Contents tagged with Estonia
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President of Estonia: Russia violates the underlying principles of European security
In an interview with CNN, Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves stated that Russia has violated the principles of peace that have prevailed in Europe since the end of World War II.
“Well, my main concern is that the underlying principles of European security after World War II, which is you don't invade other European countries, has been undermined,” Ilves told CNN’s Christiane Amanpour.
“And its one reason why we remain strong proponents of keeping sanctions… If this is not rolled back [ …
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Poll suggests almost half of Russian-speakers in Estonia would defend their country
In case of war almost half of the Russian-speaking citizens of the country are ready to defend Estonia, as suggested by a survey conducted by the Turu-Uuringute AS, commissioned by the Institute for Social Studies in January 2016, according to the err.ee publication.
Of those surveyed, 71% of Estonian-speakers and 45% of the Russian-speakers in the country feel they have the skills and are ready to defend Estonia. Furthermore, 90% of Estonian-speakers and 69% of Russian-speakers would agree …
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Estonia jails three for spying for Russia
The Tartu District Court in Estonia has convicted three people for crimes against the state. The Public Prosecutor’s office reported that all three convicts “illegally cooperated with Russian intelligence services”.
According to Interfax, two sentences were passed in October 2015 and the third one was passed last week.
In February, Maxim Gruzdev, a 32-year-old Estonian citizen, was sentenced to four years in prison. He was recruited in the second half of 2013 in the Pskov region. Before he …
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Estonian President: Russia-NATO Agreement from 1997 is 'Obsolete'
Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves believes that under the current conditions, the Russia- NATO Founding Act from 1997 is obsolete, as he stated in the interview with Eesti Päevaleht. According to him, the agreement provided for a permanent but limited presence of NATO forces in the newly formed states of the former Soviet Union, but it did not envision the current security situation. “It includes language that under the current and expected security situation the permanent forces will not …
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Russian plane violated Lithuanian airspace twice last week
The press service of the Ministry of Defense of Lithuania reported that Lithuanian fighters intercepted a Russian aircraft on two separate occassions last week.
On February 17th, fighter jets were scrambled from the Siauliai Airbase to intercept a Russia IL-20 transport plane heading for Kaliningrad. Two days later, the same aircraft was intercepted and esorted by Lithuanian fighters on its way back to mainland Russia.
According to the Ministry of Defense of Lithuania, the Russian IL-20 …
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Russian helicopter violates Estonian airspace
The Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a note of protest to the Russian Ambassador in Tallinn over an incident on Thursday in which a Russian military helicopter allegedly violated Estonian airspace. The episode occurred near the village of Vaskarnava near the Russian-Estonian border.
The helicopter did not attempt to contact Estonian air traffic controllers.
The Russian Defense Ministry denies the allegations. “On February 18th, Army helicopters did not fly in the area,” the …
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Russian paratroopers to hold large-scale exercise near Latvian and Estonian borders
Russian airborne troops will hold a large-scale exercise in the Pskov region near the Estonian and Latvian borders, as reported by Radio Svoboda. According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, the exercises will be held from the 15th to the 20th of February, and will involve 2,500 paratroopers and 300 pieces of military hardware.
The announcement comes after last week’s surprise inspection of Russia’s Southern Military District and subsequent training exercises in southern Russia and the Crimea, …
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In Meeting between Prime Ministers, Estonia Affirms Support for Ukraine
The Prime Minister of Ukraine, Arseniy Yatsenyuk, had a meeting with his Estonian colleague Taavi Rõivas. According to Glavnoye, the Ukrainian government's website states that Yatseniuk expressed his gratitude for the tangible assistance of Estonia towards Ukrainian internal reforms and for its firm position on defending the territorial integrity and security of Ukraine.
Nowadays, many new international threats and challenges arise, he said, and it is important that Ukraine remains the focus …
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Estonia Seeks Long-Term Deployment of NATO Troops
The Estonian government supports the long-term presence of NATO troops in the Baltic States. Tallinn plans to invest in the construction of barracks and academic buildings for the alliance's troops.
The Estonian Prime Minister, Taavi Rõivas, expressed hope that during the NATO Summit in Warsaw in 2016 a decision as to the permanent presence of Alliance troops in "Estonia and neighboring countries" will be made. An interview with the Estonian Prime Minister was published on Monday, January 12th, …
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Russian Air Force violated Estonian airspace
Tallinn has accused Russia of violating its airspace. According to the country's Defense Ministry, a Russian Antonov An-72 military transport plane breached Estonian airspace for less than a minute on Thursday. The incident occured near Vaindloo island, off the country’s northern coast on the Baltic Sea.
According the its flight plan, the An-72 was supposed to stay in international airspace, though it flew over Estonian territory without attempting to contact Estonian dispatchers.
The …