way possible.  

In the opinion of Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee Marko Mihkelson, it is currently very important to keep in touch with each other and get information directly from the ground. “It is crucial that the West would not get tired. Ukraine will win this war and Estonia will do everything in its power to contribute to it,” Mihkelson said.

“You can always count on us,” Mihkelson assured his Ukrainian colleagues. “We want not only to show solidarity with Ukraine, but also to provide real help.” Mihkelson pointed out that several countries of the West were providing military and humanitarian aid to Ukraine to deter Russia’s aggression. He added that Estonia had given shelter to more than 20,000 war refugees and took care of them in the best possible way.

Member of the Foreign Affairs Committee Indrek Saar underlined that Estonia can raise the issue of supporting Ukraine at all international meetings and thus help Ukraine fight and win. “It is in the power of a small country to convince other countries why it is necessary to put pressure on Russia with sanctions,” Saar explained. “We have to persuade our allies to impose an embargo on Russia’s gas and oil.”

Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada’s Committee on Foreign Affairs Oleksandr Merezhko and members of the Committee Lisa Yasko, Mariia Ionova and Solomiia Bobrovska gave an overview of the situation in their country. They thanked Estonia for support and help, and assured that Ukraine would not surrender, but needed the assistance of Western countries to win the war.

Source: Parliament of Estonia

The second reading of the amendments to the Aliens Act was adjourned in the Riigikogu

By
Helena-Reet Ennet
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NordenBladet —

At today’s sitting, the Riigikogu discussed the establishment of more flexible conditions for labour migration and learning mobility for people from third countries, which among other things will simplify the inclusion of Ukrainian war refugees in the labour market.

The deliberation of the Bill on Amendments to the Aliens Act and the Act on Granting International Protection to Aliens (241 SE), initiated by the Government was adjourned due to the end of the working hours of the sitting and will continue at tomorrow’s sitting at 2 p.m.

The Bill has been drafted to ensure opportunities to stay in Estonia and to take up study and employment in Estonia for aliens who are contributing to Estonia’s development and whose stay here is in accordance with the public interests and the needs of the Estonian labour market, as well as to enhance the opportunities to verify compliance with the conditions for employment for aliens.

The purpose of the Bill is to organise the regulation for working in Estonia for aliens and the conditions for staying, studying and settling in Estonia for aliens, taking into account the constantly changing environment and the new needs arising therefrom as well as keeping in mind the objectives set out in various national development plans.

The aim of Estonia’s immigration policy is, on the one hand, to facilitate settlement in Estonia for aliens who bring greater added value to the whole society, and on the other hand to avoid abuse of residence permits and visas and illegal immigration in order to ensure security, public order and national security.

In addition to the issues concerning war refugees, the motions to amend that have been submitted provide for the abandonment of the requirement to pay the average wage to third-country nationals, which has been in place until now, and for introducing a separate category of start-up into legislation, which would not be subject to the requirement to pay the average wage. In addition, several other amendments have been provided for that will facilitate migration from third countries.

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

Chairman of the Parliament of Ukraine made a video address before the Riigikogu

By
Helena-Reet Ennet
-

NordenBladet —

At the beginning of today’s sitting of the Riigikogu, Ruslan Stefanchuk, Chairman of the Parliament of Ukraine, made a video address before the members of the Riigikogu. Three drafts were deliberated at the sitting of the Riigikogu.

The Riigikogu passed a Resolution

The Riigikogu passed the Resolution of the Riigikogu “Appointment of a Member of the Estonian Public Broadcasting Council from among Members of the Riigikogu” (550 OE), submitted by the Cultural Affairs Committee. Indrek Saar was appointed as a member of the Council. The current member of the Council Jevgeni Ossinovski resigned on his own initiative. 71 members of the Riigikogu voted in favour of the Resolution.

A Statement of the Riigikogu and a draft Resolution were not supported

The Riigikogu did not support the Draft Statement of the Riigikogu “On Estonia’s National Interests in the Negotiations on the ‘Fit for 55’ Climate Package” (526 AE), submitted by Members of the Riigikogu Priit Sibul, Urmas Reinsalu, Mihhail Lotman, Helir-Valdor Seeder, Heiki Hepner, Tarmo Kruusimäe, Üllar Saaremäe, Aivar Kokk, Sven Sester, Kalle Grünthal, Peeter Ernits, Henn Põlluaas, Uno Kaskpeit, Riho Breivel, Anti Poolamets, Jaak Valge, Ruuben Kaalep, Alar Laneman, Kert Kingo, Leo Kunnas, Paul Puustusmaa, Andres Metsoja and Merry Aart. 25 members of the Riigikogu voted in favour of the draft Statement and 42 were against.

