Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda remains the country’s most popular politician, according to a Vilmorus poll for Lietuvos Rytas in February 2024, BNS reports. Nauseda’s favourable rating stood at 66%, which was down from 68.3% in December 2023. His unfavourable rating was 15.1% (13.5%). MEP Vilija Blinkeviciute, chairwoman of the opposition Social Democratic Party of Lithuania (LSDP),…
Members of the Estonia-Taiwan Support Group of the Estonian parliament, the Riigikogu, will visit Taiwan on 4-8 March 2024, ERR reports. The largest ever Estonian delegation to Taiwan, the MPs will meet with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen, parliamentary speaker Han Kuo-yu, Prime Minister Chen Chien-jen, and Foreign Minister Joseph Wu, as well as representatives of…
Estonia’s President, Alar Karis, has declared elections to the European Parliament to be held on 9 June 2024, ERR reports. Registration of candidates will begin on 10 April 2024 and early voting on 3 June 2024. Parties can nominate up to nine candidates each. Altogether 912,000 voters in Estonia are registered for the elections, ERR…
Lithuania and Poland plan to hold joint military exercises in the so-called Suwalki Gap, Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda announced, BNS reports. Speaking after a meeting with Polish President Andrzej Duda in Vilnius, Nauseda suggested that the exercise could take place in April 2024. He said that the two countries would undertake joint measures to increase…
Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics backed a unilateral ban on Russian grain imports without waiting for a joint EU decision, LETA reported. Speaking after a meeting with Prime Minister Evika Silina, Rinkevics pointed out that some of the Russian grain was stolen from occupied Ukrainian territory and that Russia was using food as a “hybrid weapon.”…
Building unified Baltic defence infrastructure should be coordinated with Finnish and Polish military experts, Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics stated, LETA reports. Baltic cooperation with Finland and Poland was necessary to create an effective defence mechanism, he said. At the same time, Rinkevics reminded that Latvia was part of NATO’s defence planning. He discussed the issue…
Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas announced that she will not attend the Independence Day reception at the Estonia Theatre in Tallinn on 24 February 2024, ERR reports. Earlier, President Alar Karis decided not to invite most MPs to this year’s reception. Several MPs have expressed displeasure at the President’s decision. Kallas said that she would…
Lithuania’s State Defence Council (VGT) has agreed to buy German-made Leopard 2 tanks for a planned new army division, Kestutis Budrys, chief national security adviser to President Gitanas Nauseda, announced, BNS reports. The council tasked the Defence Ministry to begin negotiations with German manufacturers and other countries interested in procuring the equipment. Also, the council…
Russian dictator Vladimir Putin dreams of restoring the Russian Empire, as indicated by Russian propaganda and hybrid warfare, Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics stated, LETA reported. Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Rinkevics said that the Latvian government should remember that peacetime was over, stressing the need to boost the defence industry and defence…
