Vilnius, Lithuania, 24 August 2018 – at today’s meeting with Benjamin Netanyahu, Prime Minister of Israel, and the prime ministers of Latvia and Lithuania Prime Minister Jüri Ratas confirmed, that the European Union needs peace and stability in its neighbouring areas and seeks to contribute to the end of the conflict in the Middle East.

The prime ministers of the four countries discussed the relations between the European Union and Israel, the security situation in the Middle East and the Baltic Sea region, and Russia’s activities near the European Union. “The activities of Russia in Syria are worrying and we follow these developments very closely,” said Ratas. 

The prime ministers had a longer discussion on how to fight terrorism, but also co-operation in the field of cybersecurity, and how to deal with disinformation. “Terrorism is global, it endangers us all, and we must fight it together. It is clear that no country is completely protected against attacks. Therefore, Estonia contributes to Operation Barkhane in Mali and Estonian Defence Forces are deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan,” said Ratas.

Estonia and Israel belong to the Digital 7, a network of leading digital governments. According to Ratas, the contribution of Israel to the security of digital identity and digital signatures will help to simplify communication between Estonia and Israel. “Hopefully, this will soon enable us to mutually recognise each other’s digitally signed documents,” said Ratas.

Ratas stated at the meeting that the head of government of Israel is always welcome in Estonia. So far, no prime minister of Israel has visited Estonia.