Latvia has reopened the border crossing in Patarnieki on the border with Belarus, the State Border Guard (VRS) announced, LETA reports. Earlier, the government decided not to approve the Interior Ministry’s proposal to close down the checkpoint, which is the only road border crossing that remains open on Latvia’s border with Belarus. However, Prime Minister…
The former commander of the Estonian Defence League, retired major general Riho Ühtegi, has withdrawn from the race to become the country’s next president, ERR reports. He told Postimees that the reason for the decision was a serious health condition. Ühtegi’s candidacy was proposed by a group of prominent public figures in early July 2026….
Estonia’s Chancellor of Justice, Ülle Madise, has expressed her willingness to run for president, provided there is “broad-based support” for her candidacy, Õnne Pillak, leader of the ruling Estonian Reform Party’s parliamentary group, announced, ERR reports. Pillak reaffirmed Reform’s support for Madise’s candidacy and urged other party leaders to state their preference before the upcoming…
Estonia’s annual inflation may drop below 4% in 2026, the Ministry of Finance forecasts, ERR reports. Kristjan Pungas, economic analyst at the ministry’s fiscal policy department, linked the projection to the easing of the conflict in the Middle East. He noted that Estonia’s inflation rate was one of the lowest in the eurozone in June…
Over a quarter of people in the Baltic States could not afford one week of annual holiday travel away from home in 2025, according to Eurostat data, LSM reports. In Lithuania, 30.9% of residents could not afford one week of holiday travel in 2025, which was down from 32.2% in 2024. The corresponding share was…
Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal stressed the importance of preserving the EU’s Schengen Area, insisting that creating new internal borders within the free movement area was “in no way in the interests of Estonia or Estonians,” ERR reported. He was responding to reactions to the recent sudden influx of irregular migrants from Morocco to Spain’s North…
Türkiye’s Turkish Air Force (THK) has deployed some 80 troops and five F-16 fighter jets for the first time to Estonia’s Ämari air base as part of NATO’s Baltic air defence mission, ERR reports. THK replaced the Portuguese Air Force to patrol Baltic airspace until November 2026. Meanwhile, Italian Air Force has taken over responsibility…
The council of elders of the Estonian parliament, the Riigikogu, will meet in early August 2026 to discuss the election of the country’s next president, ERR reports. Parliamentary speaker Lauri Hussar said that the council would meet within the next two weeks. He hoped that all parliamentary parties would come to the meeting with a…
Italy has taken over NATO’s Baltic Air Policing mission, replacing French and Romanian forces, BNS reports. Italy will deploy an air defence contingent of around 200 personnel with four Eurofighter Typhoon (EF-2000) fighter jets to the Siauliai air base in northern Lithuania. The outgoing French and Romanian detachments consisted of about 210 troops with four…
