US defence officials urged the Baltic States to tone down their rhetoric on the threat posed by Russia, arguing that some statements had undermined European security, Reuters reported. One of the US officials was Elbridge Colby, Under Secretary of Defence for Policy at the US Defence Department, who insisted on not “poking” Russia. He pointed…
Baltic officials were mostly critical of Finnish President Alexander Stubb’s and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre’s phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna insisted that “every contact with Russia must convey Europe’s unity and determination to support Ukraine and maintain pressure on Russia,” ERR reported. He called for increased…
Baltic and Polish leaders urged the EU to allocate necessary funding for the Rail Baltica railway project under the EU’s multiannual financial framework in 2028-2034, the Office of the President of Lithuania reported. In a joint letter to European Council President António Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, the leaders reaffirmed the…
The Baltic States called on the EU to ban transit shipments of Russian grain through EU territory, BNS reported. Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal, Latvian Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs, and Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda made the call in a joint letter to European Council President António Costa and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen….
Baltic leaders criticised the US-Russian agreement on Russian diesel fuel supplies. Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal said that the agreement was a “major miscalculation,” warning that “deals with dictators are a road to hell,” ERR reported. He insisted that Russian revenues must be stopped and urged the EU to help Ukraine “blast Russia’s oil refineries…
Estonia’s former chancellor of justice, Ülle Madise, was sworn in as the country’s new president in the parliament, the Riigikogu, on 12 October 2026, ERR reports. She was elected to the office by the 101-member parliament with 71 votes on 2 September 2026. In her first speech as president, Madise noted that past attempts to…
The director of the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), John Ratcliffe, travelled to Moscow to warn Russia against attacking NATO countries, particularly the Baltic States, CBS, Politico, and The Wall Street Journal reported. Earlier, US intelligence assessed that Russia was considering attacks in the Baltic region to test NATO unity. Russian President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman,…
One of the prime architects of the restoration of Estonia’s independence, Siim Kallas, has died at the age of 77 years, his daughter, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, announced, ERR reports. Kallas served as president of the Bank of Estonia in 1991-1995, member of the Estonian parliament, the Riigikogu, in 1995-2004 and 2019-2024, foreign…
Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda assured that Lithuania was not considering withdrawing from the International Criminal Court (ICC), LRT reports. He insisted that any talk of leaving the ICC was “completely difficult to comprehend.” Earlier, the US urged allied countries, including Lithuania, to withdraw or distance themselves from the Rome Statute, which established the ICC, LRT…
