The American presence in Estonia confirms the importance of the relationship of the transatlantic alliance and makes NATO’s defense on the eastern flank even more effective. According to Interfax, this was stated by the Prime Minister of the Republic, Kaya Kallas, after a meeting with the head of the Pentagon, Lloyd Austin.
“I thanked Secretary of Defense Austin for his and the US work to support Ukraine and strengthen NATO. Our bilateral defense cooperation and the US presence here are key to the security of Estonia and the Alliance,” Kallas said.
According to her, “the US contribution to the security of Estonia and Europe is unshakable.”
“The increased presence of US forces in Estonia and our region is a confirmation of the importance of the relationship of the transatlantic alliance and will allow us to make the defense and defense of NATO on the eastern flank even more effective,” she stressed.
The Prime Minister also called for an increase in the production capacity of the defense industry in order to provide Ukraine with ammunition.
“I presented to Minister Austin the idea, discussed with the heads of state and government of the European Union last week, to jointly organize defense procurement in support of Ukraine, and I hope that we will soon be able to promote it in the EU,” Kallas added.
In return, Austin expressed appreciation for Estonia’s significant defense spending, which has risen to almost 3% of GDP, as well as Estonia’s role in supporting Ukraine and accepting refugees.
Later, at a press conference in Tallinn, Austin said that the United States would continue to contribute to the security of Estonia “without any conditions” and called the “continued presence of US troops and HIMARS missile systems in Estonia” a good indication of this.
“The United States is firmly committed to supporting the freedom and sovereignty of the Baltic allies,” he said. Austin added that Article 5 of the NATO treaty on mutual assistance of member states in the event of an attack on one of them “holds firmly.”
Source: Rosbalt
Mario Twitchell is an accomplished author and journalist, known for his insightful and thought-provoking writing on a wide range of topics including general and opinion. He currently works as a writer at 247 news agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the industry.
