• Estonia plans to create a 'special zone' along the border with Russia

    Estonian authorities will create a special zone along the border they share with Russia. This was said by the Estonian Minister of Internal Affairs, Hanno Pevkur, during an interview with Postimees.

    “After the development is complete, there will also be a border zone in Estonia as in other Baltic states. The Latvian border zone is two kilometers wide, while the Finnish one is nearly three kilometers wide,” Pevkur said.

    According to him, the width of the zone has not been established yet. …

  • Media: The Netherlands wants to modify the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement

    According to the Austrian newspaper, Die Presse, citing Dutch diplomats, the Government of the Netherlands wants to modify certain provisions of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement. The Dutch Government intended to take such a step after the referendum in April in which the Dutch voted against the ratification of the Association Agreement.

    "The government in The Hague prefers quiet diplomacy behind the scenes. And now, when the Netherlands is holding the EU Presidency they have an opportunity …

  • Russian military aircraft violates Estonian airspace

    A Russian An-26 military transport aircraft violated Estonian airspace yesterday, according to the Estonian Defense Forces website. "At 09:51 [Tuesday], a Russian An-26 entered into the air space of Estonia near the island of Vaindloo without permission," the web message stated.

    The plane was in Estonian airspace for less than one minute. It flew with a proper flight plan and with its transponder turned on. According to the plan, the plane was to remain in international airspace. At the time …

  • US general: Eastern Europe needs a real deterrent against Russia

    Central and Eastern Europe need real military power to deter Russia, according to the Commander of US Army Europe, General Ben Hodges, Delfi reported.

    “I will not speculate on the decisions that will be made at the NATO summit with regard to the strengthening of the presence of the Alliance. However, I have advised, and I believe, that we need to achieve a real deterrence against Russia’s actions, and not a symbolic one,” Hodges said.

    He also said that the international community needs Russia …

  • Lavrov: Russia will react to NATO's activities in the Baltic region

    Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that the Kremlin will take certain measures in response to increased NATO activity in the Baltic region. According to Reuters, he said this at a meeting with Finland’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Timo Soini, in Moscow.

    Lavrov said this on the same day as NATO’s large-scale BALTOPS 16 exercises began. These involve NATO troops landing on Finnish soil for the first time.

    “We do not hide our negative attitude towards the fact that NATO is moving their …