Läänemets urges Pevkur to resign over defence concerns

Estonian Social Democratic Party chairman Lauri Läänemets has called on Defence Minister Hanno Pevkur to resign, saying he has become associated with declining public trust in national defence, ERR reported.

Läänemets said Pevkur had spent a year in the ministry without resolving or properly addressing major problems. He said Pevkur’s resignation would give a new minister an opportunity to restore confidence.

“We spend a great deal of money on national defence, and the entire field is under pressure today,” Läänemets said on the television programme Terevisioon. He added that Pevkur was personally a capable and pleasant person, but had failed to deal with important issues during his year in office.

Läänemets said that if Pevkur did not resign, the issue could eventually reach the Riigikogu, Estonia’s parliament, in the form of a no-confidence motion against the defence minister.