Roberta METSOLA, President of the European Parliament, and Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister, hold a press point at the end of their meeting on the occasion of her official visit to Estonia. This transcription is a result of an automatic process. Please check against delivery.

press point

EU - Estonia (T)

official visit

METSOLA, Roberta (EPP, MT, EP President)

Tallinn

Estonia

KALLAS, Kaja (ALDE, EE)

president's agenda

Press point by Roberta METSOLA, EP President, and Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister

SOUNDBITE (English), Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister, Thank you, dear Roberta. It's my great pleasure to welcome you again here in Tallinn, especially when we are heading to the European Parliament elections. And knowing this work very well, what we have done together and the great work that you are doing now in the European Parliament. I think it's very important to raise the awareness and participation in the European Parliament elections. So, I really appreciate your efforts in doing this. Brave Ukrainians prove us every day that freedom, the choose, your future is worth fighting for. At the same time, people living under authoritarian regimes often tend to emphasise that they are from far from politics. They don't really care about politics. However, quoting Pericles, just because you don't take an interest in politics, it doesn't mean that politics wouldn't take interest in you.

SOUNDBITE (English), Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister, Luckily, EU citizens are interested. Over two thirds, 70% believe that the EU has an impact on their lives. More than half, 57% are interested in the European Parliament elections. In order for them to cast their vote, we need to show that their worries are also European worries. In recent years, the European Union has proven its ability to quickly respond to challenges beat COVID pandemic or Russian aggression against Ukraine. We have provided COVID vaccines to our population. We found ways and funds to modernise our economy and energy sector. The EU is delivering to its citizens some of the highest living standards and the lowest level of inequality in the world. We must also communicate these positive effects to our people.

SOUNDBITE (English), Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister, We have maintained our unity and provided military and economic aid to Ukraine, and by deciding to start the EU accession negotiations with Ukraine, we have also given Ukrainians crucial hope for the prosperous and secure future in the European family. I am thankful to the European Parliament and to you personally, Roberta, for your strong support to Ukraine. Important challenges lie ahead. It is necessary to deliver to our people not only hope in the better future, but also tangible benefits, including security.

SOUNDBITE (English), Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister, In Estonia, after 20 years in the European Union, support for the European Union membership has risen, even more since the 2002 and continues to be very, very strong. Many of our people see a sense of security as the key reason for European membership. The best way to secure a common future is to support Ukraine towards victory, and we all have to do more to strengthen our own defence, to free ourselves from harmful dependencies built in energy technologies or anything else, and to create secure connections to friends.

SOUNDBITE (English), Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister, The aim of Russia's shadow war against our democratic societies is to spread disinformation, create distrust, deter us from supporting Ukraine and influence democratic decision making processes. The best vaccine against such threats is to speak openly about them and remember when we make our choices. So, thank you again for coming and looking forward to your speech in Parliament.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, Thank you very much, dear Kaja. Good afternoon and thank you for your very kind words. I'm delighted to be here in beautiful Tallinn, and especially as we will celebrate, as Kaja just said, 20 years of Estonia's membership in the European Union. I know very well the huge and the positive transformation that EU membership has brought here in Estonia and all the other countries that joined in 2004. And also how Estonia helped to change the face and centre of gravity of Europe.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, I am currently in the process of visiting EU Member states in order to increase awareness about the European elections and to encourage people, particularly young people, to vote. I'm here to explain our achievements, to be honest, where we can do better and to emphasise that politics remains the best force for change in our communities. But I am mainly here to listen to the concerns and the expectations of Estonian citizens.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, After the night of June, there will be 720 members of the European Parliament coming to Brussels, seven from Estonia. Who those people are and what they stand for is in your hands. They will shape policies and adopt legislation that affect all of Estonia and Europe. And it is up to you to choose to vote. At the last European elections, only 37% of Estonians went to the ballot box. I hope this time more Estonians will make their voice heard. And this is particularly important at a time when war has returned to our continent and democracy is increasingly under threat.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, My message is to not let anyone else decide for you and do not take Europe for granted. In our discussions with Kaja today, we also spoke quite a lot about Ukraine and about the need to boost Europe's strategic autonomy, about the need for us to remain united and stand firmly against Russia's aggression. Prime Minister Kallas and Estonia have been outstanding in supporting Ukraine in per capita terms, better than most, if not all. This has really resonated across Europe and well beyond. And your commitment, your personal commitment, Kaja has inspired us all.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, We spoke about improving EU security, the needed investments in our defence industry, and about finding ways to use Russia's frozen assets for Ukraine. This remains our number one priority and I am confident that this will also be the case after the elections in June. Last word I want to thank the Prime Minister again and the people of Estonia for your leadership, for your unshakeable steadfastness, and for proving that there is no old and there is no new Europe, no big and no small states around the EU table. Thank you.

