NATO Headquarters marks the anniversary of the withdrawal of Russian troops from Europe
Yesterday 21 October, an exhibition was opened at NATO Headquarters in Brussels, covering the withdrawal of Russian troops from Central and Eastern Europe 30 years ago. The exhibition and the accompanying panel discussion was organised on the initiative of the German Representation to NATO. German Ambassador Dr Géza Andreas von Geyr moderated the discussion and Estonia’s Permanent Representative to NATO Jüri Luik was part of the panel. Representatives of Latvia, Lithuania, Hungary and Czechia also spoke.
Luik said the stakes were extremely high in 1994 because Estonia’s subsequent future depended on the withdrawal of Russian troops. “Estonia would never have become a member of the European Union and NATO if even the smallest foreign base had remained on our territory,” Luik said.
“Russia had no interest whatsoever in withdrawing its forces from Estonia,” Luik, who served as foreign minister in 1994, said. “Western unity and the pressure Western countries exerted on Russia had a decisive role in the withdrawal of troops.”
Luik said it was important to remember that Russia has not changed since the 1990s. “Russia did not want to leave Central and Eastern Europe, but they were forced to do so. Given the chance, they would certainly want to return,” Luik underlined. “It is impossible to overestimate the role of NATO as a security guarantee in our region, and based on our own experience, we are obviously in favour of Ukraine joining the Alliance.”
The exhibition includes four photographs from the collections of the National Archives of Estonia and the Maritime Museum of Estonia, depicting the withdrawal of Russian troops from Estonia in 1994. The photographs show the signing of the treaty on the withdrawal of forces by Estonian President Lennart Meri and Russian President Boris Yeltsin, the withdrawal of units from Klooga and Paldiski and raising the Estonian flag again on the Lembit submarine.
Photos from the opening of the exhibition.
avalike suhete osakond