Prime Minister Kallas at meeting with chancellor of Austria: Estonia’s historical experience shows how much is at stake in Ukraine

“The free world must do everything in its power to end Russia’s brutal war against Ukraine and the war crimes on our doorstep,” said Kallas. “We have made many right decisions in support of Ukraine and must now ensure that they are quickly and successfully implemented. We must understand what is at stake in Ukraine. Russian leaders make public calls for committing genocide and we cannot allow that.

However, Ukraine cannot be forced to make a quick peace, because this does not automatically mean the end of people’s suffering,” Kallas added. She stressed that Estonia and Austria have a different historical experience and it is important to exchange views on this topic. “The end of World War II in Estonia meant peace, but it did not bring an end to people’s suffering. For many countries, including Estonia, this peace marked the beginning of extensive repressions, destruction of language and culture and political persecution. Schools where the Russian language was forced on students and attempts to erase culture. We currently see all of this happening in Ukraine in the regions occupied by Russia. We do not wish this fate on anyone,” said Kallas.

The Prime Minister stressed that it is important to Estonia to quickly grant Ukraine the status of a candidate country of the European Union. Estonia also supports the granting of the status of a candidate country to those Western Balkan countries that have already taken the necessary steps to this end.

Kallas and Nehammer also discussed energy policy during their meeting. “Energy and fuel prices have hit entirely new heights. It is good to share experiences with each other on how one country or another has helped people, but it is also important to look at a broader picture on how to bring prices down in the long term,” said Kallas.

When speaking of the European Union’s green transition, the Prime Minister reiterated that the faster we manage to transition to renewable energy, the sooner the European Union as a whole can be freed from its dependency from Russia. “Ensuring that the transition is affordable and feasible for everyone is just as important. The green transition must ensure the wellbeing of everyone, otherwise it is simply impossible,” the Prime Minister noted.

Nehammer’s visit was the first official bilateral visit of the Chancellor of Austria to Estonia.

Photos from meeting: https://www.flickr.com/photos/stenbockimaja/albums/72177720299689474