Prime Minister Michal said that he admires the will of the Ukrainian people and the resilience of the defence forces in standing up to the aggressor. “The Ukrainian state and people can count on Estonia’s support until the war ends in victory,” he added.
Michal said that efforts to tighten sanctions against Russia must continue, which includes restricting energy exports, reviewing the oil price cap, and tightening control of the “shadow fleet”. “We need to show that time is no way on Putin’s side and that the democracies of the world will not tire of supporting Ukraine,” he said.
The Estonian prime minister stressed that Estonia will provide military assistance to Ukraine amounting to 0.25 per cent of our GDP each year for the next three years, which is about 100 million euros per year. “I urge our allies to do the same, because we can achieve more together. We will also discuss ways to increase our support with the leaders of the UK, the Netherlands, and the Nordic and Baltic countries at the JEF Summit in Tallinn next week,” he said.
In his meeting with Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal, Kristen Michal also highlighted the attacks in cyberspace, which is why our joint effort must include cybersecurity. “It is for this reason that Estonia, together with other allies, set up the so-called Tallinn Mechanism to help Ukraine with cybersecurity. Although Ukraine has been hit by massive cyber attacks, they have maintained the stability of digital services,” said the prime minister.
Michal also said that negotiations with Russia can only be negotiated from a position of strength to force Putin to give up his ambitions. “Our first step must be to reinforce Ukraine’s positions and armament on the front. Estonia’s one million projectiles initiative has met its target, but it is far from enough. In order to protect themselves as well as Ukraine, the allies must increase their defence spending to at least 2.5% of the GDP, and this commitment should be a key outcome of the NATO summit in The Hague this June,” added Kristen Michal.
In Kyiv, Michal will also meet with Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov, Minister of Defence Rustem Umerov, and Minister of Foreign Affairs Andrii Sybiha. He will also lay a wreath at the Wall of Remembrance of the Fallen for Ukraine and open the Estonian–Ukrainian Business Forum.
The prime minister is accompanied by an Estonian cyber business delegation with ten different companies.
Gallery (to be updated): https://www.flickr.com/photos/stenbockimaja/albums/72177720322452350
