prime-ministers-of-estonia

"We are going to have next Foreign Affairs meeting, Foreign Affairs ministers meeting, and we're going to discuss Iran. Our common position, how we approach Iran. It is clear the way Iran operates, I mean helping Russia in the war against Ukraine, but also their activities in the Middle East, that we have to have a much stronger stance when it comes to Iran. Because developing a nuclear weapon, it's extremely dangerous. And there is one of the points where we need to cooperate with the United States as well."

"Russia has been investing more than 9% of its GDP on military. In comparison, European countries are spending 2%. I think my own country is spending over 3%, but- but I think America is spending something around 3 or 4% of its GDP. So if you're investing so much on the military, you will want to use it again. And that's why it is very important how we- how we act here. In 2008, they attacked Georgia. Nothing happened. There was not the strong reaction from the West. In 2014, they annexed Crimea and attacked Ukraine. There was not the strong reaction. So, you know, there was a ceasefire, but ceasefire only gave them possibility to regroup and rearm. That's why it is extremely important that we don't make the same mistake again. If there is a pause, so they are able to get their forces to gather again, we will just see more wars. Everybody wants peace, but the peace has to be a lasting peace. And for lasting peace, it has to put- the pressure has to be put on Russia so that they don't do this again."

"I mean, NATO is a defense alliance, and- and it is comprised of 32 different armies of, of the NATO member states. So, NATO structure is the military structure, and in terms of war, very important is, who gives orders to whom? So if you have, you know, those through- 32 armies that cooperate together, and you have one structure, then it's clear who gives orders to whom."

"So if we say that we create a parallel structure, then, you know, when, in terms of crisis, then who gives orders to whom? Because the armies are just the 32. So that's why I haven't supported a special European army. I'm just saying that all the armies that are there in Europe, but also in NATO, need to work together."

"We have managed so far and- and, of course, it's getting harder all the time, but we have managed to keep this unity."

"There are several arguments, and some- some countries are not in favor because of the different risks. But I think, you know, in the end, everybody will come to the same conclusion. It shouldn't be our taxpayers that pay for the damages caused by Russia in Ukraine. It should be Russia who pays."

"We don't want the trade war with United States. I think there are no winners in trade wars. And I mean, yesterday, I was here and watching the news as well, and you hear the news that consumer confidence in United States is dropping. And you know, if you have trade wars, it increases the prices, and in the end, the consumers will pay for this. So- so it is- it is not- I mean, there are no winners in trade wars, and we don't want to start one. But of course, we will also protect our interest if a trade war is started against us."

"There are strong supporters of Ukraine in, I mean, both sides of the aisle and have been very, very much understanding what is going on. I don't know their relationship with President Trump, but I have seen the strong will that there is. Maybe this critical raw materials deal that President Trump is doing with President Zelenskyy will increase the economic interest of United States in Ukraine. That will, in turn, also give, I mean, the interest- security interest, to protect those economic interests that you have in Ukraine. So, so maybe that is one of the tools."

"Russia's widespread aggression (against Ukraine) is a threat to the entire world and to all NATO countries, and NATO consultations on strengthening the security of the Allies must be initiated to implement additional measures for ensuring the defense of NATO Allies. The most effective response to Russia's aggression is unity. I assure all the people of Estonia that there is no direct military threat to Estonia and that the situation in Estonia and at our external border is calm."

"If people admire dictators, there is no moral obstacle to becoming one or submitting to one. If people’s minds and eyes are shut before past atrocities, there are no limits to committing new ones in the future."

"When we look at Russia we see darkness – fear is keeping its society together. And we see thousands fleeing the country. We know this fear. Fear of secret police who seize people in the middle of the night or arrest them only for holding up placards in public squares, fear of the constant distrust, fear to express your opinion, fear of the atrocities that might follow. Tens of thousands of Estonians fled this same tyranny after World War Two."

"Gas might be expensive, but freedom is priceless."

"What is our neighbor’s problem today will be our problem tomorrow. We are in danger, when our neighbor’s house is on fire."

"If we do everything to help Ukraine, there will be no 11-year-olds for whom the air of freedom is something they only experience from a distance."

"Neutrality is not a worldview, neutrality is indifference."

"If someone talks about Russia and Ukraine agreeing on a peace settlement and giving away some territory, I explain that after World War II, your side of the Iron Curtain had peace, which meant that you built up your countries and the prosperity of your peoples. On our side of the Iron Curtain, we had mass deportations, killings, and our culture and language were suppressed. So even if there is some kind of an agreement, without accountability it doesn’t mean that the human suffering will stop."

"It is very difficult to innovate by command. Suppressive fear and the need to fulfill artificial plans drown out sustainability and competitiveness. Freedom is worth fighting for because it generates prosperity and security."

"When they annexed Crimea, it was the “little green men.” They were embarrassed that it's Russian soldiers. They tried to hide it, they were afraid of the Western reaction. Because the Western reaction was weak at the time, they made a mental note that they can do this because nothing happens. So if they can attack Ukraine, get away with no punishment, no accountability, then the next step could be NATO."

"Russia may believe that issuing a fictitious arrest warrant will silence Estonia. I refuse to be silenced — I will continue to vocally support Ukraine and advocate for the strengthening of European defenses."

"I see this war ending with Russia going back to Russia."

"When one aggression pays off, it's an incentive to commit others."

"Defense is not escalation."

"Russia wants to see the US and Europe divided. Let’s not give them that."

"There is no table where Russia and Ukraine are sitting right now. It’s a shuttle diplomacy."

"Of course for any deal to work you need Europeans around the table to agree to the deal. Because the implementation of the deal needs to be in the hands of Europe."

"It’s really good to see how these things are going. Trump was clear that aid to Ukraine was not discussed. Putin said it was discussed. I’d rather trust Trump on this than President Putin."

