New Estonian govt to continue previous foreign policy - future foreign minister
TALLINN. April 13 (Interfax) - The new Estonian government will continue the foreign policy pursued by its predecessor, future Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna said.
"Estonia has maintained consensus regarding its foreign policy goals, and I would extend my thanks to all previous foreign ministers. I will maintain that same line," Tsahkna said in an interview with the website of Estonia's ERR television and radio broadcasting company on Thursday.
The situation in Ukraine "has changed the world for good, and it is Estonia's task to make sure our allies and the West do not grow tired," he said.
In addition, he promised to pay more attention to promoting Estonia's economic interests n foreign countries. "Steps have been taken, while we have more detailed plans for helping Estonian companies go international," he said, adding that these plans could also be linked to support to Ukraine.
Tsahkna said that he generally supports the current arrangement in the European Union's foreign policy when all decisions are made in consensus.
However, the EU could consider the "consensus minus one" principle, which could help overcome the disagreement of a single member with one or another decision, when a single country blocks the operations of the entire EU, he said.
On Wednesday, the Estonian parliament empowered Kaja Kallas, leader of the Reform Party, which won the parliamentary election, to form a new government.
The government is expected to begin working on Monday after the swearing-in ceremony.
A new coalition led by the Reform Party was formed following the recent parliamentary elections on March 5 and also comprises representatives of the Estonia 200 party and the Social Democratic Party.
Moscow views current Russian-Estonian relations negatively. On January 23, the Russian Foreign Ministry lowered the level of diplomatic relations with Estonia to charge d'affaires. The ministry said such step was caused by the Estonian authorities' complete Russophobia and promoting of hostility against Moscow.
