Prime Minister gave the Riigikogu an overview of security policy
Today, Prime Minister Kaja Kallas made a political statement to the Riigikogu. She pointed out that tensions in our region had increased to unprecedented levels, and presented proposals for the reinforcement of the security of Estonia.
“On the pretence that NATO presents a threat to Russian security, the Kremlin has reinforced its military predominance on the alliance’s eastern border,” Kallas said. “We are seeing large-scale military exercises in which aggressive scenarios are being played out and international arms control requirements are being sidestepped.”
The Prime Minister said that Russia had demanded that NATO not only halted its expansion, but scaled it back, essentially eradicating collective defence in our region. “That which we have long suspected of being the case is now very clearly being spelled out: Russia’s aim is to restore its political and military influence over its neighbours.”
Kallas assured that we would not give in to Russian demands to amend the underlying principles of European security. “Negotiations do not take place at gunpoint.” Kallas said. According to her, this could be seen in the meeting between NATO and Russia last week, in which 30 NATO allies sent out a single, resolute message: Russia has no say in the decisions NATO takes. “Estonia worked actively to ensure that NATO spoke with one voice, loud and clear,” the Prime Minister said.
She added that, considering Estonia’s geographical location and the fact that the demands that had been made partly also applied to us, we were faced with vitally important questions that would set the focus of security and foreign policy this year. The Prime Minister underlined that we must act smartly and decisively, and she introduced the Government’s four approaches:
To continue working to ensure that NATO maintains the clear line it has adopted. “We are constantly talking to our allies. We can pursue dialogue with Russia, but we will not go along with any agreement that negatively impacts Estonia’s security or undermines the collective defence offered by NATO,” Kallas said.
Second, absolute support for Ukraine. According to the Prime Minister, the European Union is working with the United States on a package of hard-hitting sanctions that will be implemented should Russia escalate its military activity in Ukraine. Besides that, in cooperation with Germany, Estonia is supplying Ukraine with a field hospital manufactured by an Estonian company.
Thirdly, the Prime Minister mentioned reinforcing the defence and deterrence position of NATO’s eastern flank at an even quicker pace.
Fourthly, Kallas pointed out that Estonia’s own contribution to security must be boosted and boosted at once, and for this reason, she had a week before given the ministers the task of collecting concrete proposals to accelerate the implementation of the National Defence Development Plan. She said that the agreement the government had reached in principle had been to extraordinarily raise spending on comprehensive national defence by 380 million euro during the upcoming years so that we would be capable of responding both promptly and effectively to military and hybrid threats. “We will boost the capabilities of the Defence Forces to be able to react rapidly and allocate a significant proportion of the additional funding to ensure sufficiency of supplies, including essential ammunition. A significant amount will also be spent on non-military developments of national defence. Among other things, we will be augmenting the abilities under the area of governance of the Ministry of the Interior to detect and promptly respond to threats. We will be reinforcing the Border Guard and civil defence. We will also be improving the secure communication solutions used by the foreign service,” Kallas said.
“These steps are also a signal to all others that we take our security very seriously and that we are prepared to match our words with actions,” she added.
During the debate, Marko Mihkelson (Reform Party), Jaak Juske (Social Democratic Party), Leo Kunnas (Estonian Conservative People’s Party), Urmas Reinsalu (Isamaa) and Enn Eesmaa (Centre Party) took the floor.
The Riigikogu passed two Acts
The purpose of the Act on Amendments to the State Export Guarantees Act (423 SE), initiated by the Government, is to create opportunities to take better account of the needs of Estonian exporters in the provision of credit insurance services guaranteed by state export guarantees, and thereby also to encourage export. The amendments to the State Export Guarantees Act can be divided in two. The majority of the amendments are necessary to create the opportunity to grant state export guarantees also under the credit insurance contracts for short-term transactions that specify an insured person other than the guarantee holder. Also, the limit on the amount of state export guarantees valid at the same time is changed: the amount is increased from the current 191,734,949 euro to 400,000,000 euro.
74 members of the Riigikogu were in favour of passing the Act.
