Estonia awards 1,016 mission medals to NATO troops
More than 1,000 troops from the UK, U.S., and France were given medals for serving with NATO forces in Estonia on Wednesday. Mission medals were presented to: the 1st Battalion of the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers from the United Kingdom, the 1st Infantry Regiment (1er régiment d’infanterie) participating in Mission Lynx fromContinue Reading
Orpo government easily wins vote of confidence over labour market issues
The government led by Prime Minister Petteri Orpo (NCP) won a vote of confidence in Parliament on Wednesday afternoon. The vote followed an interpellation over the labour market situation, which was submitted by three left-leaning opposition parties: the Social Democrats, the Left Alliance and the Greens. The second-largest opposition party,Continue Reading
No direct military threat to any NATO allies – Stoltenberg
NATO countries do not face a direct military threat, whereas the Alliance’s defence capabilities have increased enough to convince Moscow that it would not achieve victory in an armed conflict, Secretary General of NATO Jens Stoltenberg told the news website delfi.lt in an exclusive interview. Mr Stoltenberg said that thereContinue Reading
Sweden must share risk of new reactors
A preliminary study into new nuclear construction carried out by Vattenfall in Sweden found government aid was essential to encourage investment, the utility said on Monday. “To achieve large-scale production regardless of technology, government support will be needed for the first units. Someone needs to take the risk with theContinue Reading
Latvian soldier in Ukraine: ‘The front lacks everything’
In Ukraine, the full-scale war has been going on for nearly two years. The front “lacks wildly” everything necessary, Latvian volunteer soldier under the nickname Ghost (Spoks), who has spent a year and a half defending Ukraine, said in an interview with Latvian Television’s “Today Question” on February 16. AfterContinue Reading
Unpaid sick leave and unemployment benefit cuts — Yle survey reveals the government’s most unpopular plans
Finland has seen two major political strikes in the past few weeks alone, as trade unions voice their opposition to the government’s planned labour market reforms and cuts to social security benefits. In a survey carried out by Taloustutkimus, Yle asked respondents which of the government’s planned reforms they wereContinue Reading
Survey: Public trust in the Estonian prime minister fell in February
Confidence in Prime Minister Kaja Kallas fell in February according to a recent survey, while Minister of Defense Hanno Pevkur was most trusted among current government ministers. In the survey, conducted by pollsters Kantar Emor on a regular basis, respondents were given a list of politicians and asked to rateContinue Reading
Eroaalto reservistä johti yllättävään tilanteeseen: Siviilipalvelusjohtaja ihmettelee, mitä kaikille eroajille tehdään
Helmikuun aikana puolustusvoimien reservistä eronneiden määrä on noussut niin suureksi, ettei kaikille tahdo riittää vapaita paikkoja siviilipalvelusvelvollisten täydennyskoulutukseen. Reservistä eroavien aalto käynnistyi helmikuun alussa, kun puolustusministeri Antti Häkkänen (kok) kertoi Kyrönmaa-lehdelle ryhtyvänsä toimiin, ettei reservistä voisi enää erota. Myöhemmin ministeri pehmitteli puheitaan ja kertoi, ettei reservistä eroamista estäviä toimia nytContinue Reading
More than half of Lithuanians oppose new defence tax
Around fifth of the respondents said they would support the idea if the tax were levied on both residents and business. Among those polled, around 40% said they would approve of a new tax intended to raise defence funding. Around 16% would be in favour of the tax paid ifContinue Reading
Kaja Kallas to meet with Olaf Scholz in Hamburg on Tuesday
Prime Minister Kaja Kallas is making an official visit to the German city of Hamburg today, Tuesday, meeting with Chancellor Olaf Scholz and making a keynote speech as guest of honor at a formal ball. The head of government says that relations between Estonia and Germany, key allies, are strongerContinue Reading