Tsahkna says US has not urged Estonia to soften Russia rhetoric

Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna says the United States has made no official request for Estonia to change its foreign policy or how it speaks about Russia, ERR reports.

Tsahkna said Estonia is respected in the United States and across NATO because of its expertise on Russia, and that its assessments and intelligence are highly valued. He said Estonia has been clear about the threat from Russia and its aggression against Ukraine.

Estonia does not currently see Russia preparing for a large-scale attack on NATO, Tsahkna said, citing the absence of significant Russian troop movements or a buildup of military capabilities near Estonia’s borders. At the same time, he said, Russia is increasingly organising terrorist attacks and acts of sabotage in Europe. Estonia has publicly attributed these attacks and sought to punish those responsible, he added.

Tsahkna said Russia was trying to weaken Western unity by playing on fears of escalation and accusing NATO and Western countries of preparing aggression against Russia. He said Estonia remained in regular contact with the United States on security policy, the deployment of US troops to Estonia and NATO defence plans. Estonia had no interest in provoking Russia, he said, adding that the United States was a NATO ally and that Article 5 was in force.

Tsahkna said Estonia and the other Baltic states had not used aggressive messaging. Estonia’s Defence Ministry spokesperson Ines Edur told ERR that the ministry would not comment on a report based on anonymous sources and had received no such request through official channels.

Reuters reported on Friday, citing several anonymous sources, that the United States had asked the Baltic states to tone down their rhetoric on Russia and place less emphasis in public statements on the threat from Russia.