According to the Act on Amendments to the Maritime Safety Act (470 SE), initiated by the Government, documents proving qualifications issued in EU Member States and third countries are recognised on vessels operating in Estonian inland waters. The Act transposes a relevant EU directive that harmonises the requirements for the training and professional qualifications of crew members working on inland waterway vessels. Diplomas and professional certificates valid nationally will continue to be issued pursuant to the current procedure as no transportation of goods is carried out on Estonian navigable inland waterways. Nor does Estonia have inland waterways that would allow cross-border transport or passenger transport with another EU Member State. If the crew member sailing an inland waterway vessel sails it for less than six months in a current year or has sailed it for only six months during the previous year, they have the right to sail the craft without holding a certificate of qualification. The directive does not apply to the activities of leisure, sports, fishing, research and the performance of public administration functions.
During the debate, Annely Akkermann (Reform Party) took the floor.
51 members of the Riigikogu were in favour of passing the Act.
One Bill passed the second reading
The Bill on Amendments to the European Union Common Agricultural Policy Implementation Act (439 SE), initiated by the Government, will establish the basis for the implementation of the measure activity “Support for the development of new advisors” in the Estonian Rural Development Plan 2014–2020. At the same time, on the basis of the transitional regulation, several deadlines relating to the implementation of the measures of the Estonian Rural Development Plan will be postponed by two years. Besides that, two technical amendments will be made. The Minister of Rural Affairs will be given the possibility to establish by a Regulation more specific requirements to the applicants and recipients of support in the training programme for new advisors, as well as the possibility to establish by a directive the requirements to this programme, or requirements to persons who can participate in the programme, requirements to lecturers, instructors and mentors, requirements in regard to the content of the programme, and the subject fields where the need for conducting the programme is the greatest. The amendments dealing with the deadlines relating to the implementation of the measures of the Estonian Rural Development Plan consist in giving the Minister of Rural Affairs the right to redistribute the unused budget funds of LEADER project support between the LEADER action groups in 2023, extending the deadlines relating to the use of the funds returning to the financial instrument of the Estonian Rural Development Plan by two years, and extending the final deadline of the possibility to use the so-called partially paid expense receipts implementation scheme also by two years, from 1 July 2023 to 1 July 2025.
During the debate, Merry Aart (Estonian Conservative People’s Party), Tarmo Kruusimäe (Isamaa), Peeter Ernits (Estonian Conservative People’s Party), Tarmo Tamm (Centre Party) and Aivar Kokk (Isamaa) took the floor.
Seven Bills passed the first reading
The Bill on Amendments to the Aviation Act and the State Fees Act (477 SE), initiated by the Government of the Republic, will update the provisions of the Aviation Act on groundhandling, aviation operations, including unmanned aviation, flight safety, aviation security, radio communication and the language of radio communication, and the qualifications of aviation specialists. Due to the amendments, the State Fees Act also has to be specified.
The Bill will fully transpose the relevant EU directive on access to the groundhandling market at Community airports. The amendments proposed by the Bill are necessary in order to prepare for the opening of baggage handling and ramp handling market in Tallinn Airport. The Act will be amended by adding a chapter regulating the operation of unmanned aircraft system, taking into account the European Commission Implementing Regulation on the rules and procedures for the operation of unmanned aircraft, which entered into force in 2019. This Implementing Regulation establishes the rules and procedures for the marking, identification and operation of unmanned aircraft, including the registration requirements for unmanned aircraft systems and their operators, on the basis of which the national regulation will be brought into conformity with the EU requirements.
Besides that, the purpose of amending the Act is to simplify the regulation of background checks in aviation, taking into account the new requirements for background checks in the EU.
During the debate, Aivar Kokk (Isamaa), Henn Põlluaas (Estonian Conservative People’s Party) and Mihhail Stalnuhhin (Centre Party) took the floor.
The Bill on Amendments to the Population Register Act and Amendments to Other Associated Acts (494 SE), initiated by the Government, will amend the Population Register Act, the Vital Statistics Registration Act, the Consular Act and the State Fees Act. The purpose of the amendments is automation of services, changing the system of issuing of data from the population register and finding solutions to the problems that have emerged in practice.
