Kallas meets Johnson: the only possible answer to Russia can be even greater unity and resolution of the West

According to Prime Minister Kallas, Russia is trying to create cracks in the Western unity through scare and intimidation tactics. “The unity of NATO and its partners and the firm support for Ukraine has so far been a bad surprise to the Kremlin. Therefore, the only possible answer to Russia can be even greater unity and firmer resolution,” the prime minister said. “We need to be prepared for a long-term crisis, and we need to keep this in mind when planning our next steps,” Kallas added.

During the meeting, Kallas stressed the need to strengthen NATO’s defence and deterrence posture in the Baltic Sea region. “We welcome the UK’s decision to double its contribution to the allied battle group in Estonia and to send additional equipment,” Kallas said. According to the prime minister, Estonia highly appreciates the UK‘s contribution to our security. One example is the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF), led by the UK. “We agreed to increase the cooperation in this format further. For example, I have proposed that we could organise regular exercises with the countries participating in the JEF,” Kallas said. Kallas also outlined the importance of holding in-depth discussions at a high political level on NATO’s long-term defence policy for the alliance’s eastern flank before the Madrid Summit.

The defence cooperation between Estonia and the United Kingdom has been long-standing and very close bilaterally and within NATO. The United Kingdom is the framework country of the NATO Enhanced Forward Presence in Estonia, and the UK has participated on several occasions in NATO’s Baltic Air Policing mission. The UK is also a member of the NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence in Tallinn. We are also a participating country in the Joint Expeditionary Force with the UK. The Joint Expeditionary Force is a UK-led form of defence cooperation involving the Netherlands, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark, and Iceland, in addition to the UK and Estonia. One focus of this cooperation is the Baltic Sea region. On 21–22 February, the meeting of the defence ministers of JEF will take place in the UK.

Photos: https://www.flickr.com/photos/number10gov/