"In order for the ceasefire to work there has to be deterrence. And if all guards are down, I mean Putin has shown this before, hes not keeping to the ceasefires. And if he wants the guards to be down on the Ukrainian side, then he actually achieves what he wants, and I am absolutely certain he will continue."

"We need to do more for our defence. We also need to do more for Ukraine so that the stronger they are on the battlefield, the stronger they are on the negotiation table."

"The stronger we are the less likely war is."

"Mark Rutte is speaking Trump, I think he’s speaking the language that President Trump definitely understands and he needs to get this across,I think it very important that everyone is doing this 5% and agreeing to this."

"when member states agreed to spend more on defence, that also means that they have more means to help Ukraine."

"When it comes to Europe we have agreed that we will support Ukraine militarily, and we will also put more pressure on Russia so that they would also want peace in order end this war so it is very clear for us."

"so if we don’t push back aggression in one place, it just is a call to use aggression elsewhere."

"I don’t see into Putin’s mind but looking back how he has been working, he understands strength, If we invest more into defence, we are stronger so it doesn’t provoke him."

"Weakness provokes him: if he thinks that he’s stronger, he can take up this war, then he will take up war, but if he sees that we are strong, then he doesn’t look our way, and that’s what we are doing."

"Of course, Israel has the right to self-defense – that is very clear"

"But the recent actions go beyond self-defense. There is too much human suffering."

"I hear what the Israeli government is saying: that humanitarian aid has also been weaponized, But if Gaza were truly flooded with humanitarian aid, there would be no shortage, which means no one could weaponize it."

"It is clear that we want good relations with Israel, At the same time, we see steps the Israeli government is taking that really raise questions. That’s why I think it’s important to have this open and frank dialogue, so we can address these issues with our Israeli counterparts, which we are constantly doing."

"What everybody wants to signal is that we are, of course, supporting Israel’s security. But at the same time, these countries – and everyone, really – are not endorsing all the measures being carried out by the Israeli government."

"If the review says that the international humanitarian law has been breached, then of course we have different options, different options from the full suspension of the association agreement to, you know, different elements that could be done."

"If people have opportunities – if they can earn a livelihood – then there’s a chance they won’t be radicalized, and chaos in Syria can be avoided."

"Of course, we have concerns about the new leadership in Syria, That is very clear. We have chosen this path of easing sanctions with the understanding that we can always reinstate them if we do not see progress in the right direction."

"We see no role for Hamas in the future governance of Gaza – that is very, very clear. And we also hope that the suffering of the people in Gaza will end, that humanitarian aid will reach them, and that both parties will be able to foster prosperity for the people moving forward."

"The EU accession process must not be held hostage by such a conflict, We aim to avoid such tensions, but the EU will continue to enlarge whether or not this conflict is resolved."

"I don't think we're alone. Actually what I've seen is a lot of countries from around the world at our door, wanting to co-operate, finding new ways to do that. Why is this so? Because, you know, something that has been maybe a weakness because we are so predictable and so boring, has become actually our strength. There is a lot of unpredictability in the world, so we can build on that strength. Of course, we need to co-operate around the world with the countries which are not perfect democracies; if we only choose the countries that are perfect democracies we can't also work with some countries that are within the European Union, but that's another topic. It's clear that we need to find a way to actually promote the values that we also stand for, because people really see that it brings benefits. It brings prosperity and the well-being of people."

"I can tell you that one of those countries wanted to send the military to march there [in Moscow]. Can you imagine? This is the biggest threat that Europe has: Russia. You want to join the EU, and then you send your military to march together with the forces that are actually attacking European security? How can you then really defend this and say that we want to take this military enemy within? It would be a complete no-go for many European countries, and it is hard. Show me who your friends are, and I will tell you who you are. We have 27 Member States in Europe, and I can already tell you 10 [Member States] for whom this is highly problematic."

"It is clear that in order to have peace, you need at least two to want peace. It only takes one to want war. We see Putin has shown very clearly that he still wants war. They [Russia] wanted to make countries in the Global South to believe the narrative that Europeans or Ukrainians are just warmongers, they want war but Putin is a peaceful person just attacking and killing some civilians. They [countries in the Global South] bought this narrative, but now everybody can see that this is not the case. It has been 60 days since Ukraine agreed to a full and unconditional ceasefire, whereas we haven't seen that from Russia's side. We have seen that Russia is playing games. We, the European Union, have been united, calling for a ceasefire so that they [Russia and Ukraine] can sit down at the table and discuss peace, but we need to see some goodwill on the Russian side. What we can do is of course to put more pressure on Russia to also want peace on their side. The tools that we have in our hands our economic tools, so sanctions. I also welcome the Lindsay Graham package that they are now discussing in [the US] Senate, which are very strong sanctions to really put the pressure on Russia. I think this sending a very good signal that also the Americans understand that in order to end this war, in order to end the killing, we should the pressure on the one who is doing the killing."

"There haven't been any bilateral talks between Ukraine and Russia. There has been shuttle diplomacy, really. There have been envoys from the US going there. It's important to keep in mind that [there should be] nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine. We can see them agreeing to things and coming back to ideas that are completely unacceptable for Ukraine, or for Europe for that matter. Then it can't really fly. I understand what the Americans are trying to do, which is to really keep their door open so that Russia would come to the table. That's why they maybe haven't put that much pressure on Russia, but now it has been over 60 days. We need to some other steps so that we see Putin at the negotiating table."

"I think Zelenskyy did well to say, "OK, I'm willing to meet Putin and let him come." I don't know if we are off the camera or on the camera here, but I'd like to express my opinion here. It's hard. I think it's a good move. It's a sit down. It should be between Zelenskyy and Putin. I don't think Putin dares."