Q&A, Question regarding on President Metsola's advice on Prime Minister Kallas to become an European leader in the institutions. Second question on Prime Minister Kallas' opinion on this offer.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, So first of all, it is very early days in the process. As you will understand, all political parties are currently going through their separate processes as to who will front their election campaign, as is usually the case in the days, weeks and months are running up to the European elections. What I can say is that the Prime Minister is doing a remarkable job for Estonians and for Europeans, and she can always, always count on my support.

SOUNDBITE (English), Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister, Well, this is, I think, a great honour, not for me, but also for Estonia, because we are a small country and we have been recognised also in the Liberal family. And yes, it is true that I've been talked to regarding this that I could energise the Liberal campaign whether to do this or not. I haven't really decided yet because I am the Prime Minister of Estonia and there is no possibility for Liberals to actually be the European Commission President. So, if I would support the Liberals, then only to support the Liberals, not to be the real contender for the European Commission President.

Q&A, Question regarding on US President elections and Donald Trump programme on defense. Second question on the election of the European Commission President for next legislature.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, So, for your first question, I would very quickly say that we need to spend more on defence. This is something actually that Prime Minister Kallas has been saying ever since the Russian illegal invasion of Ukraine on the 24th of February 2022. And as we reach that very grim the second anniversary, we realise where we have succeeded in terms of having unprecedented unity packages of sanctions. That I would never have thought possible to be adopted by all 27 European Union Member states. Unprecedented speed with which a candidate country becomes a candidate country, and accession negotiations are started, as we took the decision in December.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, Where do we still need to do more? Individual countries defence spending and sending the most clear of messages irrespective of who will lead the next American administration after this jumble 2024, year of democratic processes is that we are strong enough to be able to defend each other. Any statement of that sort needs to be recognised with the danger that it brings, but also a steadfastness on our regard that we need to do more. Just in case we really need to be alone.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, In terms of timing, decision was taken for the election of the European Parliament by majority, in the Parliament and in the European Council, to be held in the second week and of June. It is the limit, in fact. I have brought the states to the European Council in order also for us to reflect. This is a decades old rule, actually since 1979, that that's the last possible date.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, The last time this happened was in 2009 and there, the election of the President of the Commission, the re-election in that case as well was in September. The treaties are very strict in terms of calendar as to when the European Parliament will be constituted, when the different individual committees are appointed. It will not be an easy Parliament to constitute after June, looking at potential polling data from individual countries. So. We will have to see the situation with which we find ourselves in and the timing. In terms of speeds, if we look at the the trend or at least the tradition to have the Commission in place by November.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, In some cases it happened, in some cases it didn't, even if the all the elections had taken place in July. What I can tell you is that the Parliament has undergone an extremely rigorous process of reform, and it is with that reform that will allow us to act with speed whenever nominees are brought to us and the decisions that are taken, which is where they are taken in the house of Democracy in the European Parliament.

SOUNDBITE (English), Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister, Well, and to add to that, I think we have been advocating for doing more in defence, and that means that all the NATO's members do more in defence. They invest more in defence to boost the defence industry in order to be stronger together. So, I think it still is the plea for for everybody to do more. And I think what the presidential candidate in America says is also something to maybe wake up some of the allies who haven't done that much.

SOUNDBITE (English), Kaja KALLAS, Estonian Prime Minister, So hopefully, hopefully we all do more and collectively we are stronger together. Of course, elections are always turbulent times. That always means there is a bit of chaos and there's also the will of the malign actors to use this time. But I must say that at least in NATO, we don't have elections, which is good. And and the European Parliament elections does not really affect that. So, I think that we are a strong NATO in our defence, in our defensive plans, that we have ready. And that doesn't really depend on any elections of our democratic allies.