Roosta – On April 21st, Prime Minister Andrus Ansip gave a speech at the Higher National Defence Course held for the 18th time in Roosta, where he stressed the importance of trust in the defence policy of a country.
When talking about the significant tasks of the Estonian national defence, the head of the government pointed out foreign missions. “It is very important for a small country to participate in international missions. With this, we show our dedication to the collective defence principle,” said the Prime Minister. He added: “During the period of restoration of independence, we have received a lot of help from our Western partners. Now that Estonia is ready to provide help on security, it is our moral duty to do so,” Ansip said.
The Prime Minister also noted that the country must fulfil its international promises, which, considering the drafting of the current negative state budget, would mean keeping the defence expenses at 1.8% of GDP. “A small country does not have much to give but trust, and promises must be kept,” said the Prime Minister.
When recalling the discussions on the foreign missions of the Alliance at the NATO summit, the Prime Minister stressed that Estonia supports the improvement of military and civil cooperation in mission regions, by all means. “It is not possible to make a difference in Afghanistan by military means alone, and it has not been attempted, either. The members of the Alliance have also invested in building the civil structure of the country, but the proportion of these investments must increase,” said the Prime Minister.
Since 1999, the Ministry of Defence has been organising Higher National Defence Courses for the managers of public, private and non-profit sector organisations with the purpose of establishing a clear picture of the aspects of security and defence policy. Almost 800 people have passed the courses.
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