We were lucky that it was Germany’s turn to seek a common position among the 27 countries of the European Union in the second half of 2020, leaving behind a year of an entirely new kind of crisis in the history of the Union with few political wounds. By comparison, the Estonian presidency of the European Council in 2017, confused by the Brexit turmoil, seems like a walk in the park.
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Russia’s military exercises, operations and defence industry exhibitions are showcasing an increasing number of unmanned aerial, land and maritime platforms. Some examples are dismissed by Western observers as evident failures and signs of unrealistic ambitions, even as a sort of “Potemkin village” display. However, there is no denying the fact that Russia’s defence leadership, military theorists and military practitioners are showing keen interest in robotic military applications featuring varying degrees of autonomy in performing their tasks.
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Despite the geographical distance between them, Estonia and Japan share many similar security challenges, such as potential destabilisation in cyberspace due to geopolitical tensions and conflicts, the vulnerability of national digital infrastructure, and the impact of cyber-attacks on trust in open, democratic societies. Tackling such challenges requires close international cooperation and the exchange of national best practices and experiences.
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Allies in the Mediterranean region rightly expect NATO to take threats and challenges from the south as seriously as they do those from the east. NATO needs to work out and to implement a comprehensive strategy and plans for the south that include concrete aims, joint actions, and resources. Alliance cohesion and solidarity depends to a substantial extent on the ability of the Allies to do this. The north-eastern flank Allies are ready to play their part, but it is the Mediterranean Allies who have the understanding and expertise necessary to define the content of a strategy for the regions they border.
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The coalition agreement of the new Estonian government formed by the Reform Party and the Centre Party contains few surprises when comparing the foreign-, security- and defence-policy-related commitments with the agreements of the previous coalitions that formed the governments in 2016–19 and 2019–21.
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Coincidence or not, the Estonian government collapsed on 13 January, soon after the presidency of Donald Trump in the US made its violent turn towards an ugly end. During the past year and eight months, Estonia experimented with a coalition including radical right-wing populists. The experiment damaged Estonia’s international reputation and its relations with allies, put pressure on its democratic institutions, and increased polarisation within society.
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China under the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is poised to become the world’s first technology enabled totalitarian superpower. No country will be untouched by this development, including Estonia, where a Chinese state-owned technology company Nuctech specialising in “security solutions” monitors cargo crossing the NATO border with Russia using a radiation-based technology originally copied from Europe.
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The brief explores reasons why the concerns, grievances and perceptions of all vulnerable societal groups should receive adequate attention if further harm inflicted by fact-free and/or fact-twisting ‘alternative realities’ is to be averted.
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On Monday 19 October, Estonia hosted the Three Seas Virtual Summit, marking the end of Estonia’s presidency of the initiative and handing over the reins to Bulgaria.
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Europe and the US have a number of common concerns caused by the rise of China that could help to repair transatlantic relations. Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries should invest in strengthening the EU’s unity and transatlantic cooperation vis-à-vis China rather than the 17+1 format.
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