A group of six MPs from Estonia are paying a ten-day visit to China, with local accommodation and transportation costs paid for by Beijing, ERR reports. The delegation consists of members of the Estonia-China parliamentary friendship group and is headed by the group’s chairman, Toomas Kivimägi, deputy speaker of the Estonian parliament, the Riigikogu. Kivimägi…
Estonia may need to raise its defence spending to 5% of GDP to implement NATO’s new defence plans, Defence Minister Hanno Pevkur stated, ERR reports. He said that Estonia clearly needed to acquire more capabilities, including air defence systems and equipment to deal with chemical and biological weapons. The money needed would amount to EUR…
Schools in Estonia have begun transitioning to education in Estonian under a plan approved by the country’s parliament, the Riigikogu, in December 2022, ERR reports. The transition will proceed gradually, with kindergartens and school grades one and four transitioning to fully Estonian education in 2024. Grades two and five will transition in 2025 and grade…
Estonia’s liberal Estonia 200 (E200) party, junior partner in the country’s current coalition government, has elected Education Minister Kristina Kallas as its new chairperson, replacing Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna, ERR reports. Kallas stressed the importance of values as a “key component” in politics. E200 will now start preparing for upcoming local elections and will strive…
Ministers in Estonia’s new government led by Kristen Michal of the Estonian Reform Party have been sworn in before the country’s parliament, the Riigikogu, ERR reports. Reform has seven, the Social Democratic Party (SDE) four, and Estonia 200 three ministers in the new coalition. The cabinet of ministers includes seven men and seven women.
Estonian President Alar Karis has appointed into office a new coalition government headed by Kristen Michal of the Estonian Reform Party, ERR reports. Earlier, the government was overwhelmingly approved by the Estonian parliament, the Riigikogu. The coalition consists of the same three parties as the previous government of Kaja Kallas: Reform, the Social Democratic Party…
Estonia’s ruling parties have agreed that the Social Democratic Party (SDE) will gain an additional ministerial portfolio in the new three-party coalition, Health Minister Riina Sikkut of SDE announced, ERR reports. At the moment, the Estonian Reform Party has five ministers and the post of prime minister, while SDE and Estonia 200 (E200) have three…
The constitutional and finance committees of the Estonian parliament, the Riigikogu, have decided to amend the car tax bill, ERR reports. Earlier, President Alar Karis rejected the bill, arguing that it violated the principle of equal treatment. Constitutional committee chairman Hendrik Johannes Terras and finance committee chairwoman Annely Akkermann said that discussions with various ministries…
Estonia’s capital, Tallinn, plans to remove Soviet symbols from city-owned buildings by the end of 2024, ERR reports. The Estonian parliament passed corresponding legislation in 2023. However, President Alar Karis has refused to sign the legislation due to “legal ambiguities.” Deputy mayor Madle Lippus notes that changes to protected buildings require approval from the National Heritage…