Another six members of the Estonian parliament, the Riigikogu, have resigned from the opposition Estonian Centre Party (Keskerakond), and four of them joined the Social Democratic Party (SDE), which is part of the current coalition government, ERR reports. One of those leaving is Tanel Kiik, chairman of the Centre Party’s parliamentary group. Earlier, two of…
Estonia’s former prime minister and former chairman of the Estonian Centre Party (Keskerakond), Jüri Ratas, expects more people to leave the opposition party, ERR reports. He said that the party’s new chairman, Tallinn’s Russian-speaking mayor Mihhail Kõlvart, has failed to ensure party unity, noting that most of those who have quit are Estonian-speakers. Earlier, two…
The Estonian opposition party, the Conservative People’s Party of Estonia (EKRE), remains the country’s most popular party, according to a Norstat poll for the Institute of Societal Research (YI) conducted in October 2023, ERR reports. The survey showed that 23.2% of voters now support EKRE, followed by another conservative opposition party, Fatherland (Isamaa), with 20.2%….
Lithuania’s presidential campaign is gathering pace, Linas Jegelevicius reports for Baltic News Network. Incumbent president Gitanas Nauseda has the lead in several polls, and he is expected to run for a second term. The ruling Homeland Union has started the process to choose the party’s presidential candidate. Potential names include Prime Minister Ingrida Simonyte, Defence…
Lithuania’s opposition Union of Democrats for Lithuania (DSVL) will withdraw from a national defence agreement signed by all parliamentary parties in July 2022, BNS reports. Under the deal, the parties pledged to keep defence spending above 2.5% of GDP and increase the number of military conscripts. DSVL announced its exit from the pact after the…
Around 40 people have left the Estonian Centre Party (Keskerakond) after the election of Tallinn mayor Mihhail Kõlvart as the party’s new chairman, ERR reports. The number of resignations may increase later. The Centre Party has over 13,000 registered members. The high-profile people who have left the party include former Tartu mayor and minister Jaan…
The Russian NGO, Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK), which was founded by jailed Russian opposition leader Alexey Navalny, has asked the Baltic States to reconsider a ban on cars with Russian licence plates, LRT reports. FBK chairwoman Maria Pevchikh published letters that the organisation sent to Baltic governments, arguing that the ban undermined and discredited sanctions against…
Lithuania’s Ministry of Interior will ask the parliament, the Seimas, to extend the validity of foreigner’s passports from one to three years, BNS reports. The Lithuanian Migration Department (LMD) issues foreigner’s passports to foreign nationals with Lithuanian residency who are unable to obtain a travel document from their country of origin. The Belarusian government has…
Over two thirds of Estonians think that Prime Minister Kaja Kallas should resign amid a scandal over business ties with Russia, according to a new Norstat poll for the Institute of Societal Research (YI), ERR reports. The survey showed that 67% of respondents thought that Kallas should resign, while 27% said that she should not….