The interpellators’ justification was that, considering the significant impact of the issue, it was important to formulate a political approach at the level of the statement of the Riigikogu regarding the principles the Republic of Estonia should follow in presenting its positions connected with the abovementioned proposal. In the opinion of the initiators, giving a mandate to the Government’s positions at the level of the EU Affairs Committee is not sufficient.

The Riigikogu has approved the Fundamentals of Climate Policy until 2050 with a plenary decision. The ‘Fit for 55’ climate package has a wide-ranging impact on the competitiveness of business, as well as on the consumers, home owners and employees in Estonia.

During the debate, Merry Aart (Estonian Conservative People’s Party), Andres Metsoja (Isamaa), Raimond Kaljulaid, Urmas Reinsalu (Isamaa), Tõnis Mölder (Centre Party) and Yoko Alender (Reform Party) took the floor.

The Riigikogu did not support the Draft Resolution of the Riigikogu “Making a proposal to the Government of the Republic “To eliminate the restrictions put in place to prevent the spread of the COVID-19 disease”” (527 OE), submitted by the Estonian Conservative People’s Party Faction. It made a proposal to the Government to lift immediately the restrictions in place to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The result of voting: 20 votes in favour and 39 against.

During the debate, Priit Sibul (Isamaa) and Hanno Pevkur (Reform Party) took the floor.

During the open microphone, Ruuben Kaalep, Peeter Ernits, Heiki Hepner and Tarmo Kruusimäe took the floor.

The sitting ended at 6.52 p.m.

Text of the speech by Ruslan Stefanchuk, Chairman of the Parliament of Ukraine:

Source: Parliament of Estonia

Chairman of the Ukrainian Parliament Ruslan Stefanchuk will make a video address to the Riigikogu

By
Helena-Reet Ennet
-

NordenBladet —

Today at 3 p.m., Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada (Parliament) of Ukraine Ruslan Stefanchuk will make an address to the Riigikogu (Parliament of Estonia), which can be watched in a live broadcast.

President of the Riigikogu Jüri Ratas said that today Ukraine was important to everybody, because Ukraine was currently fighting for the peace and values of the whole Europe. “It is our duty to help and support them at all levels – politically, with weapons, by assisting war refugees and imposing additional sanctions on Russia,” Ratas underlined. He thanked all the people in Estonia who had already given their contribution and added that Ukraine would need the support and help of the Estonian people in the future as well.

Ratas recalled that, a week earlier, the Riigikogu had adopted the Communication in which it had expressed its support to the defenders and the people of the state of Ukraine in their fight against the Russian Federation that had launched a criminal war, and called on showing absolute support to Ukraine in its war for maintaining its freedom, sovereignty and territorial integrity.

The address of the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada begins at 3 p.m. It will be in Ukrainian and it will be live streamed with simultaneous interpretation on the web.

Video recordings of the sittings can be viewed on Riigikogu YouTube channel.
(Please note that the recordings will be uploaded with a delay.)

Source: Parliament of Estonia

National parliaments focus on climate change and war in Ukraine at the IPU Assembly

By
Helena-Reet Ennet
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NordenBladet —

Members of the Estonian delegation to the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) are attending the 144th IPU Assembly, with focus on the role of the parliaments in responding to climate change, and Russia’s aggression against Ukraine as an emergency item on the agenda.

The Head of the Riigikogu delegation Toomas Kivimägi described environmental protection and shift towards climate neutrality as one of the biggest global challenges.

“Sadly, this is one of the topics that has been sidelined by the war in Ukraine, at least for us. This is why we are putting in the effort to make sure that the IPU Assembly condemns Russia’s aggression against Ukraine. To achieve this, the geographical Twelve Plus Group (which unites the European countries, incl. Ukraine, as well as Canada, New Zealand, and Australia) is working on submitting the condemnation of aggression and a call on Russia to immediately end the war as an emergency item on the Assembly agenda,” Kivimägi explained.

Kivimägi also emphasised that Russia’s aggression against Ukraine is not merely a war between Russia and Ukraine. “It is a war between the authoritarian and the free world. It is a war that concerns all of us. No country in the world can remain indifferent or fail to support Ukraine,” he stressed.

