At today’s sitting of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Riigikogu (Parliament of Estonia), members of the Committee discussed tightening the European Union’s sanctions regime with Minister of Foreign Affairs Margus Tsahkna, and underlined that European countries must reduce their strategic dependence on Russia and China.
At the meeting with the Minister, members of the Foreign Affairs Committee raised the question about the emergence of the proposal, which had reached the public, of not including the Solikamsk Magnesium Plant that supplied raw materials to the Silmet plant, and its director in the next sanctions package being prepared by the European Commission. The Minister and the officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs gave the members of the Foreign Affairs Committee an overview of the background of the decision-making process behind the preparation of the sanctions package, as well as of the strategic importance of NPM Silmet to the industry of Estonia and the whole Europe.
Members of the Foreign Affairs Committee noted at the meeting that the exclusion of the Solikamsk Magnesium Plant from the sanctions list was a very unpleasant political precedent for Estonia. They pointed out that, in cooperation with the European Commission and other Member States, it was necessary to take steps to reduce dependence on Russia and China regarding the supply of raw materials that were important to Europe. According to the members of the Riigikogu, the aim is to transform the supply chains of strategically important companies with the support of the European Commission and to open up opportunities for sourcing raw materials from other countries.
Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee Marko Mihkelson emphasised that Estonia, together with its allies, had to constantly strengthen the pressure of sanctions on Russia that was waging a war of aggression against Ukraine. “Our consistent and unwavering policy is to raise the cost of aggression for Russia. To this end, we must take active measures both at the European Union level and at home. To avoid confusing messages about our sanctions policy in the future, both the Foreign Affairs Committee and the wider public need to know about the strategically important Estonian companies that depend on Russian supplies and be aware of the potential impacts the tightening of sanctions may cause, and the steps being taken to reduce these dependencies,” he said.
According to him, Estonia has to cooperate with other countries to find ways to exert greater economic pressure on Russia and, at the same time, reduce damage to our strategic interests. “The Foreign Affairs Committee will soon hold an even more detailed discussion on the topic of sanctions,” Mihkelson said.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs attended today’s sitting of the Foreign Affairs Committee to present Estonia’s positions for the meeting of EU foreign ministers to be held on Monday in Luxembourg, where the topics will include the impact of EU enlargement on security, Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, a campaign of anti-European sabotage acts, and the situation in the Middle East.