Prime Minister of Estonia Kaja Kallas, during her speech at the non-governmental organization Paasikivi-Seura in Finland, said that Russia would use a peace deal with Ukraine as a pause to regroup and continue its war later.
“I really hope that Europe has learned that appeasement only strengthens the aggressor. And that the aggressor will never stop unless it is stopped.”
“As for peace, unless the Kremlin gives up on its goal of conquering new territories in Ukraine, it is difficult to believe in the prospect of any real peace talks,” she stressed.
Kallas also condemned Russian war crimes in Ukraine, including bombardments of civilian infrastructure and violence against civilians.
“This is no accident but a feature of the Russian way of war. We are witnessing state-orchestrated war crimes. The Kremlin has made it clear that it aims to wipe Ukraine off the world map.”
“Imperialism and colonialism are the Kremlin’s long-term ideologies. They did not emerge on 24 February this year. The warning signs and deeds were long there.”
As Estonia borders Russia, the policy to stop Russian aggression in Ukraine is an existential matter for the country, she said.
At the end of her speech, the Estonian prime minister called for military support of Ukraine and underlined that Ukraine should become a member of NATO.
“Ukraine has shown that this war is winnable, but it needs our support – military, political, moral, and financial. We need to be at the forefront of helping Ukraine integrate with the Euro-Atlantic community, and we should help Ukraine as an EU candidate country as much as possible.”
