Estonian ForMin deputy secgen: Ukraine’s victory underpins Euro-Atlantic security

TALLINN - Euro-Atlantic security is underpinned by Ukraine's victory and therefore, all activities should be aimed at achieving it, Martin Roger, deputy secretary general for political affairs of the Estonian Foreign Ministry, said at consultations held in Washington earlier this week.

Roger took part in security consultations in the US and Nordic-Baltic format (E-PINE), a NATO round table of the Atlantic Council think tank, and had a bilateral meeting with Acting Under Secretary for Political Affairs John Bass.

The consultations under the Enhanced Partnership in Northern Europe format covered Russia's aggression in Ukraine, hybrid threats from Russia, developments in the Indo-Pacific, situation in the Middle East, and NATO's priorities, as well as cyber and energy security issues, spokespeople for the Foreign Ministry in Tallinn said.

"Nordic-Baltic and US security are closely linked and joint discussions and cooperation are key to reinforcing it," Roger said, underlining the importance of the E-PINE consultations. The undersecretary also said it was the first time the E-PINE consultations were held in Washington with all participants being NATO allies. "The recent accession of Sweden and Finland into the alliance gives an additional dimension to the E-PINE consultations, allowing a more in-depth discussion of NATO issues," he said.

During the discussions and meetings, Roger said that Euro-Atlantic security is underpinned by Ukraine's victory and therefore, all activities should be aimed at achieving it. Discussions focused on military and political support for Ukraine, tightening sanctions against Russia, holding Russia's leadership to account for the crime of aggression and using frozen Russian assets for the benefit of Ukraine.

Roger highlighted the need to reinforce NATO's defense and deterrence posture, an important part of which is increased defense spending.

"In the changed security situation, Europe must be more serious about defending itself and filling capability gaps requires increased defense spending," the official said.

As part of the consultations, a discussion was held at the CSIS think tank on Russia's hybrid activities targeting NATO allies and how to deter them.

Consultations under the E-PINE format have been held since 2003. They include the United States, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Finland, Denmark, Iceland, Norway and Sweden.