On Monday, 20 July, the Foreign Minister of Germany Heiko Maas, the Foreign Minister of Latvia Edgars Rinkēvičs and the Foreign Minister of Lithuania Linas Linkevičius visited Tallinn in order to attend a meeting of the ministers. The current affairs of the European Union as well as regional and global foreign and security policy issues were discussed at the meeting held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Special attention was given to Germany’s Presidency of the Council of the European Union and the most important objectives of Germany’s Presidency were discussed. “Close relations with nearby countries are essential to overcome the crisis. One of the main objectives of Germany’s Presidency of the European Union is to reach an agreement on the multiannual financial framework of the European Union and its relaunch plan. Estonia supports the achievement of this agreement, as it would help mitigate the impacts of the crisis,” said Foreign Minister Reinsalu and added that Estonia is also pleased to see that the development of digital policy, strengthening the single market and the areas of foreign affairs and security are also included in the programme of Germany’s Presidency. “An efficient foreign policy of the European Union is extremely important to Estonia and we certainly support Germany’s attempts to make the unity of the European Union stronger,” added Foreign Minister Reinsalu.
Foreign Minister Reinsalu also raised the issue of the continuing aggression of Russia in Ukraine and Georgia, and expressed serious concerns over the failure of Russia to take any steps to find a peaceful solution to the conflicts. “European Union must be consistent in communication with Russia,” said Reinsalu. “Russia’s attempts to forge history and its disregard for the principles of international law make it a complicated partner and we must take this into account.”
The Baltic and German foreign ministers also discussed regional cooperation, transatlantic relations and the development of the Eastern Partnership. Foreign Minister Reinsalu said that the ambitious development of the Eastern Partnership should be a common interest of the European Union. “I believe that the Baltic States and Germany will be able to provide strong support to the Eastern Partnership countries in their European Union integration reforms,” said the Foreign Minister. The Foreign Minister also emphasised the strategic importance of the maintenance and development of transatlantic relations to the European Union.
The alliance between Estonia and Germany was also discussed at the bilateral meeting between Foreign Minister Reinsalu and the German Foreign Minister Maas. Further partnership options in the area of cyber and development cooperation and cooperation in the UN Security Council were also discussed.
Photos: https://bit.ly/2OI2aEs
Further information:
Leen Lindam
Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Public Relations Department
