Today, 20 February, Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna met Admiral Giuseppe Cavo Dragone, Chair of the NATO Military Committee, who is on a visit to
Estonia. They discussed increasing defence spending among NATO Allies, strengthening deterrence and defence posture, preparations for the NATO Summit to be held in Ankara this summer, and support for Ukraine.
“It is very welcome that, during his multi-day visit, the Chair of the NATO Military Committee can gain first-hand insight into the security challenges of our region and Estonia’s national defence activities,” Tsahkna said. “Estonia’s contribution to strengthening its defence capabilities is highly valued within NATO. At the same time, Admiral Dragone reaffirmed NATO’s full commitment to defending Allied territory.”
According to the foreign minister, in order to meet the Alliance’s force capability targets and strengthen its deterrence and defence posture, it is essential that all Allies move swiftly towards the goal agreed at last year’s NATO Hague Summit of raising defence spending to 5% of GDP.
“Russia’s increasingly frequent hybrid attacks have in recent years affected nearly every NATO Ally, and Russia continues to build up its military capabilities beyond our borders. All of this indicates that Russia is and will remain the most serious long-term threat to NATO’s security,” Tsahkna said.
“Increasing defence spending and capabilities is the most effective way to deter Russia. At the same time, NATO must remain prepared to respond to threats in the Arctic and on NATO’s southern flank,” Tsahkna said, noting that NATO has demonstrated its ability to respond rapidly to immediate threats through the recent launch of vigilance activities such as Eastern Sentry, Baltic Sentry and Arctic Sentry.
Discussing support for Ukraine, Tsahkna emphasised that Estonia will continue to allocate military assistance each year at a level of at least 0.25% of GDP, and has also contributed to NATO’s PURL weapons assistance initiative.
“As long as Russia has not abandoned its objectives, we must support Ukraine militarily, politically and economically, and continue to increase pressure on Russia in order to compel a change of course,” Tsahkna said. He added that, in addition to strengthening sanctions, it is important to move forward with imposing a Schengen-wide entry ban on Russian combatants.
“This would have a clear deterrent effect, as any man considering fighting on Russia’s behalf would have to weigh whether that step is worth being placed on the Schengen blacklist,” Tsahkna explained.
Additional information:
Communication Department
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