President of the Republic of Finland Sauli Niinistö met President of Estonia Alar Karis on Wednesday, 11 May 2022.
President Niinistö and President Karis discussed Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine as well as security in Europe and our neighbouring areas. President Niinistö informed President Karis of Finland’s decision-making process related to the country’s potential NATO membership. President Karis expressed Estonia’s strong support for Finland and its solutions.
Before the bilateral discussions at the Presidential Palace, Presidents Niinistö and Karis participated in the 40th anniversary seminar of Tuglas Society, which promotes co-operation between Finland and Estonia, at the City Hall.
In his address at the seminar, President Niinistö noted that we are living in a new historically critical period. “By embarking on a war against Ukraine, Russia has shattered the security order of Europe. The impacts of this turbulence will be felt for a long time also in the Baltic region.”
“Small states are often seen as pawns of historical forces. But the long shared history of Finland and Estonia can also be interpreted differently: it is a story of survival and even success”, President Niinistö said.
At the seminar, contributions were heard concerning the current state of the cooperation between Finland and Estonia, and the additional value that closer cooperation between the two countries could bring in different fields of culture, language and society was discussed.