The main amendments in the Bill on amendments to the Population Register Act, the Vital Statistics Registration Act, the Consular Act and the State Fees Act relate to creating a legal framework for enabling automatic decisions in certain proceedings under the Population Register Act and the Vital Statistics Registration Act (e.g., registration of place of residence and registration of birth) and changing the system of competences in issuing of data from the population register. Automatic entries are entries made without the intervention of an official. For example, in certain cases, if the data on the place of residence are submitted in a safe web environment, it will be possible to make an automatic entry of registration of place of residence, which means that, in the case of some data that have been submitted through e-service, an official does not have to intervene in the proceedings and the entry into the population register will be made automatically.
Problems that have emerged in the course of daily practice and whose resolution requires amending an Act will also be solved. For example, after the registration of the birth of a child, it will be possible to submit application on admission of paternity also in a notarised form. Also, a legal basis will be provided for paying a state fee for issuing of data from the population register.
During the debate, Heiki Hepner (Isamaa) took the floor.
The Bill to Implement the European Union Cohesion and Internal Security Policy Funds for 2021–2027 (487 SE), initiated by the Government of the Republic (487 SE), initiated by the Government, will establish a national regulation for the achievement of the results planned in the Operational Programme for the Investment for Growth and Jobs and the European Territorial Cooperation and the European Union Cross-border Cooperation programmes under the Cohesion Policy of the EU budget period 2021–2027. The employment of the external support provided for the implementation of the objectives in the areas of EU migration, external borders and internal security will also be regulated.
The Bill will provide for the implementation system institutions and the procedure for the designation of the institutions, as well as the powers to establish the conditions for the grant and use of the support. The Bill will regulate the informing of the public about the grant of the support, the control and audit of the grant and use of the support, the monitoring of the performance of the projects and the specifications for filing and processing challenges.
The Bill has been drafted based on the directly applicable EU Regulations regulating the use of the supports. The Bill is proposed as an implementing Act for these EU Regulations.
During the debate, Lauri Läänemets (Social Democratic Party) and Andres Metsoja (Isamaa) took the floor.
The Bill on Amendments to the Fiscal Marking of Liquid Fuel Act and the European Union Common Agricultural Policy Implementation Act (495 SE), initiated by the Government, is intended to reduce misuse of diesel fuel marked with a fiscal marking used in the agriculture and fisheries sector and to increase the receipt of excise duty.
The current Act enables to perform only formal checking before sale and that does not ensure purposeful use of the reduced excise duty. Before sale, the buyer is required to inform the seller orally of the purpose of use of the fuel. Thus, there are actually no restrictions when buying diesel fuel for specific purposes and it is available to everyone who, at the moment of buying, says that the purpose of use of the fuel is agriculture or fisheries. As a result of the amendment, diesel fuel for specific purposes will no longer be available to all people but only to those who have the relevant right to buy it.
The Bill provides that, in order to buy and use diesel fuel for specific purposes, the right to buy diesel fuel for specific purposes will be needed and the grant of the right will be decided by the Estonian Agricultural Registers and Information Board. Thus, fuel subject to a reduced excise duty will no longer be sold to everyone who wishes to buy it. The right to buy will be granted only to legal persons and sole proprietors operating in the agriculture and fisheries sector. Before sale, the seller of diesel fuel for specific purposes will have to check whether the person has the right to buy.
During the debate, Aivar Kokk (Isamaa), Riina Sikkut (Social Democratic Party) and Merry Aart (Estonian Conservative People’s Party) took the floor.
On behalf of his faction, Kokk moved to reject the Bill at the first reading. Seven members of the Riigikogu voted in favour of the motion and 38 were against.
The Bill on Amendments to the Public Procurement Act and Amendments to Other Associated Acts (491 SE), initiated by the Government, will solve the practical problems that have emerged in the implementation of the Act and will bring the Act into conformity with the European Union public procurement directives. This includes mostly various amendments of a technical nature to improve legal clarity and to make the organisation of procurement more flexible.
The amendments concerning the award criteria, the handling of abnormally low tenders and breach of public contracts will make the public procurement procedure as well as the performance of public contracts more flexible for the contracting authorities and entities and will enable the contracting authorities and entities to take better account of the specificities of a particular public procurement and the relevant market situation when setting the public procurement conditions. The amendments concerning self-cleaning and the Single Procurement Document will reduce the workload for contracting authorities and entities as well as the administrative burden for economic operators.
Two of the amendments made on the basis of criticism by the European Commission are of a technical nature and concern the calculation of the percentage of activities performed on the open market which is one of the preconditions for cooperation between the contracting authorities and entities, and the level of precision of the description in the procurement documents in the event of innovation partnership.
