At the heart of the meeting between the Baltic prime ministers and von der Leyen was the European Union’s coordinated fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. Prime Ministers Kallas, Šimonytė, and Kariņš adopted a joint statement calling for EU supplies of COVID-19 vaccines to be directed as soon as possible to countries with the greatest need and highest vaccination capacity.
Prime Minister Kaja Kallas said that joint procurement of vaccines in the European Union is very important for small countries. “Efforts of the European Commission to coordinate the whole pandemic, and in particular the negotiations with vaccine manufacturers, are crucial. Unfortunately, the current uncertainty of delivery schedules affects the entire course of vaccination and shakes confidence,” said Kallas. “It is therefore very important that we have greater confidence that the vaccines will reach us and that, in exceptional cases, we will be able to reorganise supplies flexibly. In the long term, the plan of the European Commission to distribute vaccines would remain in place, but a transparent mechanism for targeting vaccines to areas of greatest need would help halt the spread of the virus across Europe.”
The meeting between the prime ministers and von der Leyen also touched upon the plan to introduce vaccination certificates. Kallas expressed hope that the European Union’s vaccination passport and the global solution developed by Estonia in cooperation with the World Health Organisation are compatible and will help overcome the COVID-19 pandemic.
Kallas also thanked Latvia and Lithuania for their offers of assistance to the Estonian health care sector.
The President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen congratulated the Prime Ministers of the Baltic States on the agreement reached between the European Commission, the European Parliament, and the Portuguese Presidency on the Connecting Europe Facility, which also includes the financing of Rail Baltica in the next EU budget plan.
Prime Minister Kallas also expressed joy over the Connecting Europe Facility agreement. “This result was achieved thanks to being patient and it gives us the confidence that we can move forward quickly with this crucial infrastructure project for our region. Rail Baltica brings the people, economies, and co-operation of our three Baltic States even closer together and creates new opportunities. The rest depends on us – the speed of design and construction,” said Kallas.
At the meeting, the Baltic heads of government spoke about the management of the Rail Baltica project and other joint projects, including the project to synchronise electricity networks with Central Europe and the European Union recovery plan and reforms.
On foreign policy issues, the prime ministers discussed the situation in Belarus and ways to support the opposition. The Baltic heads of government also spoke about relations with the Eastern Partnership countries and the need to intensify defence co-operation between the three Baltic States.
Lithuania will chair the Baltic co-operation this year, and today’s joint meeting was the first for the prime ministers this year.
Statement by the Baltic Prime Ministers after today’s meeting: https://valitsus.ee/media/3853/download
Photos from the meeting: https://www.flickr.com/photos/stenbockimaja/albums/72157718613266551
