Russia Wants Estonian Prime Minister

Russian authorities on February 13 declared Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas a wanted person, according to AFP. The Russian Interior Ministry's wanted person database shows that Ms. Kallas is wanted under the Criminal Code but does not specify the charges.

Nga truy nã Thủ tướng Estonia- Ảnh 1. — Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas

In addition to the Estonian Prime Minister, Estonian State Secretary Taimar Peterkop and Lithuanian Culture Minister Simonas Lairys were put on Russia's wanted list. TASS news agency quoted a source as saying that the above officials were accused of "vandalizing works honoring Soviet-era soldiers".

At a press conference the same day, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Prime Minister Kallas and Baltic politicians were wanted for hostile actions against Russia and "insulting historical memory".

Estonia and Lithuania did not immediately comment on this information.

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Relations between Russia and Estonia, which has a significant Russian community, have been strained since the end of the Cold War, with Russia frequently protesting against the removal of war memorials by Estonia, which was once part of the Soviet Union, AFP reported.

Prime Minister Kaja Kallas has led the Estonian government since 2021. She is one of the European politicians who strongly supports Ukraine in the fight against Russia.

In a recent interview with the Austrian newspaper Der Standard , Ms Kallas said that Ukraine's war will continue until Russia realizes that it cannot win. The leader said that the West must continue to support Ukraine and provide everything it needs.

Specifically, when commenting on the question of whether 2024 would be the decisive year for Ukraine's fate, the female prime minister said: "The war continues. We should not fall into the traps that have been set. It would be a mistake to believe that the war can end quickly. Russia is preparing for a long war. It will last until Russia realizes that they cannot win."

In a security report on February 13, the Estonian Foreign Intelligence Service said that Russia is preparing for a military confrontation with the West in the next decade and that this can only be prevented by building up its armed forces to counter it, according to Reuters.

The assessment is based on Russia's plans to double its military presence along its borders with NATO members Finland, Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia, said Kaupo Rosin, head of the agency.

NATO underestimated Russia's military machine

The official added that the likelihood of a Russian military attack in the short term was unlikely but that if NATO was not prepared, the likelihood would increase significantly.

Mr. Rosin said that Russia’s ability to supply its troops with ammunition is still superior to that of Ukraine, and that Kyiv would find it difficult to change the situation on the battlefield without Western support. However, he predicted that Moscow would not make a breakthrough in Ukraine before the Russian presidential election in March.

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