Two amendments concern allowing negotiations to specify the tender with the successful tenderer in the event of competitive dialogue, which may be very important for the final layout of the terms of a public contract, considering the nature of the procedure. In the course of negotiations and the specification of the tender, the tender and the procurement documents may not be amended and it will have to be ensured that the tenderer is not placed in a more advantageous position compared to other tenderers. The amendment will allow for flexibility, which is crucial for the achievement of a high quality result where competitive dialogue is used.
The remaining two amendments concern the establishment of award criteria. Their weightings may be expressed by providing for a range with an appropriate maximum spread or, where this is not possible for objective reasons, in descending order of importance. Although contracting authorities and entities are used to fixing definite weightings to award criteria, which is also the most transparent and verifiable way and best ensures equal treatment of economic operators in the assessment of tenders, the flexibility to be added may in certain cases contribute to finding the most economically advantageous tender.
Aivar Kokk (Isamaa) took the floor during the debate.
The Bill on the Acceptance of the Amendments of 2018 to the Code of the Maritime Labour Convention of the International Labour Organization (471 SE), initiated by the Government, will accept the amendments that concern the effect of a seafarer’s employment agreement and the payment of wages to a crew member in a situation where the crew member is held captive as a result of an act of piracy or armed robbery against a ship. According to the amendments, the operator has the obligation to continue to pay wages in a situation where a crew member is held captive as a result of an act of piracy or armed robbery against a ship. The operator will then have to continue to pay to the crew member the wages, remuneration and other entitlements, whether arising under the seafarer employment agreement, a collective bargaining agreement or any enactment. The operator’s obligation will continue to have effect until the crew member is repatriated or, where the crew member dies while in captivity, until the death of the crew member.
For national implementation of the amendments, the Ministry of Social Affairs has initiated a Bill on Amendments to the Seafarers Employment Act that will amend the Act according to the amendments to the Convention. The amendments concern the operators whose ships have a maritime labour certificate.
The Riigikogu ratified the Maritime Labour Convention on 23 February 2016, and it entered into force for Estonia on 5 May 2017. The amendments to the Maritime Labour Convention will enter into force for Estonia six months after Estonia will have notified the Director-General of the International Labour Office of its acceptance of the amendment.
The Bill on Amendments to the Seafarers Employment Act (472 SE), initiated by the Government, will transpose into Estonian law the amendments to the ILO Maritime Labour Convention adopted in 2018. The amendments concern the effect of a seafarer’s employment agreement and the payment of wages to a crew member in a situation where the crew member is held captive as a result of armed robbery or piracy.
The Seafarers Employment Act will be amended by adding a provision under which the operator has the obligation to continue to pay wages in a situation where a crew member is held captive as a result of an act of piracy or armed robbery against a ship. In such a situation, the operator will have to continue to pay to the crew member the wages, remuneration and other entitlements, whether arising under the seafarer employment agreement, a collective bargaining agreement or any enactment. The operator’s obligation will continue to have effect until the crew member is repatriated or, where the crew member dies while in captivity, until the death of the crew member. The obligation to pay wages will be applied to the operators whose ships must have a maritime labour certificate under the Maritime Safety Act.
The Bill will also regulate the effect of a seafarer’s employment agreement in the event of captivity of a crew member. A seafarer’s employment agreement will continue to have effect while a crew member is held captive as a result of an act of piracy or armed robbery against a ship, regardless of whether either party has given notice to suspend or cancel the seafarer’s employment agreement, or the deadline of the seafarer’s fixed term employment contract has passed.
The explanatory memorandum notes that, in Estonia, there are currently nine operators whose ships have a maritime labour certificate. According to the Transport Administration’s knowledge, the ships of Estonian operators have had no cases that could be regarded as piracy or armed robbery in foreign waters. According to the data of the International Maritime Organization, a total of 192 incidents of piracy and armed robberies occurred in the world in 2020.
The sitting ended at 9.42 p.m.
Verbatim record of the sitting (in Estonian)
The video recording of the sitting will be available on the Riigikogu YouTube channel.
(Please note that the recording will be uploaded with a delay.)
Riigikogu Press Service
Veiko Pesur
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