Estonia continues to push for an EU-wide ban on Russian tourists, ERR reports. Andres Siplane, chief sanctions expert at the Foreign Ministry, said that discussions on a wider ban on Russian tourism continued almost every day behind closed doors. He said that Estonia was talking to Georgia about the issue as well. However, it is…
Estonia’s Minister of Defence, Hanno Pevkur, has approved a defence plan for 2024-2027 to increase the country’s military capabilities and defence forces, ERR reports. Pevkur said that Estonia would acquire “significantly more and better weapons, ammunition, and equipment,” as well as invest in people and infrastructure. The defence plans include investments in the Ämari Air…
Latvia’s new president, Edgars Rinkevics, will pay an official visit to Lithuania on 19 July 2023, BNS reports. Rinkevics will meet with his Lithuanian counterpart, Gitanas Nauseda, and speaker of the Lithuanian parliament, the Seimas, Viktorija Cmilyte-Nielsen. The officials will discuss the decisions taken at the NATO summit in Vilnius, regional and energy security, and…
The Baltic States will not be able to decouple their power grids from the Russian-controlled BRELL system ahead of schedule in 2024, Rokas Masiulis, CEO of Lithuania’s electricity transmission system operator, Litgrid, stated, BNS reports. He said that the synchronisation process still depended on Estonia’s transmission system operator, Elering, which has said that Estonia will…
A fire broke out at a production facility of the Latvian grain processor, Dobeles Dzirnavnieks, in Dobele in the morning of 16 July 2023, LETA reports. The fire engulfed several floors of the seven-storey building on the city’s Spodribas Street. Dobeles Dzirnavnieks is part of Estonia’s Tartu Mill group. The company produces flour, pasta, cereals,…
The decision of NATO’s Vilnius summit not to invite Ukraine to join the alliance reflects the view of the leaders of the bigger Western countries on how the war in Ukraine may end, Estonian MP Raimond Kaljulaid (SDE), head of the Estonian delegation to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, says. Writing in an opinion piece for…
Vegetable production in Estonia is declining due to a shortage of farm workers, ERR reports. As a result, imports and consumer prices of vegetables are rising. In 2019, Estonian farmers grew vegetables on a total area of 2,035 hectares, whereas in 2023, the area is around 50% less. The farm labour shortage began during the…
Estonia’s Defence Minister, Hanno Pevkur, and UK Secretary of Defence Ben Wallace have signed a joint declaration on integrating British and Estonian forces, BNS reports. Under the plan, a British brigade due to be deployed in Estonia will operate within an Estonian division. Also, UK staff officers will be embedded into the command of the…
The Conservative People’s Party of Estonia (EKRE) has no intention to make any concessions and will continue to obstruct the current coalition government’s work in the parliament, the Riigikogu, in autumn 2023, EKRE chairman Martin Helme stated, ERR reports. Earlier, the coalition suggested that opposition parties withdraw questions and legislative proposals so as not to…