Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal said that flattering dictators only leads to humiliation, while freedom will be lost anyway in such a case. He made the comment to Delfi after reports that representatives of the U.S. Department of Defense had asked the Baltic states, including Estonia, to soften their rhetoric regarding russia, UNN writes.
Details
"Estonia, like the other Baltic states, speaks openly about the threat from russia. We held this position before and will continue to hold it," Michal said.
"At home, we hear politicians' pre-election complaints that we are not decisive enough, while from the news we learn that our allies from the largest country in the world are asking us to restrain ourselves. That is the situation we have found ourselves in," Michal said.
According to him, he had not received any such requests directly from the United States. He last met with U.S. President Donald Trump in Ankara in the summer, and the issue was not raised at all at that time.
"I am not going to restrain myself. putin is a dictator who kills women and children. And he will continue to do so until he is forced to change course," Michal added.
Deterring russia
The Estonian prime minister also listed for Delfi the measures NATO has taken in recent years to deter russia.
"Clearly, our firm position and clear statements do not give russia peace of mind," Michal said.
As the head of the Estonian government noted, putin is acting with decreasing success on the battlefield, Russian cities and ports are burning, and this is forcing him to "behave like a terrorist." At the same time, Estonia's prime minister acknowledged that the winter would be difficult for Ukraine.
Michal also noted that, together with defense spending, Estonia allocates almost 7% of its GDP to NATO needs. Thus, by defending the alliance's eastern flank, the country also contributes to the security of the rest of the world.
"An adequate assessment of threats and the willingness to call a wolf a wolf, rather than a \"forest dog,\" are necessary conditions for readiness to defend," he said.
Delfi was unable to contact Estonia's Defense Minister Martin Herem. A ministry spokesperson said that the Reuters publication was based on anonymous sources and that the ministry would not comment on it.
Reminder
Reuters reported that in recent weeks Pentagon officials had approached a number of NATO countries with a request to soften their rhetoric regarding the threat from russia, claiming that some statements by European leaders and officials had undermined the security of the continent.
According to a source cited by the publication, a Pentagon representative pointed to public statements by Europeans that russia was "cornered like a rat" as an example of unhelpful rhetoric.
It is unclear which particular statement Colby was referring to. However, at the end of September, Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal called putin "a rat in the corner," suggesting that the Russian leader was resorting to sabotage in Europe because russia was becoming increasingly bogged down in the war in Ukraine.