“The war has set new challenges to the environment as well. The deficit of energy carriers, mostly in Europe, has created the pressure to take fossil fuels into more extensive use. This can only be a short-term solution and we need the whole world’s contribution to make sure that it remains so. If not, we would fall behind the set ambitious goals in achieving climate neutrality, and would also slow down the pace of introducing renewable energy carriers,” Kivimägi added.

The Assembly brings together all the statutory bodies of the IPU, including the Governing Council, Standing Committees, Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians, and Committee on Middle East Questions, as well as the Forum of Women Parliamentarians, and the Forum of Young Parliamentarians. The Standing Committees report to the Assembly on their work, and the Plenary Assembly adopts the resolutions of the Standing Committees, as well as the General Debate Outcome Document on the response to climate change.

Estonia is represented at the Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union in Indonesia on 20–24 March by the President of the Estonian IPU Group Toomas Kivimägi, and Vice-Presidents Helle-Moonika Helme, Helmen Kütt, and Marika Tuus-Laul.

The Inter-Parliamentary Union is the oldest and largest organisation of parliaments in the world. It was established in 1889 and has 178 member states from the entire world. Estonia was a member of the Union between 1921–1940, and restored its membership after regaining independence in 1991.

Source: Parliament of Estonia

Ratas, Pevkur and Helme were re-elected to the Board of the Riigikogu

By
Helena-Reet Ennet
-

NordenBladet —

At the election of the Board of the Riigikogu today, Jüri Ratas was re-elected the President of the Riigikogu. 53 members of the Riigikogu voted in his favour. Ratas’s opposing candidate Helir-Valdor Seeder gained the support of 36 members.

A total of 95 members of the Riigikogu participated in the election of the President. Six ballot papers were invalid.

Jüri Ratas had been nominated by Chairman of the Estonian Centre Party Faction Jaanus Karilaid.

Helir-Valdor Seeder had been nominated by Deputy Chairman of Faction Isamaa Priit Sibul.

Jüri Ratas thanked the members of the Riigikogu for their support.

In the election of Vice-Presidents, Chairman of the Estonian Reform Party Faction Mart Võrklaev nominated Hanno Pevkur as a candidate for a Vice-President of the Riigikogu, and Chairman of the Estonian Conservative People’s Party Faction Henn Põlluaas nominated Martin Helme as a candidate for a Vice-President.

88 members of the Riigikogu took part in the secret ballot for the election of the Vice-Presidents. 52 members of the Riigikogu voted in favour of Hanno Pevkur, and 32 members of the Riigikogu voted in favour of Martin Helme. Four ballot papers were invalid. According to the number of votes received, Hanno Pevkur was re-elected the First Vice-President of the Riigikogu and Martin Helme was re-elected the Second Vice-President.

Source: Parliament of Estonia

Mihkelson’s visit to the USA focuses on security of Baltic States and helping Ukraine

By
Helena-Reet Ennet
-

NordenBladet —

Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Riigikogu (Parliament of Estonia) Marko Mihkelson participates in the joint visit of the Chairs of the Foreign Affairs Committees of the Parliaments of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania to Washington, USA, and speaks at the hearing of the Helsinki Commission of the United States Congress.

Mihkelson said that the hearing of the Helsinki Commission would focus on the security of the Baltic States. “It is important to give our US colleagues a detailed overview of the current situation in our region and find additional ways for enhancing the security of the Baltic States through potential deterrence and defence measures,” Mihkelson explained. “The NATO allies have done very much to strengthen the security of the Baltic region and we are very grateful to them for that, but today’s security situation requires additional measures.”

“We have to give Russia a clear signal that the Western countries will not leave democratic Ukraine alone and we will do all we can to ensure that the defenders of Ukraine and of the free world receive the weapons that will help them to victory,” Mihkelson said. In his opinion, it is necessary to act swiftly and jointly to save the civilian population from the war that is acquiring the dimensions of a genocide.

During two days, the Chairs of the Foreign Affairs Committees of the Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian parliaments have meetings in the US Congress as well as in the Pentagon and the Department of State and leading think tanks.

The Helsinki Commission is an independent US government agency whose task is to monitor compliance with the Helsinki Accords and advance comprehensive security through promotion of human rights, democracy, and economic, environmental, and military cooperation in 57 OSCE countries.

The hearing at the Helsinki Commission will take place on Thursday at 4 p.m. Estonian time and will be streamed online.  

Public discussion at the think tank Atlantic Council will be held on Friday at 2.30 p.m. and can be followed live.

Source: Parliament of Estonia

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