President Karis says Estonia welcomes Moldova’s application for EU membership. “Last week, during their meeting in Versailles, the union’s leaders took the first official step towards Moldovan accession,” he said. “There is no doubt that Moldova is part of the European family. Nobody can stop it from fulfilling its dream of joining the European Union.” He added that contributing to the stability and security of eastern neighbours would create in its turn both peace and security in Europe.
President Karis says people in Estonia appreciate the challenge of being a small European nation in the world today – a turbulent world fraught with dangers. “Moldova has shown that it has a big heart, which it is following in dealing with the humanitarian crisis,” he remarked. “The people of the country have opened their hearts and their homes to Ukrainians fleeing from the war and seeking shelter here. In taking them in and helping them, Moldova has set an example to us all.”
While in Chișinău, the Estonian head of state will also be visiting the biggest reception centre for Ukrainian refugees in Moldova, which is located a couple of kilometres from the centre of the capital.
President Karis confirmed Estonia’s support for Moldova in assisting those fleeing from the war in Ukraine. “We are allocating 100,000 euros from the humanitarian aid fund of the Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs to help Moldova in dealing with the impact of the humanitarian crisis,” he explained. “We are also providing the country with buses and, to help with the pandemic, we will be sending thousands of doses of the Jansen COVID-19 vaccine for use in Moldova as well.”
President Karis says that when President Putin launched his war against Ukraine three weeks ago, life changed for everyone in Europe overnight. “This war is causing terror and destruction the likes of which no one expected to witness in 21st-century Europe,” he said. “Nobody takes peace for granted anymore. The free world stands with Ukraine and will help it in every way. Estonia, along with the other countries in Europe and its partners, will continue to pile pressure on the Russian government with sanctions. Our aim is to make the cost of aggression intolerably high for the aggressor and for this war to end as soon as possible.”
During their meeting, the Moldovan leaders also showed an interest in Estonia’s IT experience and expressed their wish to work more closely with the country in order to learn from it. Discussing digitalisation, President Karis highlighted the need to turn attention to cybersecurity.
