The head of state presented Minister Parly with the Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana, 2nd Class and thanked her for her outstanding contribution to the development of defence cooperation between France and Estonia.
Speaking of Russia’s war in Ukraine, President Karis said that the murders of scores of civilians in Bucha and other Ukrainian cities were shocking war crimes whose perpetrators must be brought to trial.
The head of state described President Putin’s war against Ukraine as the greatest threat to transatlantic security since World War II. “As allies, we must do all we can to ensure that Ukraine wins this war,” he advised. “Our first step must be raising the cost of Russia’s aggression as high as it can go by establishing even tougher sanctions.”
President Karis reiterated that Ukraine has his country’s full backing, with Estonia providing the beleaguered nation with both military assistance and humanitarian aid and supporting the further sanctioning and isolation of Russia. “We have to give Ukraine everything we have so that its people can defend their country and their freedom against the aggressor,” he stressed.
In presenting the state decoration, President Karis said that France and Estonia were working even more closely together on defence cooperation under Minister Parly and that France was now one of his country’s closest allies. “Our units are serving together in Mali, and French armed forces in Estonia are currently upholding the security of NATO’s eastern flank,” he said. “When Russia began its war against Ukraine, France decided to extend the term of its contingent’s presence here in Tapa and brought in its fighter jets to reinforce the air-policing mission in Ämari. Estonia and Europe as a whole are better protected because of it.”
The head of state says NATO’s presence in our region is vital, as the threat emanating from Russia constitutes a long-term challenge for all of Europe. “NATO must take decisive action to shore up its defence and deterrence position on its eastern flank,” he said. “That requires a bolstered, permanent presence of the alliance in the Baltic Sea region. The changed security situation means having to talk about transforming the air-policing mission into one of air defence. In order to improve battle-readiness, we need NATO to establish a division in every Baltic State, made up of the forces of the country in question and allied units. All of us dedicating ourselves to collective defence will help to guarantee the indivisible security of NATO’s territory.”
President Karis highlighted the fact that all three Baltic States have undertaken to raise defence spending to at least 2.5% of GDP, adding that all Member States of the European Union should increase their contribution to national defence.
