“Malta offers Estonian tourists sunshine and warm waters, while Estonia offers Maltese visitors pristine forests and unique bogs,” President Karis said, mentioning that schools in Malta are using an online games environment created in Estonia to teach maths.
Discussing the green transition and energy issues, the Estonian head of state said the climate crisis was more acute than ever and that the only answer to it in the long term was making the switch to renewable energy. “At the same time, Europe must not bow to Russian pressure to ease sanctions and enter into new energy supply agreements because of the current high prices,” he cautioned.
President Karis said that Russia must be isolated and weakened until it abandons its current course of action. “We must also continue to give Ukraine all of the support we can, for as long as it is needed, so that they win the war,” he added. “We have to explain to every country that Russia is destabilising the global economy by stealing Ukrainian grain and cutting off the flow of gas to Europe, despite the agreements and contracts that are in place.”
Discussing the complexity of migration issues, the Estonian head of state said that Malta had been on the front line of the crisis for many years. “Taking in Ukrainian refugees is something that has affected the whole of Europe,” he said. “We have all made our own contributions to it. Estonia has now become a front-line country for migration itself, so we fully understand Malta’s position and see the need to boost EU support for Ukrainian refugees and the Member States most affected by migration issues.”
President Karis said that both Estonia and Malta support the union’s expansion. “We are in favour of the integration of Ukraine, Moldova and the Balkan nations into the European Union,” he stated. “Granting Ukraine and Moldova candidate status was an historic decision. We are convinced that the best guarantee of security is avoiding grey zones from forming around the EU. Estonia considers the further integration of the candidate states and the promotion of democratic, economic and social reforms in the wider region very important.”
President Karis congratulated Malta on being elected a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council, wishing the country well for the next two years and expressing his hope that it would be proactive in the organisation in implementing the necessary reforms and maintaining pressure on Russia.
Maltese president George Vella is on an official visit to Estonia, accompanied by his wife, to mark the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Estonia and Malta. During the visit he will also be meeting with President of the Riigikogu Jüri Ratas, Prime Minister Kaja Kallas, Minister of Foreign Affairs Urmas Reinsalu and Tallinn City Council chairman Jevgeni Ossinovski.
